ACADEMY OF THE UNDEAD; BOOK TWO Stand Together ... Or Fall Together
CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Healing The Christian

The next night all the Pistols except for Elizabeth gathered in the courtyard and Piper said, “Okay, let’s go in and see our prisoner.”

“Ummm, Piper,” Vicky began, “I think we should refer to her as the Potential-newest-member-of-our-team, rather than prisoner.”

Ruby pondered, then asked, “So her current status has been officially upgraded from prisoner to potential new member?”

“Ohhh, gee, I’m not sure. Maybe it’s a discussion we can have at another time.” Vicky replied.

“No, excuse me, her current status has been upgraded, because she is actually my slave.” Aleisha corrected.

Vicky didn’t want to appear argumentative, so she offered timidly, “I would suggest that a slave and a prisoner are the same thing, so I wouldn’t call that an upgrade in status.”

“If she was anybody else’s slave, I would agree with you,” Aleisha replied, “But by me being gracious enough to enslave her, that is a status upgrade.”

“So what,” Isabelle wondered, “Should we call her Supreme Being’s new slave?”

“Don’t call me Supreme Being in public!” Aleisha snapped.

“Whoops, sorry.”

“Hey Bozo’s, how about we just go and see her!” Piper exclaimed.

The Pistols filed into the basement and looked at the girl.

Conscious of the stares, and unsettled by them, Giddy snapped, “What ya all gawking at?” Aleisha raised her eyebrows in surprise, and Giddy back-tracked quickly. “Ohhh, not yo Mistress, I mean a thousand apologies, cause’n yo can gawk.”

“Apology accepted.” Aleisha replied.

“Fuck me!” Piper laughed.

Giddy looked at Aleisha and asked, “Shim gotta apologise for swearing too?”

Aleisha cocked her head and asked, “I beg your pardon?”

“Shim gotta apologise for saying Fuck me?” Giddy asked timidly.

“Fuck.” Isabelle muttered.

Giddy pointed at Isabelle and asked, “And shim too for saying Fuck?”

“Ohhh, Isabelle suffers from Tourette’s Syndrome, and she can’t help it.” Aleisha advised.

“Is’n that when a person says Fuck all the time?”

“Yes, something like that, and in our group, Piper and Isabelle are the only foul-mouthed ones.” Aleisha replied.

“Hey Camel, you’ve let the occasional swear word slip out.” Piper pointed out.

“It may have occurred, but-”

Giddy was confused and she butted in, “Mistress …”

“What Beast?”

“What’n shim call you?”

“What does shim mean?” Ruby asked.

“My presumption is that it means she.” Aleisha replied, then she turned her attention back to Giddy and said, “Camel, she called me Camel.”

“Want me to pluck shim’s eyes out?”

“No, I don’t, because Camel is kind of like my nickname in this group.”

Still confused, Giddy squeaked out, “Mistress …”

“What?”

“Yo look more like a Mistress than a Camel.”

“Yes, I tend to agree with you.”

“So do I.” Ruby stated.

“So how come shim calls yo Camel?”

“This’ll be good.” Piper smirked.

“Ohhh yes, well, you remember last night when I took my jacket off, you know, the panties …”

Giddy thought about it, then she asked, “Shim call yo Camel cause’n yo wear tiny undies?”

“Hells Bells, ummm, you know, the tightness of my panties, I mean think about it, and goodness me, you were staring at my groin for long enough.”

“Tight panties?” Giddy wondered.

“Sheesh!” Piper huffed, “Camel-toe, Camel, understand? Most of the times that Came … errr, your Mistress has got clothes on, the clothes are so tight that she’s almost flashing the gash!”

Giddy glanced at her Mistress, her Mistress standing before her in very, very tight leggings. Giddy nodded, then asked, “Mistress yo, me’s should call yo Camel too?”

“Did she mean Camel-toe?” Ruby asked.

“No, stick with Mistress please Beast.” Aleisha said, and then added, “And stop saying yo.”

The Pistols filed out of the basement and Vicky turned to the girl and said, “I’ll come back later and bring you something to eat.” Then she closed the door.

Vicky was relieved that the girl was coming around, and she wanted to tell Elizabeth about the positive news. She turned to the group and asked, “Does anybody know where Beth is?”

“Gee Goody, maybe take a guess.” Isabelle said sarcastically.

“By Mel’s plot?”

“She’s there all the time, so that was a good fucking guess.”

“Actually, I think Beth is getting better because I’ve seen her walking around and doing things.” Vicky replied.

Aleisha thought about it, then pondered. Elizabeth had started doing things, although most of the things were a bit weird. She didn’t really want to tell the group about the strange things she had witnessed, then again, by bringing Elizabeth’s behaviour out into the open, maybe the group could work on ways to help her. Without her usual confidence, Aleisha said, “Vick, she is starting to do things, but most of the things she does are pretty strange.”

“Yeah,” Ruby agreed, “We saw her walking around, and I said, Hi BB, what are you doing? She said that her and Mel were just reminiscing about the early days.”

“Yes, and I saw one time and she said that Mel and her were wandering around the training course and talking about all the fond memories.” Aleisha added.

“Hmmm, I seen her once and I asked, What ya doing? And she said Mel wants to go into town, so they were making plans to go in next week.” Piper muttered.

“Yeah, I saw her in Mel’s room once, and I said, What’s going on? And she said Mel wants to redecorate her room.” Isabelle mumbled.

“Miss LizzyBethy very sad.” Sophia said solemnly.

“I overheard her talking to herself recently, and she was telling Mel that when we have our next mission, they should team up again because they work so well together.” Aleisha advised.

“I was out walking recently, and BB said, Isabelle don’t walk there! I was confused, so I said, What’s the matter? She pointed to a spot and said, That’s where Melanie fell, so you’re not allowed to walk there! And of course, the next night she cordoned the area off.”

“I was wondering what that was,” Piper began, “I’m getting worried about her, because she’s acting really strange.”

“Really fucking strange,” Isabelle agreed, “And I was wondering whether she’s flipped out.”

“I’m concerned that she’s losing her grip on reality.” Ruby stated.

“Yeah, someone’s gotta speak to her and get her to accept that Mel’s gone.” Piper agreed.

“Yes, so go and speak to her Vicky.” Aleisha advised.

“Me?”

“Yes, you!” Aleisha replied. “I am more than capable of dealing with any physical issues, but you’re the one who needs to deal with any emotional issues.”

“Why me?”

“Why; because you’re a leader.”

Vicky glanced at her partner and said, “Piper’s a leader too.”

“Vick, get real,” Ruby began, “You’re kind and compassionate and caring, while Piper is, is errr … well Piper isn’t.”

“Yeah fuck me Goody, Piper’s way of dealing with things is to shout and scream and carry on like a cock-sucker.” Isabelle advised.

“That’s true,” Aleisha agreed, “I can handle the physical issues, Piper is very good at screaming and shouting and carrying on like an idiot, but you are the sensitive one in the group, so piss off and start working your magic.”

“Well I was planning to see her anyway,” Vicky began, “Beth’s behaviour is a bit unusual, but I don’t think it’s any cause for concern, because she’s just dealing with the loss in her own way.”

“I’m concerned about her.” Piper stated.

“Me too, I mean what if she starts acting even weirder?” Ruby offered.

“Yeah, we don’t want her going crazy.” Isabelle agreed.

“Miss LizzyBethy not crazy, just very sad.” Sophia advised.

“So Great Leader, go and work your magic,” Aleisha suggested, then she added, “Ohhh, and tell her that if she wants to cuddle up or whatever, she knows where to replace me.”

“Huh?” Piper wondered, “I thought your roster was suspended for two weeks.”

“All snot-rags are banned for two weeks, although I don’t count Beth as a snot-rag.” Aleisha replied.

“I’ll tell her Aleisha, but I think she’s got other things on her mind.” Vicky said as she walked away.

Elizabeth was sitting by Melanie’s plot, so Vicky wandered over and sat down next to her. “Hi Beth.”

“Ohhh, hello Vicky.”

“How you doing?”

“Hmmm, okay.”

Most avenues of polite conversation were failing to gain Elizabeth’s full attention of recent times, although fortunately on this night, Vicky did have a different avenue to stroll down. With her arms folded on her bent knees, Vicky said, “The girl, the girl in the basement is finally coming around.”

“Ohhh, that’s good.” Elizabeth replied quietly.

“Yes, an overdue but welcome development.”

“What happened?”

“Aleisha used her, errrr … charms.”

“Ohhh, I didn’t realise that Aleisha had a charming side to her personality.”

“Yes, well, she used her physical charms to settle the girl down.”

“Ohhh,” Elizabeth began in surprise, “She blew her off?”

“Hmmm, I guess that pretty much explains what happened.”

“So you’ve released her?”

“No, not at the moment, although this was a positive step forward.”

Elizabeth gazed out into the night and said, “I’m pleased Vicky, because I’m not comfortable about keeping the girl locked up.”

“Livinia doesn’t want her released until we’re certain that she doesn’t present a danger to us, but like you, I’m hoping that we’ll release her sooner rather than later.”

“I guess that’s fair enough.” Elizabeth replied, then she said, “I might go and see her.”

“Really?” Vicky asked in surprise.

“Yes, I should go and see her and get to know her.”

“I’m sure she’d love to meet you,” Vicky said politely. “Would you like me to come with you?”

“Thanks, but I’ll see her by myself.” Elizabeth replied as she stood up. “When you think about it, me and the girl are in a similar position, because we have both lost people dear to us, so maybe we can comfort one another and talk about our feelings.”

Vicky bit her bottom lip, then said quietly, “Ummm, Beth, the girl, she’s not really like you, I mean she seems to be dealing with her grief in a different manner than the way you are.”

“I will go and see her, and I will offer my comfort and support, because I understand what the poor girl is going through.”

Vicky hugged her and crooned, “You are a beautiful person Elizabeth.”

“Thank-you Vicky,” Elizabeth replied bashfully, “If one has the opportunity to shine a light in another person’s gloomy world, well my Christian faith has taught me that you grasp the opportunity and shine that light.”

“Yes indeed,” Vicky responded, “Although for your first meeting with her, I should come with you.”

“No, I would prefer to see her by myself.”

“Okay, call me if you need me.”

“I will.” Elizabeth replied, then she turned to face the plot. “Mel, I’m just going to see the girl in the basement, but I’ll be back soon.”

Vicky stood in embarrassed silence for a moment, but when Elizabeth began to move, Vicky grabbed her right hand and walked with her.

As they began walking, Elizabeth said quietly, “Vicky …”

“What Beth?”

“I’m not crazy.”

Vicky bit her bottom lip, then said, “Ohhh, you heard us?”

“Yes I did.” Elizabeth replied.

“Beth, they weren’t being mean, they’re just concerned about you.”

“Yes, I do realise that,” Elizabeth replied, “But you were right, because I am dealing with this in the only way I know.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“No, not at the moment,” Elizabeth began, “I know Mel’s gone, and I know she won’t be coming back, but keeping her alive in my mind is making my nights more bearable.”

“I understand, I do.”

Elizabeth assumed that the others might still be listening, so she called out, “And you guys, you’ve all been wonderful, and I apologise for being so distant lately.”

Piper, Isabelle, Ruby, Aleisha and Sophia all cringed, all of them experiencing varying levels of guilt for eavesdropping, although Ruby thought a response was appropriate, so she said sheepishly, “You don’t have to apologise BB.”

“Ohhh, yes, but just know that even though I’m not showing it, you guys are helping me, and I love you all.” Elizabeth called out.

“Miss LizzyBethy, we love vous too.” Sophia said emotionally.

Aleisha was concerned about Elizabeth meeting the wild beast by herself, so she called out, “Beth, I’ll come with you.”

“Thank-you for the offer Aleisha, but I’d prefer to see her by myself.”

“Arhhh Beth, she’s a bit of a loose cannon, but I know how to calm her down, so I should come with you.”

“Thank-you again, but I’ll be fine.”

“Okay, call me if you need me, and Beth …”

“What?”

“I do have a charming side,” Aleisha began confidently, “I mean I can the charm the pants off anyone.”

Elizabeth and Vicky looked at one another and giggled, then Elizabeth called out, “I’m at the door, so I’ll go in and see her.”

“Good luck!” Piper cried out.

“Call me if you need me!” Aleisha yelled.

“Shit-fuck, do you think she’s gunna be alright?” Isabelle asked.

“Yeah, yeah, the bitch is still chained up.” Piper advised.

Elizabeth hugged Vicky and said, “I’ll see you soon.”

Vicky nodded weakly as Elizabeth opened the door, walked in, then closed the door. Vicky experienced a moment of hesitation, because while Aleisha had calmed the girl to a certain extent, this meeting had disaster written all over it. Vicky remembered the creature lunging at her, her fangs bared and her face knitted in a hostile scowl as she hurled threats and abuse at her, and maybe the last thing Elizabeth needed was to be bombarded by obscene phrases that even made Isabelle blush. Vicky wanted to call out, Are you okay? But get real yeah, the basement was the only sound-proofed room on the property. Vicky admonished herself for being so polite and obliging, because she knew that this was the occasion where she should have put her foot down and said boldly, No, I’m sorry Elizabeth, I am a leader of this team and I am coming in with you! Vicky leant back against the wall, and she thought she may as well get comfortable, because she’d made a decision; I am not moving until she comes out.