“I already ran it by your Mom. She said you may not be feeling up for it,” he says.
“Oh no, that was- something else.”
“Alright then. We’ll see you soon,” he says.
Mom is standing in the hallway. She doesn’t say anything, but I can tell she heard my end of the conversation.
“I’ll be ready in ten,” I say. It takes me a while to find a matching set of clothes among the torn and broken hangers in my closet, and it’s not that I’m being picky, it’s that I threw a really big tantrum. I’m somewhat embarrassed, or at least I would be if there weren’t so many more important things to be upset over. I settle on white tank top some jeans and a jacket. I put my socks and sneakers on and brush my hair out so it’s detangled, if still messy. I’ll deal with it.
I leave everything else, not even sure if there’s anything I still have that I can put on, seeing as I probably destroyed every cosmetic item I own. It looks like Dad isn’t coming. He’s in the living room chair with a half-empty bottle of Shabbat wine next to him. He’s not a heavy drinker so he’s probably drunk himself unconscious by now. If only I could escape with sleep…
Mom, Bubbe, and I all head out single file to the car. I look around, but don’t see, or even sense the entity. For some reason he’s dropped his ‘round-the-clock watch on me. The drive to the police station is quiet, but full of tension. My thoughts are focused on Adam and Adam only, and by the time we get to the station, it takes me a second to remember why I’m coming here, Mr. Mario. Maybe he has some answers for me. If the fiend really did have him, and he’s out now looking for me… well this has to help me in some way right?
Deputy Yew, grim as ever, is waiting for us outside the station. He nods when we walk up the steps and guides us in. When we enter the station, there are over a dozen eyes on me. Some of them are giving me quizzical looks, and others confused. Some are sympathetic, and others have hopeful gazes. I think I even catch a few accusing glares, as if Mario looking for me means I’m involved in some way. Regardless, everyone including me wants answers.
Deputy Yew leads us back to the jail area. The metal detectors go off when he walks through, and even when I walk through, probably because of my belt, but no one stops me. It’s not the time for formalities. We get down to the jail cells, and the single occupant waits in the cell furthest from us. I feel that I can’t walk fast enough to get the answers I want, but I don’t want to run. When I get to the cell, I see Mario hunched like Gollum on his bed. “Mr. Mario,” I say. He looks up.
“…Redwood. Alyssa Redwood,” he says as though he’d already been saying it. He locks eyes with me for a moment and stops speaking. He’s still in his hospital gown, although by now it’s torn and dirty, and he seems to have aged ten years since I last saw him. His gaze fades from crazed to angry. “Only, Alyssa,” he says, pausing between the words.
Deputy Yew gives me a quick look to make sure I’m okay with it. I nod at him. He in turn nods to the sheriff and they escort my confused mother and Bubbe out of the holding area. Deputy Yew stops down the hall a little way to at least provide supervision while giving as much privacy as possible, and it looks like that works for Mario too.
“Alyssa,” says Mr. Mario.
“What happened to you?” I ask. He looks down at the ground and suddenly his face turns into the saddest child face I’ve ever seen. He starts crying a bit.
“I don’t know,” he mutters.
“You don’t know, Mr. Mario? The accident? You were missing from the hospital.” If he doesn’t remember, then maybe he won’t have any answers for me.
“I don’t know. I don’t know. I don’t know,” he mutters. I’m starting to feel a little disappointment, but I try a different approach.
“Why did you ask to speak with me?” I ask. He pauses his crying, as if remembering something.
“He told me to,” he answers.
“He? Who is he?” I ask, although I know who he’s talking about.
“The Slender… he’s the Slender Man. He told me to. He let me go to tell you,” he answers. Slender Man? I think. Is that really his name, or what we call him? It certainly fits.
“Why? What does… Slender want?” I ask, dubbing him with a nickname. “What does he want you to tell me?”
He rocks back and forth a bit. “He has your Adam,” he says.
“I know, but will he give him back? Will he give my b- my Adam back?” I ask.
He shakes his head.
“He’s mad at you. You shouldn’t have left. You’ve, angered him,” he says. I try to think of the best thing to say next, but he continues. “You stole from him, so he stole from you.”
“He let you go to tell me that?” I ask. “What does he want now?”
“He wants you. Only you. You stole from him. Now he wants you.”
“But he already wanted me, and Adam! He already tried to pull me in and—”
“But you escaped!” he interrupts loudly. I can see Deputy Yew about to rush over but I hold out my palm. “You won’t escape again,” he continues. “What if I leave? He won’t have me then,” I bluff.
Mr. Mario starts laughing, and then starts crying. “He’s not going to let you go. He’ll follow you.”
“But what about Adam? If I let him take me will he give back Adam?” I ask quietly as to not alarm Deputy Yew.
Mr. Mario ponders the situation.
“He wants you to come to him. If you don’t come to him, he’ll take you,” he says.
“That’s his message? Come to him or he’ll take me by force? What happens if I come of my own will?” I ask, leaning against the bars.
He slowly gets up and walks over to me. His face six inches from mine, he says.
“He wants to play a game. If you come to him… he’ll play nice. If you run from him…” He stops and walks back. “If you run from him,” he tries again, but he puts his hands to face.
“Don’t run from him. If you run then both of you will suffer… worse,” he explains. He crawls into the fetal position on the floor.
I look away, considering what he’s just told me. Does… Slender want a rematch? What does he mean by game? Is he just going to toy with me and then capture me? How can I trust him? I can trust that he’ll follow me. That’s one thing, but he wants me to come to him willingly… again? Does this mean I’m doomed?
“I just want to see my brother again,” I say, more to myself then Mr. Mario.
“He’ll be there. The Slender Man has him. He’ll always be there,” says Mr. Mario.
“How do I bring him back?” I ask.
“How do I bring my brother out of that world without killing him? Do I cut a branch from the tree? Or…?” I ask.
He looks up at me forlornly, as if he’s calculating whether not he should answer me, whether or not he’s allowed to. Finally he speaks.
“The Slender Man… he gains control by hurting and breeding pain. He feeds on the suffering of his victims. He feeds on misery and pain… So bring him joy, and life,” he says quietly.
Joy and life? I ponder. I hear static creeping up on me. It starts off quietly, but then I hear Mario screaming loudly and convulsing on the floor. He’s flailing wildly, but even though I know what’s torturing him, I can’t see it. I step back as Deputy Yew rushes to unlock the cell and get inside. By the time he does, Sheriff Fraser and another officer have already caught up. The static disperses as they reach Mario.
“Get me some paramedics!” shouts Sheriff Fraser.
Deputy Yew, thumb on Mr. Mario’s wrist shakes his head.
“He’s dead.”
19: The Walk
Mr. Mario doesn’t deserve what happened to him. Slender killed him, but the police think he may have had a heart attack. They’ll have to wait for a coroner’s report. The look on Mario’s face shows me that it was no natural heart attack though. He was scared to death. He couldn’t remember who he was or what he did. All he could remember was the Slender Man, and my name. He probably didn’t even know who I was, but he gave up what little life he had left to give me a bit of helpful information. I’ll be sure to go to his funeral, if I survive that is.