The Wrong Sister

That afternoon, as faithfully as ever, Lisa paid me a visit. I was leaning against the brick courtyard, gazing up at the momentarily sunny sky, wondering what kind of future was in store for me. “How is my sweet little cherry pie today?” Lisa asked cheerily, planting a kiss on my lips. I tried not to move as she stood close, one forearm resting against the rough brick. She didn’t tower over me, but she was still noticeably taller. And sexy as hell, just like always. “I’m homesick. I miss you. I miss my hamster. I miss Stacey. I miss Henry. I miss not being in a hospital room and not eating hospital food,” I said, wiping away a tear that was anything but an act. I just didn’t miss her, of course. “Aw, I know,” Lisa cooed, and I realized how sincere she might seem to a casual observer. “I just want to come home, Lisa. I don’t see why I have to stay here any longer. It’s been over a week already.” “Well, I’ve got great news for you, sweet pea.” I looked at her expectantly. “Hasn’t the doctor been around to speak to you yet?” “No. Why?” “Because you’re going to be discharged in a couple of days.” My heart skipped a beat. Not before I could escape! Lisa looked at me curiously. “This is the part where you’re supposed to jump up and down and get all excited.” “Oh, oh, I—I am. I am! I’m just surprised. Not sure why the doctor didn’t tell me first.” “You were probably downstairs having lunch, but it doesn’t matter which one of us learned first. You’re out of here in two days.” “Wow, I’m just amazed. I mean, of course I’m thrilled. You made my day. I’m just a little surprised the doctor told you first.” “Uhhh, well, maybe because I’m your husband and that might have something to do with it,” Lisa said with a smile. I faked a laugh, knowing my acting was pathetic. I had to say something more convincing, appear more enthusiastic. “This is great! This is just great. Can we order my favorite pizza when we get home?” “We sure can. We can do anything you want, but there are some conditions you’re going to have to abide by.” “Sure, no problem. What do I need to do?” “You need to start taking some responsibility here and stop putting all the blame on others.” What the fuck was she talking about? “I don’t get it. What are you saying?” “Oh, let me refresh your memory. You hit me. You threw the first punch. Remember that, Shay? You made the first move, probably figuring I would just take it because I’m bigger and stronger. I hit back to teach you a lesson. That lesson being: just because you couldn’t hurt me didn’t mean it was okay to throw punches every time you blew your top or couldn’t get your way.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing… though I could. I stared at her, awed and frightened by the sudden shift in mood. “You never would have been here had you not raised a hand to me. I know most people would say two wrongs don’t make a right and that someone my size shouldn’t pick on you, but if I’m ever hit, kicked, or punched again, I’ll return it tenfold. I won’t care what society thinks, and I won’t even care about the law. Remember, I am the law, little lady. It’s okay to get mad, but never raise a hand to me. Ever. If you can do this simple thing, there’s no reason things can’t go back to the way they were before. And I think we both agree we were very happy then.” She was out of her mind if she thought things could ever be like they were before. “But I didn’t hit you, Lisa,” I said softly, not wanting to ruffle her feathers, but not wanting to be blamed unfairly either. “Oh, you didn’t?” she challenged. “Lisa,” I said, gently running my hands along her arm, “you wouldn’t let me out that night, remember? It was when I tried to push past you that you went off on me. I didn’t actually attack you.” She gazed down at me, eyes cutting through me like lasers. In a perfect world, she would get pissed off enough to abandon me. But there was no such thing as a perfect world. “Why don’t we just agree to disagree and move on?” she finally said. “Okay. And I promise never to raise a hand to you under any circumstances. Swear you’ll never hurt me either?” “I swear.” “It’s just that you get so mad at times lately.” “I said I swear.” “Communication is important.” She said nothing, gazing around at the other patients and their visitors. “I want you to promise not to be so controlling. I understand you were looking out for me that night, but I have to make mistakes just like anyone else. If I make a mistake, it’s my mistake to make, right?” “Yeah, I get your point. But what if I wanted to jump off a bridge or do something that could hurt me? Would you just stand by and say, okay, it’s your choice?” Actually, I would. Gladly. I gave a laugh. “No, I don’t suppose I would. So, what time will you be picking me up in a couple of days?” “I don’t know. Why?” “So I can have fun counting down the minutes.” “I can’t give you an exact time, babe. You know my schedule is unpredictable.” “Yeah, I do. I can’t wait to get back to teaching. I hope my students haven’t been worried about me.” “No. I let the parents know you needed a little break, but you’d be back soon.” “Oh, good.” “There’s one other thing I’d like you not to do when you get back home.” “What is it?” “You’re welcome to keep a journal all you want, but I’d prefer it be kept offline. As a detective’s wife, it’s always safer to keep personal things private. Really private. So I’d appreciate it if you wrote in Word or something like that.” “Okay. I can do that.” She looked at me again, and I found her very hard to read. “I just feel so bad.” “Yeah, me too, but we’ve got to move on. No sense dwelling on it.” “No, I mean about your family. We haven’t visited them, and they haven’t visited us. I feel like I’ve robbed you of your family.” “Well, don’t. It was their decision to sever contact when I took you.” “Yeah, the evil ‘grown-up child’ that should have been the one to lose her life and not Stacey.” Lisa looked annoyed instead of feeling bad. The truth was, I didn’t give a shit about her or her family. I was just trying to be more convincing—and obviously saying all the wrong things—so I needed to shut the hell up. “Look, Shay, I wanted you, and I took you. It’s as simple as that. If they can’t live with it, that’s their problem. Not ours.” I realized Lisa was probably used to taking what she wanted, and I wondered how much she really missed Stacey. After all, if Stacey hadn’t died, she wouldn’t have gotten me. I knew without a doubt she wanted me long before the accident. Stacey. Lisa. Stacey. Lisa… so damn different.Why had Lisa turned out so badly while her older sister had been productive before her life was snatched away? Had Lisa been spoiled because she was the youngest? But what did I really know about Bennie and Marcy? Just because I’d lived in their town for a year didn’t mean I’d spent much time with them. Maybe they were just as fucked as Lisa, though I seriously doubted it. “Will you come see me tomorrow?” I asked. “Of course.” What a stupid question. “Has anyone else been to see you?” Uh-oh. “Just the doctor.” “The doctor here or Dr. Lacayo?” “Both, though I only talked to them for like two seconds.” “Oh?” I nodded. “I’m far from their only patient.” She looked at me a little funny. Please don’t tell me this bitch knows something’s up, I thought. But she didn’t press. Instead, she said, “The nurse at the desk said you had some anxiety last night, and I was wondering why.” “No particular reason. You know it’s a medical disorder that usually triggers it rather than events. It’s getting less and less, though.” We made small talk for a while, and at the end of the visit, she kissed me while I forced myself not to pull away. I focused on her outer beauty, not her inner ugliness. “Can’t wait to come home.” “M-hm,” she said, almost skeptically. “Just remember our deal.” “I will. And you remember it, too.” She smiled with genuine amusement for the first time since things turned sour, and then she was gone. After she left, I ran to the phone and called Dr. Lacayo’s office. I had to alert her to the release date right away, assuming she wasn’t already aware of it.