Page 53 of Waste
“I found you after the accident, and we became friends,” Drew said as Waste raised its head. The sheer glee Waste emitted was overwhelmingly indecent. Drew slapped the Sin back, but Waste continued to gloat. He had to question why, because Drew was experiencing a terrible feeling right now. Something wasn’t right, and Drew did not know what.
“I don’t know you,” Shelley replied, shaking her head. She looked at Drew with no other emotion than confusion and a little bit of fear.
“Mum, I don’t remember him or the accident. What’s going on?” Shelley demanded tearfully.
“I’ll remove myself for now. The last thing I want to do is upset Shelley,” Drew said, seeming so caring and reasonable.
“Thank you, Drew. Please hurry the doctor, if you see him; this memory loss is confusing Shelley,” Gail said, continuing to offer comfort.
Drew nodded goodbye, and with one last look at Shelley, left the room. Lilith’s spell had clearly done its job, but why was Drew so miserable that Shelley didn’t remember him?
Shelley
She watched Drew go with relief. Once he was gone, she turned to Gail. “I want to go home. I don’t understand any of this.”
“Shelley. Let me explain what has been going on,” Jake said with a sigh. Shelley looked at her dad, noting how old he was looking, and guilt swamped her. This was all taking a toll on her family, and Shelley wished to spare them further grief. She listened as Jake carefully explained what had happened, and while Shelley was aware of everything, she pretended to be unaware. She had to. Guilt swamped her, but Shelley kept up with the memory loss.
Hopefully, Drew would believe her and disappear from their lives again. Shelley shed some tears and pretended to need the rest. She had to gather her thoughts as things were overwhelming her. It was not decidedly too much for her to handle.
Shelley closed her eyes and sought clarity, because that was what would save everyone moving forward.
???
“Dad, I’m not going home with him; I don’t know him,” Shelley said two days later. She’d undergone a barrage of tests around her alleged memory loss, which resulted in her feeling guiltier, but she kept quiet. Drew had been to visit several times, and she gazed at him blankly. He’d appeared distressed by her lack of recognition, which made Shelley want to scratch his eyes out. She felt nothing but disdain for how he’d played her. It was manipulative and cruel.
“Shelley, the man has been looking out for you—”
“Dad! No! He’s a stranger. Drew means nothing to me,” she hissed and saw movement out of the corner of her eye. Drew flinched at her harsh words, but he deserved them. Under that handsome visage was a creature she’d thought held a heart. She’d clearly been mistaken, and Shelley was kicking herself for believing otherwise.
Ghoul or Drew, whatever he wanted to call himself, had been prepared to let his friends mess with her mind. Worse, he’d have let them kill her. What type of person did that? Allowed that? A monster. Ghoul hadn’t lied when he claimed he was one. Shelley had removed her rose-coloured glasses and saw him for what he was.
“Sweetheart, we just want to keep you safe.”
“Well, we can do that at home. I’m not running off with a total stranger. How do we know he’s not behind this?” Shelley demanded as she packed the last of her things into a bag.
“Drew’s not, I can assure you of that,” Jake retorted.
“Good. I don’t like, trust, or want to be around him. I’m going home and locking myself away behind closed doors.”
“If you won’t go with Drew, come home with me,” Jake said.
Shelley looked her father in the eye. “Will you stop going on about Drew?”
“Yes.”
“Fine, I’ll come home with you. Has the police inspector got back in touch?”
“No, DI Wilson hasn’t contacted us with any information,” Jake replied and took Shelley’s holdall. As they both turned, they spotted Drew standing there. The look on his face would have cut Shelley if she hadn’t realised what a liar he was.
“Would you not consider coming with me? I can provide security for you,” Drew offered. “Charlie, naturally, would be welcome too.”
“Sorry. No. Honestly, you might be a nice guy, but I don’t know you from Adam. Thank you, though, for everything you had done for me. That was decent of you.”
“Shelley, I’m not comfortable letting you go like this,” Drew pushed.
Shelley released a loud laugh. “I beg your pardon? This may seem rude, but why should I be worried about your opinion?”
“Because I care.”
