The Madrona Heroes Register: Underneath It All

Chapter 41 - The Way Out

Zach made his way forward amidst the shouting and recrimination. His presence quieted everyone as he walked right up to Ollie and said in a low voice. “Do what without killing him?”

Ollie stared at Zach for a moment, defiant, his chin raised. And then he started to fall to pieces. Amidst the tears, Ollie tried to explain. “Don’t you see, I’m trying to see them. To see what’s inside. They have something to give me. It’s like a present. For me. I don’t want to hurt them, I’m just trying to figure out how to see inside without hurting them. You’ve got to see it. You’ll know. It’s beautiful.” Ollie’s words were coming out in fits and starts between his tears and choppy breathing.

“Ollie, you need to stop hurting the animals. You need to stop now.” Zach said firmly in the same quiet voice he had used before.

“No. No. No.” Ollie’s voice was getting louder and higher as he saw all the disappointment, anger, and pity on the faces around him. “You don’t understand. I’ll show you.”

Ollie took a deep breath through his nose, stemmed his tears, and concentrated. Rembrandt started getting up and back into the pose he’d been in when they’d first entered the basement. Little balls of yellow light appeared at various points on Rembrandt’s body. Each ball started slowly travelling along Rembrandt’s exterior, leaving a slithering trail of light behind them. Soon Rembrandt’s body, while still visible, was encased in a web of greasy yellow light – as if Ollie had drawn Rembrandt in three dimensions using electric yellow paint.

“See? See?” Ollie said excitedly. “Don’t you see it now?”

Rembrandt’s eyes looked blank.

“You’re hurting him.” Zoe yelled.

“No. I’m. Not!” Ollie screamed.

Zach grabbed Ollie’s arm hoping to stop him from whatever he was doing, but Ollie swung the arm outwards and Zach went flying, ending up stuck to a wall. Gabe, Zoe, Binny, and Penny all swarmed Ollie who immobilized them each in similar fashion against posts and various spots on the basement walls.

The tears were flowing freely down Ollie’s face now. “You don’t understand. Nobody. Ever. Understands.”

Cassie remained standing, alone on the pieces of wall that Gabe had turned into a pile of bricks. The light from the dim bulbs in the distillery room and the dust that still filled the air silhouetted Cassie’s small frame. The other children, frozen in place by Ollie, all looked at her.

After a moment, when Ollie’s exclamations had faded into mumbling, Cassie got his attention. “Ollie?”

Ollie looked up, seeing Cassie as if he hadn’t noticed her there before. 

Cassie continued, “I understand.” Cassie gingerly took a step forward off the pile of bricks and towards Ollie.

Binny whispered a shout from her awkward perch, “No. Cassie. Stop.”

Cassie paused for a moment. 

“Run. Get help.” Binny said.

Cassie looked up to her brother who was pinned to the wall.

A rush of memories came into the foreground of Zach’s mind. Finding Ollie alone in the park with the bird. Cassie should have been right there, but she wasn’t. As if she had disappeared. Then Zach remembered Binny’s report of Cassie taking Rembrandt for a walk alone and without permission and ending up talking with Ollie for who knows how long before Binny arrived on the scene to break it up.

Zach looked at Cassie and nodded his head in approval. Cassie took another step forward.

“No! What are you doing?” Binny was no longer whispering.