THE SIXTH GUEST: Chapter Six - Part Six

 “Who’s here?” asked Travis. “It’s not the police.”

“No.” Clare’s expression was entirely new to Selina.

“Then who?”

She gave the first syllable of a mirthless chuckle. “He says...”

“What?”

“He says... This is stupid. You aren’t going to believe me. I don’t know what I believe. You aren’t going to believe him.”

“Are you alright Clare?” asked Mike.

“No. I’m not sure I am.” She wiped the side of her eye with the heel of her thumb. “I don’t know what to think anymore. About anything.”

“Clare?”

She gazed forward and down as though she were looking into some other place only she could see, her expression blank. Selina thought for a minute that she’d had a break from reality but she murmured something to herself that wasn’t audible. Selina didn’t know what it was until Clare repeated the same sounds at a higher volume. “I have to pull myself together.” It was unclear whether she was addressing them or herself. “This can’t be what it looks like. Or it is. Either way I have to deal with it.”

“What?”

Clare looked at each of them. The chilled expression she’d had when she came in was gone suddenly. It was remarkable the way she’d taken control of herself – the transformation – even if it was still unclear what had shaken her so. “There’s a man in the lounge who claims that he’s God.”

Stunned silence followed by nervous chuckles all round. “You’re kidding me.”

“No.”

“He says he’s God?” She nodded. “For real?” She nodded again.

“He knew about the heat,” said Clare. “And the seizures. He says he caused it. He came down from...”

“Heaven?”

“From wherever. And he scanned us.”

“... Like scanning for life signs in Star Trek?”

“Yeah. Except he read our minds.”

There were shared glances all round: scepticism and humour from everyone except Joey but uneasiness too.

“He’s in the lounge, right now?” said Travis.

“Yeah.”

“What, did he let himself in?”

“I guess. I don’t know.”

“The door was ajar when we came back,” said Joey.

They all looked at him. He looked back placidly.

“So some fruitcake—”

“I’m not sure about—”

“Some fruitcake breaks in here and he tells you he’s God.”

Clare nodded.

“And he’s through there now? Am I the only one who finds this weird?”

Mike was keeping relatively quiet, mostly keeping his eyes on Clare, quietly gauging her.

“I’m going through there,” said Travis. “I want to see this guy for myself. Are you coming?”

“Wait,” said Clare.

“Wait for what?”

She paused, holding him there with her silence. “We should be careful.”

“Why?”

“Because he knows things. And there’s something... No.” She struggled to find the right words. “There’s something wrong with him. I can’t describe it.”

“What does he want?” asked Mike.

“To speak to us... All of us.”

“Well then let’s go,” said Travis. “Let’s not keep the good lord waiting!” He started down the corridor. Selina and Joey followed.

When Mike started too, Clare took his arm. “Wait.”

“What is it? What’s really going on?”

“He really says he’s God.”

“Well he’s bullshitting you.”

“I’m not so certain.”

“Why wouldn’t he be? It can’t be real.”

“Why not?”

“Because God doesn’t exist. It’s all a load of crap. You know that as well as I do.”

“I know but... There’s something wrong with him.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know. There’s... He doesn’t look... right. There are imperfections... Like he isn’t real somehow. Like he’s... Like he’s a painting but the artist didn’t get the proportions quite right or... His clothes didn’t have seams.”

Mike didn’t say anything.

“From the moment this started; nothing has been right,” said Clare. “Nothing has made sense. But this... like Travis said... This fruitcake comes in and starts talking to me... And it’s crazy but it fits. It fits the facts of everything that’s happened.”

“It can’t be real.”

“I know it can’t be, but maybe it is and we need— You and I need to be very careful. We need to watch this guy and we need to...”

“What?”

“I don’t know. We just have to be careful. Where’s Rosalie?”

“In the garden playing with the dog. Is he safe? Selina said he was.”

“She’ll be fine. Ralph’s a teddy bear. Leave her out there. She’ll be fine and I don’t want her anywhere close to this guy. I think he’s dangerous.”

“Well then let’s go and take a look at him,” said Mike.