18.98: An ONC 2023 Thriller

Chapter 18

BEFORE HELINA'S DISAPPEARANCE   

In an alternate timeline, Penelope lived, and Liv's friendship with Helina remained intact. They graduated, went on to work together, or maybe Liv passed on the opportunity; but even so, they stayed in touch. No hard feelings, many happy memories.

In an alternate timeline, Liv wasn't haunted, her sister was free to pursue her life whichever way she saw fit, and Helina wasn't the target of a years-long campaign of vengeance-seeking.

In this timeline, however, Liv did what was necessary. In the world Liv awoke to each morning, the only person who loved her unconditionally was dead and there must be a reckoning because of it. A karmic debt paid.

In this life, Helina owed her that debt. Liv was only doing what was necessary to collect it.

Contacting Helina via the forum had been the easy part. Remaining in touch, maintaining the façade, becoming DaughterOfNyx so Helina wouldn't suspect who she was really chatting with—that all took a mental toll. It would be easy to end this. All it would take would be to log off. Never visit the forum, go on with her life and forget again. She'd had practice in that. She was good at it. A pro forgetter.

No.

In this timeline, Liv could not be moved.

She engaged in forum small talk, eased her way in, made herself seem curious but innocuous. On several occasions, when Helina spoke of hesitations, Liv thought about slapping her through the screen. Get on with it, stop being so cowardly. You have no more choice in this than Penelope had.

She offered supportive words instead. Encouragement. That's what Helina truly needed if Liv was to pull this off. Besides, Liv needed the months this sort of trust building entailed. Figuring out how to hypnotize someone remotely wasn't the sort of thing Liv had practice in, and obviously, asking Gene for help was impossible.

She did think about him. His narrow face with its sharp nose and bushy eyebrows that always reminded Liv of Sam Eagle from the Muppets. His kindergarten teacher girlfriend Jessa who was so trusting, she didn't mind leaving Liv alone with Gene to do their work for hours on end. Bradley with his wagging tail, grey fur beginning to show around his muzzle.

Liv winced, twisted off a bottle cap, took a sip of beer. Gene made his own choices. She had to remind herself of that, same as she'd had to remind a sobbing Jessa during those last days in Nebraska. There's no reason to pass around blame. We couldn't have known. He wanted this.

That was something Liv had in common with Gene—wanting something so badly, you watched in a stupor—a horrified glee—as the object of your desire consumed you.

You have to go for it! She told Helina on the PSN forum. What happened to Gene was unfortunate. Regrettable. But it was also... perfect for Liv's purposes. The guilt that grew like a tumor at the base of her throat didn't change the truth.

Liv went to Nebraska. She sat for Gene like a model posing for an artist, and in the end, Gene had a complete portrait. He used it, created a looped track, and sent Jessa to her sister's house in Lincoln, Bradley in tow, while he listened to the track in his darkened bedroom. Alone.

Liv slept on his couch, made herself turkey sandwiches with lettuce Jessa grew in their tiny kitchen garden. She watered the tender vegetables in Jessa's absence and waited.

A day, another day, and then a third dawned. That morning, Liv slid her hand along the hallway wall. In the two years since she'd visited this house, reprints of paintings by Salvador Dali and Frida Kahlo had been replaced with photos of Gene and Jessa and sometimes Bradley standing in front of old buildings, or on the edge of scenic overlooks. Gene with his arm around her, Bradley's red leash looped over his hand. Jessa, smiling, hugging his waist. Both happier than Liv had been in years, or possibly, ever.