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“What are you talking about? What demons?”
“I’m special,” he spat.
“Well, which is it? Are you special or do you have your demons?”
“It’s both,” he told her, regret in his voice.
“You listen to me, Jims. You do not have demons. You are not special.”
“Thanks. I think.” His voice was louder. He must’ve closed some of the distance between them. “You’re special, too.”
“And what makes me special?”
“You know. Those of us who are chosen know why we’re chosen. It’s not anything we’re supposed to discuss.”
“Then by all means, let’s talk about it. We don’t have anything else to do.”
He snickered. “I always liked you, Heather. You’re a cool gal. You play by your own rules.”
“Yeah and look where that got me.” Something struck her as peculiar then. “Jims, how long ago did Toms leave?”
“You mean after he dropped the water?”
“Yeah.”
“Not long. Why?”
“You were talking out of your head. Crazy shit.”
“Oh you mean the whole ‘wanna smoke’ bit?”
“Yes. What was that?”
“An act,” Jims replied. “Sorry I couldn’t tell you about it beforehand. I wasn’t sure if Toms was up there listening or not.”
“How do you know he’s gone now?”
“It’s about lunchtime. Ever known a Vance brother to miss a meal?”
“Now that you’ve mentioned it? No.” A beat later she added, “Why put on an act?”
“Because if I don’t? They’ll come down here and drug me again.”
“You didn’t take the drugs on your own?”
“Toms told the truth. I used your ordeal for my benefit and relapsed. They were tied up with you and weren’t watching the stash so I got high. They found me, pumped me full of more heroin and here I am. Just because I had a setback doesn’t mean I want that shit. I don’t want to live an addict’s life anymore.”
“I know,” Heather said, feeling so sorry for him then. The others always poked fun at Jims. They were downright mean to him at times. “You aren’t a bad person, Jims.”
“That’s where you don’t know the truth, Heather,” he said, a darker quality to his voice.
“Want to talk about it?”
“Sure. But I doubt you do.”
Chapter Four
“So this is how it works. They open up the top of the well, let you see the blood and guts on these walls, and then they’ll tell us to fight to the death.” Jims took a heavy breath and hurriedly added, “I’ll win. You’ll lose. But here’s what they haven’t told you—or me for that matter—but I’ve watched it nearly a dozen times.
