Full Figured Chic Ch. 19

A cold feeling wrapped itself around Sasha's heart. "What do you mean he's trying to keep me from Jay?"

"Don't you see? It's too much of a coincidence. The daemon will have caused the accident of your friends in order to get you out of here so that Jay is left vulnerable."

Sasha felt sick. Just the suggestion that she, in some remote way, may be accountable for her friend's illness struck her to her core. She didn't necessarily believe Jay's mother, but she couldn't help seeing how co incidental it all was.

At that moment Sasha had a choice. She could go into denial as a way of self defence, or she could believe Estella and try to stop anything further from happening to her friends. It was one thing to see the old woman trying to make sense of Jay's dilemma, but it was another all together for people outside of her sphere of influence experiencing an attack. She looked up into the incredibly intelligent eyes of the woman in front of her.

"I don't believe you, but to try to take some measure of control of this situation and to try to help those I love, I will act on your story."

The older woman smiled her face lighting up like a thousand Christmas lights at once.

"However, I am very angry at you for trying to use me as a sacrifice, and I am also angry at you for not talking to me properly sooner. You've been skulking around, sneaking in the shadows, and you could have come to me earlier."

Estella cocked an eyebrow and stared Sasha down. "Do you really think so do you? After years and years of not being believed, and people thinking you are mad, you develop a keen survival technique that helps you take whatever little power you have left and maximise it.

I'm sure you can think of a hundred ways I could have done things better, and I'm sure in some instances you would be right, but I have done the best with what I have, and I make no apologies for my attempts to save my son."

Sasha felt the shivers. The woman gave her the creeps. But she was stuck with her, with or without this daemon problem, this was Jay's mother. Perfect, how's this for mother in law troubles she thought with a grim smile.

"Alright Mrs Miles, I'm sorry. I don't want to make any trouble between us now. So no judgement."

The older woman looked at her with suspicion in her eyes. At that moment, Sasha's cell rang.

"Hello?"

"Sasha it's me! Penny's mother."

Sasha stood and moved away from the table, feeling the hard stares of Estella in her back. "Is everything ok?"

"Yes. I wanted to tell that Gilbert has come out of his coma. He's been downgraded to serious, he's no longer critical. He's making an amazing recover."

Relief flooded through Sasha and tears welled in her eyes. She didn't realise how much all of this sat like a heavy cloud over her. "My god. That is the best thing you could have told me. How is Penny?"

"Awake and asking for you. Do you think you can come?"

"Yes! Of course. I'll be right there."

She hung up the phone and turned to Jay's mother. "Well, I guess in this instance, you were wrong. My fri3nds are both getting better very fast."

A look of shock started to spread over Estella's face. Sasha couldn't understand why such good news brought a look like that.

"It's good news! I'm going to see them now, but I will only be an hour. Then I will be able to come back here and stay with Jay."

Estela jumped out of her chair and ran to Sasha, grabbing for her arm. "You can't leave now."

Sasha looked at the woman's face and then back at her arm. "Why ever not? It won' be for long. I'll be an hour and a half at the most."

"Jay needs you."

"I won't be long, but my friends need me to. And According to you, I am to blame for their condition, so I need to go and check on them."

She shook Estella off and walked toward Jay's office. Knocking on the door, she heard the pleasant "come in" of Greg's voice.

As soon as she walked through the door, she saw Jay hard at work bent over his desk. Greg stood by the door. Jay didn't even raise his head as she walked in.

"Sasha, what is it? You know better than to disturb us."

"I just wanted you to know that my friend is getting better, but asking for me. I want to go and see her at the hospital. It's only for an hour and half. Do you think its ok? Will he miss me?"

Greg smiled. "Thanks to you, he won't even realise you're gone. But don't be any longer than that please. He does get unsettled if you are gone for long periods of time. I don't want any of us to have to go through a relapse."

Sasha smiled and glanced over at Jay. He looked so handsome with his hair hanging over his face, his beautiful hands working the pencil over the page in a flurry. Sasha thoughts she'd better get going, as her body started to respond.

"Okay. It won't be long and I'll be back." She smiled at Greg and closed the door.

Racing up to her room, she grabbed her bag and made a bee line for the front door.

Soon Sasha was beside Penny, holding her hand and looking into her smiling eyes.

"Oh, it's so good to be back in one piece." She smiled up at Sasha.

"You're not quite there yet honey. You relax and stay here and do as they tell you before you go thinking you are all a ok, right?"

"yes, yes, but I can't tell you how good it is to feel myself again. At least to a degree."

Suddenly tewars welled up ion Ssasha's eyes.

"Oh penny. We were so worried. You gav us such a scare for the twenty four hours or so that we watched over you."

Penny glanced at her parents who were talking over by the wondow. Then she turned back to sasha. "It was you. When you told me that Gilbert was going to live, after you'd seen the woman, I knew that everything was alright and that I had to get better as fast as I could for him. I was much happier to live, Sasha when I knew I had him by my side."

Sasha looked at her friend, not saying anything.

"And now he's out of his coma and he's getting better. I tell you Sasha that woman might have been a nut job, but she knew her stuff alright."

"You're well and he's getting better and at the end of the day, that is all that mattered."

Sasha thought she would keep the truth till they were at dinner together some time. While either of them could still get sick, she didn't want to be making them any more vulnerable.

"Yeah. In fact6, as soon as I am well, I'm going to go and see her and ask what the hell that creature was that came at us out of nowhere.

Imagine that, driving along a city street, and suddenly a large wolf, or man, or some sort of thing jumps in front of the car. No wonder Gilbert swerved so hard. It must have been an attempt to miss it as well as get off the road."

Sasha's stomach turned. "I thought it was a drunk driver?"

"That's what the police are saying because another car is damaged apparently and the man in that car was heavily intoxicated. But there is no doubt about it Sasha; we saw some large creature jump out in front f us before we saw that other car. I'm sure he must have seen it too. We could ask him."

"He died Penny. That man didn't live through the accident."

"Oh." Penny looked down suddenly. "How horrible for his family."

"Are you sure you saw something?" Sasha asked wanting to change the subject but also wanting to get more detail.

"AS sure as eggs. When I was asleep I saw it over and over in my recovery dreams. In my dreams it kept telling me that Gilbert would die and that I couldn't save him. All I could think of was that woman that we saw, and that somehow getting to her would help. But it was a terrible series of dreams that I had. "

"Do you think those hallucinations have made you think you saw the creature when you didn't?"

"No. I know what I saw. Gilbert and I both saw it. It's a strange thing to say, but I didn't think we would have hit that other car, if it wasn't for the creature. I think gilberts swerving and the man's swerving had us run into each other. Both cars must have been trying to miss the animal."

Suddenly Sasha felt an overwhelming desire to get back to Jay.

"Honey, I have to get back to Jay. He's a little... sick at the moment as well. I am very glad that you feel better and I am glad that your parents are here. Is it ok if I come back tomorrow?"

"Definitely! I'm fine and I just know Gilbert will be as well. You go and look after that cute man. You'll have to fill me in on all that gossip later." Her eyes sparkled and it warmed Sasha to see it.

"I will. There is a lot to tell. But that is for a coffee when you are feeling better. I'm going to go now."

She leaned in and gave her friend a kiss, and cast a fast glance over to Penny's mother. "See you tomorrow." She waved, and raced out the door.

Sasha quickly popped down to check on Gilbert and she found that he was asleep, but well out of his coma. His recovery was dramatic, and fast, so he was the talk of the ward down there.

Sasha paid her respects to his family, and then made her way back to Jay.

When she walked into the studio, it appeared that everything was calm. There seemed to be no problems. Sasha didn't see anyone, but she caught faint movement coming from jay's office.

Making her way there immediately, she knocked on the door, to tell Greg that she was back.

He slid his head around the door, keeping it closed around him, as much as he could.

"Hi. Just wanted you to know I am back."

Greg smiled. "And faster than you thought.

That's great." He spoke in a whisper. He went to close the door, but Sasha stopped him.

"Greg, is everything alright?"

"Yes yes. Jay hasn't stopped working since you left."

Sasha smiled, relief flooding through her. "Thank god. Ok, I've missed today's' appointment, but I will be in my room."

Looking for forward to an uneventful afternoon, Sasha made her way up to her room. She collapsed on her bed. She couldn't remember the last time she'd lain in it, and was relieved to find it was just the way she'd left it. Cleaners came through once a week, but no one had been in here for a quit a few days.

Sasha collapsed on the bed, flinging her arms out above her. She suddenly felt very tired. The thought of an afternoon to sit and think in the quiet of her room appealed to her. So much had happened, so many strange events, she relished the opportunity to sit and contemplate it all.

However, she hadn't even gotten up from the bed before she heard a large heavy knock at the giant front doors of the warehouse. Ignoring it, she lay there thinking that someone else could jump up and see who it was.

But she heard it again, and then a large booming voice called for Jay.

Instantly filled with fear, Sasha leapt up from where she lay and ran to her balcony that looked directly down at the front door.

She turned to her left to see Greg and Jay had run out to their small balconies and to her right Jay's mother stood at hers. All their eyes were fixed on the large double doors as they saw one of them open up. The sunlight temporarily hid from view the four figures that walked through the door. But as soon as the door closed, Sasha could see the four of them clearly.

One was a man. A smallish man who looked Japanese. But the other three men with him all looked like huge warriors, complete with armour, swords and shields. They looked as though they'd been forged from the fires of hell themselves.

Jay's mother immediately collapsed to her knees on the balcony next to Sasha. She began to whimper and shake in her spot. Sasha couldn't reach her, but whispered to her that it was alright. She was right here next to her.

"Jay Miles. I've come for you Jay Miles." Called out the smallest of the men who clearly led the other three giants.

"Sutomi Lim!" Said Jay.