Things

We stopped in a Victorian-esque dining room. It was definitely beautiful, the decorations were breathtaking, yet I couldn't see how the chandelier was still hanging from the rotting ceiling. Luther and Zed sat at the large table, playing poker, drinking beer and smoking cigarettes. Dale wheeled me to an empty area at the table and sat down next to me. He laid his hand on my lap and looked at me with a slightly forgiving look in his eyes. He reached around my shoulder, and I cringed, squinting my eyes completely shut. I heard another cock of the gun that lied on the back of my head. He ripped it out of the rig that held it to the chair and laid it in front of me. I cried in relief. But my head was still limited to movement.

"Darlin', your beautiful hair is tied to the rig, not the trigger. You can calm down, now, child", he said with a sad look. As he still stared at me, he slipped his fingers behind me again and released my hair with one swift movement. I threw myself forward, and he slid me back so I didn't bash my head against the table. The feeling of being able to move overtook my body, and my stiff neck popped and cracked as I lifted my head up. Luther began to snicker.

"Luther, you shut the fuck up!" Dale exclaimed, slamming his fist on the table, glaring. Luther cleared his throat and looked back down at his cards before throwing them in the middle of the table, folding. Dale scooted his chair closer to me and laid his hand on my lap once more. I jumped.

"Ain't nothin' to be scared of, we're fixin' to be eatin' soon, child", Zed remarked smiling, running his tongue over his rotting teeth. The old woman who was knitting before began to bring in plates full of food. The smell overtook me, and as she sat a single plate in front of me and Dale, I couldn't help it anymore. He had tightened the grip on the cuffs earlier, so the pain of moving my hands and wrists were too much for me to handle. He picked up his fork and began to cut into the steak. It all looked and smelled delicious, and my growling stomach could be heard over the prayers that the woman began to chant before she dug in. The "Doctor" walked in, looking as if he was about to just fall apart if he took a wrong step. He sat down next to the woman and kissed her on the cheek, and filled the empty spot next to her. There was still one chair left empty. I thought, maybe it used to be Dale's wife's spot. I started to feel bad for some reason. He pushed some potatoes onto the piece of meat and held it up to me.

"Here yah go, baby girl, yer gonna need yer strength", Dale said, sounding sympathetic for my torture. I took a bite. I couldn't help it. I was starving. The sound of someone hitting the table made me jump again.

"Dammit, where the fuck is Tammy at? Her dinner's gon' get cold and then we're gon' have to feed it to those damned dogs again!" Zed yelled. Who is Tammy? "I told yens, y'all shouldn't have let that little bitch go to the city, her brain's turnin' to mush by the minute!"

"Calm down, Edward, she'll be a comin' home anytime now," the woman said, trying to settle the argument.

A door slammed. The sound of heels could be heard coming from the living room, approaching the dining area. The double doors swung open. Jamie walked in and sat at the table. What the fuck!? Why is Jamie here, just nonchalantly sitting at the table and saying a prayer? Why were they calling her Tammy? She finished her prayer and began to eat. Zed and Luther glared at her.

"I was walking around. You all know I take walks. What's the big fucking deal?"

"I was about to eat your dinner, missy, that's what the big fuckin' deal is", Zed snorted, mocking her in a funny voice. I couldn't believe my eyes, but I was too scared to say anything. I didn't want the gun sitting in front of me to be picked up for any reason. I looked up at Jamie...or, Tammy, with disbelief.

"What are we going to do with her?"

"None of yer damn business, bitch. I'll deal with her, you missed out. Eat your fucking dinner and be quiet", Dale exclaimed loudly. She made a face and kept eating. "I didn't think she would taste good, she was too skinny, too damn chink." With that, I vomited on the floor again. I just took a bite of Annabelle. I heard a whisper in my ear. "That's not what you think it is", said Dale. "She's tryin' to scare yah, don't listen to her." So now he's trying to reason with me!? What the fuck is going on!?

"Tammy, if you woulda stuck around instead of bein' a sneaky little rat, mama cooked a damn good pot roast and steak for dinner. That's saved for later, yah hear? Keep yer mouth shut!" Luther said. They didn't seem to like her too much. I started to cry. I didn't know who to believe. I refused to eat. Dale looked at me with the saddest eyes and continued to try to reassure me that everything was okay, but I just cried. Cried, and cried. He stood up, took Tammy by the hair and bashed her face against the table.Her nose began to bleed profusely. "Why can't you be normal when we have company?"

He walked over to me, running his hands through my hair, and started to wheel me out of the room. He brought me to the living room, where he placed me next to the couch, and he sat down next to me. He glared at me. But not in an angry way, just an empty glare.

"There's one last thing I need to show you." Oh no. Andy...

"Is...is...where...wh-wh-where..."

"Baby girl, yer in shock. You don't need to be tryin' to speak so quickly. Now, darlin', what is yer boyfriend's name?"

"Ma-Ma-Mark."

"No, now see, that's not the name that Tammy there gave us. Who do we have behind door number three?"

"A-a-an-an-Andy. I-I think."

"That's what I was lookin' for, thank yah, beautiful. Yah see, Andy, he's still kickin'. Which i'm sure makes yer world a lot less scary now, am I right?" I nodded gently. "So, i'm guessin' you know what's comin'." I shook, but nodded again, slowly.

"Well either you'll be surprised, or devastated, but all of those happenin's is up to you."

What does he mean, happenings? I wondered what state Andy was in right now. What could he be thinking, seeing, doing. Is he really alive, or just barely holding on? What's going to happen to me?

"Let's go."