Chapter thirty-eight: Skylar Royce
Skylar and Ryder snuck into Ms. Laurence’s office; it was dark and fairly empty.
“Where should I look?” Ryder asked.
“Check those cabinets over there and I’ll check these ones over here,” Skylar announced as she walked toward Brooke’s mothers’ desk and riffled through the paper sitting right on top.
“How will I know if I found it?” Ryder asked.
“If you find any papers with patient and then a number beside it at the top then that would most likely be it and so sit them on top of this desk here and we’ll go through them,” she said motioning toward the desk she was currently looking through. There were a lot of manila folders with random dates on them. “Also look for something with an older date; she has these things organized so most likely the date for which Hanks file would be under would be a lot older.
“In that case I think I found it,” Ryder announced as he got to his feet.
“Really? Bring it here,” she said as she walked over toward Ms. Laurence’s couch. Ryder sat down beside her and handed her the file.
“This is dated all that way back to—” Before Ryder could finish his sentence the front door of Ms. Laurence’s office flew open.
“Hey, what are you kids doing in here?” a security guard said as he stood in the entrance of the office. Skylar took the file from Ryder and stood.
“We were just leaving,” she announced to the unconvinced guard.
“What is that you got there?” he asked motioning toward the file Skylar tried unsuccessfully to hide.
“It’s nothing like she said we’ll just be going,” Ryder said as he walked toward the guard.
“I don’t think so,” the guard announced. He touched the little walky-talky thingy he had hanging on the end of his brown buttoned down security shirt, “I’m gonna need more security down here,” he said as he kept his eye on the two of them.
“That won’t at all be necessary,” Ryder said as he dared take another step toward the guard.
“Stay right where you are,” the guard said as he took out his night stick and threatened to hit Ryder with it.
“Come on Sky we’re leaving,” Ryder said as he held out his hand for her to take. Skylar wasn’t sure what was about to happen but she took his hand anyway. He called her Sky, she thought to herself with a faint smile.
“Hey, stay right there,” the guard said raising his night stick a bit farther. Skylar could see over the guards shoulder that more were fat approaching and that there was no way they’d be able to get passed them all. Skylar let go of Ryder’s hand and before he could protest she began to possess the guard’s body. She hadn’t done this in so long so it was a bit uncomfortable and unfamiliar at first but when she was sure she was able to control him she turned toward Ryder and grabbed him by the upper arm and turned him so that all of the other guard could see him.
“False alarm boys, I got this one,” Skylar made the guard say as she led Ryder down toward the lobby of the building.
“Hey,” one of the guards called out to him. “How are things going with you and the fam?” he asked.
“Everything’s…fine,” he made the guard answer.
“Are you sure?” the man asked.
“Yes, I’m sure now let me take care of this and you can question me later,” Skylar snapped.
“Alright boss I was just wondering,” the guard said before turning to leave. Skylar lead Ryder outside and behind the building as she tried to exit the guard’s body.
“Don’t do that again,” Ryder said as she righted herself.
“Fine but you can’t say that that wasn’t a good idea,” she said with a slick smile.
“What are you going to do with him?” he said motioning toward the knocked out guard behind the building.
“Nothing,” she said as she gave the guard a fleeting glance.
“So you’re just gonna leave him there?”
“That’s the plan,” she said with a cock of her head as she took the lead to Ryder’s car. Ryder and Skylar made the ride back to her house quietly. Skylar looked over the file that Ryder had found while he drove but so far he found nothing interesting.
“Anything?” Ryder asked.
“Nope, just two girls and a boy that reminds me nothing of Hank,” she said as she turned the page to view the next patients file. “I think I might have spoken way too soon,” she announced.
“What do you have?” he asked as he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.
“I have a boy, he’s 9 and his name is Erin and based on the small picture attached he has or had red curly hair and freckles. He’s extremely skinny and pigeon toed—which telling by this report he was bullied for countless times. Karen, Brooke’s mother, apparently liked to make Erin believe that they were friends so she'd tell him all about her family and he would tell her all about his. In time Erin grew up and declared that he no longer needed his Psychiatrist.”
“What makes you think that’s Hank?” Ryder asked.
“Look at the picture,” she said as she passed it to him.
“Do you think it is possible that Hank or Erin knew Ms. Laurence so well that he actually thought he’d be a better fit than Aaron is as her husband? I mean think about it, it makes sense.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking. I think Hank may be trying to replace Aaron.”
“If the condition Aaron’s family is in now is any indication I think Hank already succeeded in replacing Aaron,” Ryder said as he parked outside of Skylar’s house.
“Yea well I still think there’s more to it than that,” Skylar said as she stepped out of the car and entered the house with Ryder close behind.
“Oh yea, and what might you say—” Ryder started but Skylar immediately silenced the rest of his words with a well-placed hand over his mouth.
“Shhh,” she said as she placed the document of Hank in the kitchen drawer and closed it before turning back to Ryder.
“What the hell’d you do that for?” he asked in an angry whisper.
“Someone’s in the house,” she said as she made her way back to them.
“And how the hell’d you figure that?” he asked.
“I can feel them,” she said as she looked up the stairs toward the rooms.
“You can feel them?” Ryder asked in mild disbelief.
“Yes I can feel them,” she said back as she headed toward the stairs. Ryder followed Skylar without another word spoken. The made it toward the stair landing and Skylar stopped.
“Since you can feel them what exactly do they feel like?” he asked as she stopped.
“I’m being serious Ryder,” she hissed. “I think they’re in Larissa’s room,” she said as she turned toward him with a worried look on her face. Skylar started to move toward the room in question but was stopped by a vise like grip on her wrist.
“Let me check,” he said taking her serious for once. Skylar watched Ryder head toward Larissa’s room with well-placed steps. She thought about following him but she quickly had to change her mind as she felt another’s presence behind her. Skylar turned quickly to see Hank slipping through her front door. She watched him try and be slick as he quietly shut the door and went to head up her stairs but quickly stopped once he noticed her.
“Going somewhere?” she asked as she folded her arms against her chest. “Before you say something stupid, Brooke beat you hear,” she said as she could hear Brooke and Ryder arguing from where she stood.
“What a way to stay one step ahead,” he commended.
“Can we cut the bullshit and you just start by telling me what the hell you’re doing here?”
“I kind of thought that that part would be obvious, I guess you’re not one step ahead after all,” he said as he mimicked her pose.
“We’re back to playing your childish games I see,” she said with a wicked smile. “Seeing as though you weren’t the most well liked child I can see why you’d want to play said games,
you missed out when you were little cause no one wanted to play with you; I get it but just to let you in on a little secret, no one still wants to play with you no matter who you try to turn yourself into.” Skylar watched the shocked and angered expression quickly take over Hank’s face from her judiciously positioned insult.
“What do you think you know?” Hank asked. Before Skylar could answer Ryder came out with Brooke in tow, he had her in a very complicated head lock as he dragged her past where Skylar stood on the top of the stairs.
“Skylar!” Brooke cried out. “Help me, your boyfriends going crazy,” she said as she kicked out in frustration in order to free herself from Ryder’s grip.
“What the hell happened?” Skylar asked Ryder.
“I don’t have time right now I’ll tell you later,” he said as he continued to drag a screaming and crying Brooke outside. Skylar turned toward Hank who was already on the move.
“Where the hell do you think you are going?” she asked as she flew down the stairs and tagged Hank.
“Ms. Royce I sincerely apologize but this has nothing to do with you,” he said trying to dismiss her with a respective tone.
“How the hell can you say that when you’re in my house?” she asked as she maneuvered herself in front of him in order to block his path. Hank didn’t even bother with a response as he lunged for her and tried to move him out of his way.
“I don’t have time for this, I know the book is here,” he said as he grabbed her tightly by her upper arms and threw her against the nearest wall. A small yelp escaped Skylar’s lips before she was able to get to her feet.
“I don’t know what book you’re talking about,” she growled as she righted herself.
“You know damn well what book I’m speaking about,” he said as he moved toward her. Skylar was ready for his next attach and the moment his hand reached out to grab hers she grabbed on to it and twisted in the direction that no arm should go. Hank screeched with pain as he tried to twist out of her grasp but every move of his am caused him to yell louder from the excruciating pain. “I’m talking about Aaron’s book of secrets,” he answered more precisely.
“Why is that book so important to you?” Skylar asked getting tired of hearing him ask for that book on countless occasions.
“It just is, is that answer enough for you?” he asked bitingly as he thrashed around in her arms. Skylar lost her grip on hi by the third time he had tried to pull away. Skylar backed up away from the fast approaching Hank.
“Don’t you dare touch her!” Ryder said from somewhere behind her. Hank looked over Skylar’s shoulder toward where Ryder stood.
“I feel like there should be an or else after a statement like that,” Hank joked.
“I figured I wouldn’t have to say it, that it was pretty much implied,” Ryder answered. Skylar could feel him getting closer.
Hank laughed at Ryder, once he got his laughter under control he turned to look back at him. “Tell me one good reason why I should be afraid of you?” Hank asked with clear amusement in his voice. Skylar could tell now that Ryder was directly behind her as he gently but very forcefully moved her out of the way so nothing was standing between him and Hank.
“Because I stand between you and your next breath,” he told him calmly. Hank didn’t look so amused now.
Skylar was pretty sure that Ryder had everything under control so she turned toward the stairs at a fast walk toward Larissa’s room. She opened the door and scanned the room with her eyes until her eyes detected the little lump on the floor near the bed which had to be Larissa. Skylar hurried toward her and lifted her up in her arms. Larissa was pale and didn’t look at all in any way shape or form healthy. She breathed deeply but other than that there was no other movements coming from her. Skylar couldn’t help but blame herself partly because Larissa was her responsibility—a responsibility she regreated-ly didn’t want. Skylar lifted Larissa into her arms and cradled her as she made her way back down the stairs after grabbing a cold wash cloth and holding it against her forehead.
By the time Skylar made it back to the stairs Hank was gone and Ryder looked as if he was just getting back into the house.
“What the hell happened?” she asked him as she sat Larissa down on the couch.
“Ethan has them now but he wants us to be there tomorrow for the questioning,” Ryder announced.
“What the hell is he still doing up?” Skylar asked once she had Larissa situated.
“I don’t know, didn’t bother to ask,” he said distractedly as he looked over the documented papers they had gotten from Brooke’s mother’s office. “Why do you think it was important for Hank to steal Aaron’s life at of all lives to steal?” Ryder asked.
“I don’t know maybe it had more to do with Aaron’s wife rather than Aaron himself,” Skylar said as she joined Ryder in the kitchen.
“What do you mean by that?” Ryder asked as he sat down the paper.
“Meaning maybe his obsession was with Karen and not Aaron.”
“But what did Ciana have to do with any of this, it was her that he was pretending to date remember?”
“I don’t know…maybe you’re right and it was Aaron he was trying to replace. Aaron was the man in power and he had a wife and kids, something that Hank has never tried to obtain for himself.”
“I don’t know any more honestly but I’m tired,” Ryder said as he slapped the folder the documents were inside and headed for the stairs.”
“What about Larissa?” Skylar asked as she looked over at the—hopefully sleeping—baby on the couch. “She looks as if she’s been drained…of something but she just doesn’t look right.”
“I suggest a hospital we have her papers they seem legit so we should be able to get her checked out at this time. I say we’re better off not waiting though since we don’t really know the cause and how sever it might be,” he suggested as he turned around and walked back toward Larissa and lifted her up in his arms. Skylar went to follow him out but Ryder stopped her. “You should probably just rest you’ve been through enough tonight,” he said. Skylar didn’t bother arguing she knew he was right she was still feeling a little light headed.
“Fine,” she said as she stopped by the door.
“If it’s not possible to get her back tonight then I’ll…” he stopped his sentence. Skylar realized though where that sentence was going. “Shit,” he said as he turned to look at her. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” she said though she was tryin to hide how hurt she was by it. “If you don’t make it home…I mean here by tonight then I’ll know,” she said as she turned toward the stairs leading toward her room and mounted them two at a time.