《Awakened (The Vampire Legends #5)》 Page 1 CHAPTER 1 Rachel¡¯s eyes opened in a foggy haze as she gazed up at the morning sky. She lay there, on the cold, damp ground, and the cool crisp air breezing past her face made her lips chatter. She couldn¡¯t understand why she was laying on the ground. Why was she even outside? She felt a cold hand touch hers, felt fingers caressing her face. She blinked again as the morning rays of the sun hit her face and then saw a guy, staring down at her, gazing into her eyes. She blinked again, wondering if she were seeing things. But he still remained, staring and smiling at her. She took her hand and pinched her leg, hoping to wake from this dream, but it didn¡¯t help. She was awake, laying on the ground, in the cold, crisp air with a complete stranger. She tried to remember what had happened the night before. She thought she must be hungover; thought maybe she made a terrible mistake at a dance club and ended up with this random guy. Then again, she didn¡¯t recall going to a dance club. She was completely lost, not a clue as to why she lay there and who this guy was. She started to lift her head off the ground feeling the weight on her neck as she arose. She had a terrible headache that radiated through her spine and neck. She wasn¡¯t feeling right, either. Her whole body felt weak and exhausted, she didn¡¯t know what happened to her. It was almost as if someone gave her a roofie or something. It was the strangest feeling, one she¡¯d never had before. She didn¡¯t recognize her body, something was off, but she couldn¡¯t pinpoint exactly what it was. She sat up slowly and waited a few minutes for the world to stop spinning around her. She was dizzy and felt nauseous, but above all her physical ailments, she felt scared. Why was she alone in some random field with a guy? What had she done? This was unforgivable, and she was sure something she¡¯d regret once she remembered what had happened. ¡°Rachel, thank God you¡¯re ok. I was so worried about you!¡± Benji said. ¡°Huh?¡± Rachel said, in a fog. ¡°I¡¯ve been sitting here all night watching you, I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re OK and that nothing happened to you. I can¡¯t thank you enough for what you did for me,¡± Benji said. She looked at him, confused, and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but who are you?¡± Benji looked back at her with a stunned expression on his face, ¡°What do you mean who am I?¡± ¡°I mean, who are you?¡± Rachel said, getting defensive. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°You¡¯re joking, Rach! Stop kidding around!¡± Benji said. ¡°I¡¯m not joking,¡± Rachel said in a serious tone. ¡°Seriously?¡± Benji said. ¡°What happened to you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I was hoping you¡¯d be able to tell me what¡¯s going on here,¡± Rachel asked. ¡°You saved my life. Remember?¡± Benji said. ¡°Remember, the Red Amulet?¡± ¡°The Red what?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I don¡¯t even know you.¡± ¡°Stop saying that, my love. I love you and you love me,¡± Benji said. ¡°Um, excuse me? I don¡¯t love you. I don¡¯t KNOW you!¡± Rachel said, suddenly feeling like this guy was crazy. ¡°C¡¯mon Rach. Stop acting like this. It¡¯s me Benji. Don¡¯t you remember?¡± Rachel stopped and looked him up and down, trying to place him. She had no idea where she¡¯d met this guy or who he was. She couldn¡¯t believe that he¡¯d said she loved him. That was insanity. Was he a crazy person? ¡°Listen, I¡¯ve gotta get outta here. I need to get home. My parents are probably worried about me,¡± Rachel said. ¡°No, they¡¯re not. Trust me,¡± Benji said. ¡°They disowned you.¡± ¡°Oh, stop it!¡± Rachel said. ¡°They love me, stop saying that.¡± She felt his cold hand touch her leg and she jumped back. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± Rachel said. ¡°Don¡¯t touch me.¡± ¡°I love you,¡± Benji said. ¡°Please snap out of it. Please!¡± ¡°Stop saying that. You don¡¯t love me, either. Whatever happened between us was not love. What did happen anyway?¡± Rachel asked as she looked down to find all her clothes still intact and her hair still in place. She worried for a second that something happened between them that she¡¯d really regret. ¡°Please Rachel. Please. I love you. Just come with me. We can go back to the castle. That will help you remember,¡± Benji said. ¡°Castle?¡± Rachel questioned. She didn¡¯t know what to make of this guy. Was he some fairytale character living in some fictitious fantasyland? Was he serious? She was curious, but not curious enough to find out. ¡°No, I¡¯m leaving,¡± Rachel, said as she stood up to walk away. ¡°Where are you going to go?¡± Benji said. ¡°Why does it matter?¡± Rachel snapped. ¡°Please, come with me. Don¡¯t go!¡± Benji begged. ¡°I¡¯m not coming with you to your CASTLE, you creep. Leave me alone now!¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°Rachel, don¡¯t do this. Don¡¯t go. Not after all we¡¯ve been through!¡± ¡°I can¡¯t hear this anymore. I have to go!¡± Rachel said as she walked quickly away from Benji. She didn¡¯t know where she was walking to but figured she¡¯d eventually get her bearings and figure out where she was. She knew she¡¯d find her way back home somehow. CHAPTER 2 Rachel walked up the front walkway to her house in Pennsylvania. She was overjoyed to be home and felt a sense of security walking up towards her front door. She reached into her pocket, looking for her house key, but it wasn¡¯t there. That¡¯s odd, she thought to herself. She stopped and listened; she heard her dad¡¯s voice coming through the door. He sounded angry. She suddenly wished she didn¡¯t stay out all night. She knew she was going to be in trouble. Rachel lifted her right hand and put her pointer finger to the round, lit up doorbell and pushed it. DING DONG. She heard footsteps growing louder towards the door and then she saw her father¡¯s face peeking through the curtain in the door. He took a second look, blinking his eyes. Then, he opened the door, slowly, staring at her as if he was confused or angry. She couldn¡¯t make out his expression really. ¡°What are you doing back here?¡± her dad said. Rachel looked at him in confusion, ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Why did you come back? Did you forget something?¡± her dad asked. ¡°Um? I live here. What are you talking about, Dad?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°No, you don¡¯t. You haven¡¯t lived here for years,¡± her dad replied. ¡°C¡¯mon Dad! Don¡¯t kid with me,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Can I come in now?¡± ¡°Why do you want to come in?¡± her dad asked. ¡°Because I LIVE HERE!¡± she said, in a booming voice. ¡°What do you want me to do pitch a tent in the lawn and stay outside?¡± Her dad laughed and cracked a smile. ¡°I guess you can come inside.¡± ¡°I¡¯m going up to my room,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Well¡­it¡¯s not exactly your room anymore,¡± her dad said. Rachel had no idea what he was talking about. She couldn¡¯t understand it. She was gone for one night and he cleared out her bedroom. What was he talking about? ¡°What do you mean? I was here yesterday,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Rachel, are you Ok? What happened to you?¡± her dad asked. She knew he¡¯d eventually ask her about last night. She was surprised he wasn¡¯t angrier though. It was almost as if he didn¡¯t realize she¡¯d gone out. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I know I should have called, or texted. It won¡¯t happen again. I promise,¡± Rachel said shamefully. ¡°Huh?¡± her dad said. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Oh,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I thought you were asking about last night.¡± ¡°Last night?¡± her dad said. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m sorry I stayed out all night. It¡¯s totally out of character and I¡¯m sorry. I hope you and mom weren¡¯t too worried about me. I didn¡¯t mean it,¡± Rachel said again. She waited for a response from her dad, but didn¡¯t get anything but a blank, confused stare. ¡°Ok, I¡¯m coming in, Dad,¡± Rachel said, as she scooted by him in the doorway. She was taken back a little bit at the changes in the house. She was surprised, but figured her mom went through one of her re-decorating frenzies last night and changed things around while she was out. There was no other explanation she could think of. On her way up the stairs to her room, she could hear her father¡¯s footsteps trailing behind her. Why was he following her? She wondered. As she came to her door, it was closed shut. The sign on her door that said Rachel¡¯s Room was taken down and the nail hole closed up. ¡°Huh?¡± she said out loud. She turned the brass handle to her door and opened it, surprised by what she saw. ¡°Dad! What¡¯s going on?¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°Where¡¯s all my stuff?¡± ¡°Rachel, I was trying to explain that to you before. You don¡¯t live here anymore,¡± her dad responded. ¡°Dad, seriously. What did you guys do with it? Where¡¯s Mom? I need to talk to her about this. It¡¯s one thing to go and change up the downstairs or your bedroom, but why did she have to change mine?¡± Rachel questioned angrily. ¡°Rachel, you haven¡¯t lived here in two years. What do you expect?¡± her dad said. ¡°Two years!¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°Why do you keep saying that?¡± ¡°Remember Bedford? Remember how you disappeared this past year? Remember you HATE us?¡± her dad said. Rachel looked at him in surprise. She had no idea what he was going on about. Was everyone crazy today? She thought. If they weren¡¯t crazy than she must be going mad. ¡°Ok, seriously. This isn¡¯t funny. Where did you put all my stuff?¡± Rachel said. ¡°Is this some sort of prank? April fools joke? Speaking of which, what day is it?¡± Page 2 ¡°It¡¯s December 1st,¡± her dad replied. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, Rachel. A really long time. I¡¯m surprised you came back to us.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m back. I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, but I want to put my room back together. Where¡¯d you put my things?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Um¡­they¡¯re in the garage. But why are you going to put your room back together. You can¡¯t stay here!¡± her dad said, sternly. ¡°What do you mean I can¡¯t stay here? Where do you think I should go then?¡± Rachel questioned. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Where have you been living this past year? Why don¡¯t you go back there? You¡¯re probably more welcome there than here. After all we¡¯ve been through you don¡¯t seriously think you can just march back in here as if nothing happened, do you?¡± her dad remarked. ¡°All you¡¯ve been through? It was ONE NIGHT! Don¡¯t get all worked up over it. You¡¯re completely blowing this whole thing out of proportion,¡± Rachel said, letting out a little laugh. ¡°You and Mom are so dramatic! Where¡¯s Mom anyway?¡± ¡°She¡¯s not here,¡± her father said. ¡°Where¡¯d she go? The store?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I told you the other day where she was. Don¡¯t pretend you don¡¯t know,¡± her dad said. ¡°Is she on vacation?¡± Rachel said. ¡°The other day? I don¡¯t remember her leaving.¡± Rachel felt her dad¡¯s hand touch her forehead, ¡°You¡¯re not well,¡± he said. ¡°You should get some rest. We can talk about this when you wake up.¡± ¡°I feel fine, Dad. Completely fine. The only thing that¡¯s bothering me is you telling me that I don¡¯t live here and that I can¡¯t stay in my own house. I think you¡¯re the sick one here, not me!¡± ¡°Listen, Rachel,¡± her dad said. ¡°I¡¯ll let you stay here under one condition.¡± She looked back at him in awe, what was he even suggesting? Was there another option to not staying here? Was he kicking her out? ¡°What¡¯s that, Dad?¡± Rachel remarked. ¡°You need to see a shrink,¡± he said, in a serious tone. ¡°You need to work out these issues if you are going to live under my roof.¡± ¡°A shrink?¡± Rachel questioned with a laugh. ¡°Yes, a shrink. A therapist. It¡¯s clear it¡¯s what has to happen. We have to get to the bottom of this,¡± her dad said. ¡°Um.. OK dad, whatever you say!¡± Rachel said, assuming he was joking. ¡°I¡¯m not kidding. You either agree to it or you¡¯re outta here,¡± he said. ¡°Ok, fine. I¡¯ll go. Whatever you want, Dad,¡± Rachel said. ¡°All right, I¡¯ll set up an appointment for you with Dr. Goldman, he¡¯ll be the perfect person to help you through this. You¡¯re mother saw him before she was admitted. And he still visits her now, talks to her, you know?¡± her dad said. ¡°Huh?¡± Rachel questioned. ¡°Mom? A shrink?¡± ¡°Rachel, please. Don¡¯t rehash this right now. I¡¯d rather let sleeping dogs lie,¡± her father said. Rachel hated that expression, yet her father used it all the time. ¡°OK, OK! Whatever you say. Let me just get my things,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Ok, I¡¯ll help you,¡± her dad said. ¡°But remember, if you do ANYTHING that I don¡¯t agree with, you¡¯re back out. Do you understand me?¡± ¡°Yes! Yes! I get it,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯ll be good.¡± Then, out of nowhere, her stomach began to growl and she felt an insatiable hunger come over her. She couldn¡¯t believe how hungry she felt. It was like a hunger she¡¯d never experienced before. She clutched her stomach and ran downstairs to the kitchen to get some food, hoping she could get control of this feeling. CHAPTER 3 ¡°Rachel?¡± Mark said, in a surprised voice. ¡°Is that you?¡± ¡°Mark!¡± Rachel said, in an excited voice. ¡°What¡¯s up little bro!¡± ¡°Wow, crazy to see you again!¡± Mark said. Rachel didn¡¯t know what was up with her family today. It was as if they hadn¡¯t seen her in ages. She couldn¡¯t figure it out. ¡°Um, yeah! Here I am!¡± Rachel said, going along with it. ¡°What are you doing back here?¡± Mark asked. ¡°Well, I came home today. Aren¡¯t you happy to see me?¡± Rachel said, playing with him. ¡°Well, yeah, I guess so. But what did Dad say? Was he angry?¡± Mark asked. ¡°Not too much!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I got off easy this time!¡± ¡°Clearly!¡± Mark said. She then took a closer look at Mark and realized he looked different to her. She couldn¡¯t pin point exactly what it was but it was as if he was a different person. He didn¡¯t quite look like himself and the way he was acting around her was odd. Sure, the conversation was normal, but it was almost as if he was hiding something. It was very out of character for him. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Mark? Are you ok?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Yeah, why wouldn¡¯t I be ok?¡± Mark snapped. ¡°I¡¯m just feeling a little off today, that¡¯s all.¡± Rachel watched as Mark washed some blood off his hands in the kitchen sink. ¡°What happened?¡± Rachel asked. Mark turned around and looked at her, trying to cover up his hands, ¡°Oh, nothing.¡± ¡°What¡¯s on your hands? Did you hurt yourself?¡± Rachel asked concerned. ¡°Oh, that. It¡¯s nothing really. Just a minor scratch,¡± Mark answered. It looked like more than a minor scratch to Rachel but she didn¡¯t press it any further. She didn¡¯t want to upset him and he was already acting a little strange. She didn¡¯t want to alienate him. ¡°So why¡¯d you come back anyway?¡± Mark asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I was only gone for a night! Why are you and Dad acting as if I¡¯ve been gone for a long time?¡± She waited as Mark looked at her, as if he were trying to read her. ¡°What?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Why are you staring at me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s just that, well, you have been gone since we moved,¡± Mark said. ¡°Moved?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Yeah since we moved back here, you¡¯ve been gone,¡± ¡°You¡¯re funny, Mark!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Stop playing games with me!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not playing games. Don¡¯t you remember?¡± Mark asked, still staring at her with an odd expression. ¡°Remember what?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°You know, Bedford, AHS, Benji?¡± Mark said. Then, all of a sudden, Rachel had a flashback to a moment she had with Benji where they were kissing on the balcony of his castle. The flashback came and went quickly and then she shook her head, trying to remember it all, but she couldn¡¯t. ¡°Not really? We¡¯ve lived here the whole time though,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Bedford?¡± ¡°Remember Dad¡¯s job got transferred up to New York? We moved for a year and then after you left things got really bad for the family and mom went into the hospital. Then, Dad decided to move us back to Pennsylvania. He felt the move was all a terrible mistake and he wanted to bring the family back home, back to better times,¡± Mark said. ¡°WAIT WHAT? Mom¡¯s in the hospital?¡± Rachel shrieked. ¡°Yes, it was all too much for her after you left. She couldn¡¯t take it. She¡¯s in a coma now in the hospital. Doctor¡¯s aren¡¯t sure if she¡¯s going to wake up,¡± Mark said. ¡°But why? What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°This is MY FAULT?¡± ¡°Well, I guess so. Indirectly it is your fault. You caused us a lot of stress and grief. It was all so unpredictable one day to the next and nobody knew where you were going or where to find you. It was really hard on us,¡± Mark said. ¡°I had no idea. I don¡¯t even know what you¡¯re talking about. I never did anything,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Listen, Rachel. I don¡¯t really want to go over this with you now. It¡¯s really not a good time for me. I have to go now,¡± Mark said, looking down at his watch. ¡°Wait, but you just got here. Where are you going?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I have to go. Stop asking so many questions!¡± Mark said. CHAPTER 4 Rachel went upstairs to start putting her room back together. She was puzzled by the fact that everything was in boxes but didn¡¯t want to keep questioning it. She started taking her things out of their boxes one by one. She pulled out old trophies, posters, and her clothing. Her favorite MTV t-shirt was there, in the box with her Dr. Martin shoes that she loved so much. Then, she pulled out some old photographs of Dana and all her friends. She hung them back on the wall in their proper places and continued unpacking. She was happy to see her room take shape again, just as she¡¯d remembered it. As she reached down to the bottom of one box she found a dusty picture album, blew off the dust and opened it up. She was confused by the photos she saw and didn¡¯t know who these people were. It was pictures of her with a group of girls she didn¡¯t know. Then she saw pictures of a homecoming football game and her sister Sarah as a cheerleader. It didn¡¯t look like the high school she remembered and all the kids were strangers to her. She didn¡¯t recognize one of them. This was all very confusing to her. Maybe what everyone was saying held some truth, she thought to herself. Still, she didn¡¯t want to believe it. Then, she pulled out her cell phone to text Dana. She missed her; it felt like forever since they¡¯d hung out for some strange reason. She wanted to see what she was up to and if she wanted to hang out. Rachel: Hey Dana! What¡¯s up? Wanna come over? Dana: Rachel? Rachel: Who else would it be! Dana: Is it really you? Rachel: Um, yeah! Stop acting weird. What¡¯s up? Dana: Where are you? Page 3 Rachel: Home. You? Dana: In PA. Where else! Rachel: Me, too! Dana: You¡¯re back? When did you come back? Are you just visiting family? Rachel: What do you mean? Dana: It¡¯s been a while. I¡¯m surprised to hear from you. Rachel: What happened last night? Do you know why I woke up in a field? Dana: What? What are you talking about? Rachel: What did we do last night? Dana: IDK. I wasn¡¯t with you. Rachel: What do you mean? We ALWAYS go out together! Seriously, what happened? Dana: Rachel? Are you sure this is really you? Rachel: Yes. It¡¯s me. Dana: Prove it then. This is too weird. Rachel: I¡¯ll come over. No actually you come here. I don¡¯t want my dad to get mad at me. He¡¯s already a little pissed I didn¡¯t come home last night. Dana: It¡¯s late, I can¡¯t tonight. Will I see you tomorrow? Rachel: Yeah, I¡¯ll see you in school tomorrow. Pumped for our math class together. Ugh, Mr. Malloy is such a loser and that tupe is redic. Dana: Gotta go my mom¡¯s here to see me. See ya tmw. Rachel: Bye xoxo Rachel thought about her text conversation with Dana and thought it was a little strange, but assumed she was in on this whole joke. It was like everyone was ganging up against her to convince her that she¡¯s been gone or missing for a long time. What a strange and odd joke to play on someone, she thought. She continued to empty her boxes and then found her diary wrapped up inside a towel in the bottom of a box. She opened it up and realized that the lock on the side had been broken and pages were missing. There was an old entry from a few years ago about the Dutch Fair and then a big gap in pages where someone must have torn them out or something. Then, a random half page with the name Benji written on it. She didn¡¯t know why pages were ripped out of her diary or who Benji was, but it was the second time today she¡¯d heard his name. She thought back to the morning, waking up with a Benji, but she didn¡¯t think it would be the same person. She didn¡¯t know that guy. It must have been a different Benji. It was late and this day was completely exhausting to Rachel. She couldn¡¯t run this mystery over and over in her head one more time. She lay her head down on her soft down pillow, crawled under the covers and quickly fell asleep. She was excited to see Dana tomorrow and finally catch up about what happened to her over the weekend. She had to get to the bottom of her Saturday night antics. CHAPTER 5 Violet sat in her chamber as all the Greslins lined up at the foot of her throne waiting for her to speak. It was a big night for her, as she finally got possession of the Varithian Bracelet. She held it up and examined it. It was dripping with sapphires and diamonds, the sapphires glowing, more blue than any gem she had ever laid her eyes upon in all the centuries. Their coven had combed the world for this bracelet for as long as she could remember, and thanks to her, they had found it. This bracelet had allowed them entrance into the castle, a place they had been trying to enter since their origin. Now, with this bracelet and in this castle, there was nothing that could stop them. In just days, at the next new moon, the stars would be perfectly aligned for the Varithian Ritual. When it was done, the ancient vampire energy would be summoned, and her coven would be more powerful than any coven on earth. There would be nothing that could stop them from taking over the world, and she would begin by destroying Benji and the Vladdicus Coven, and everything that was theirs. Then she would turn every human left on the planet, dominate them all, and make all of mankind slaves to her. She could already taste the fresh blood, and could not wait to inflict as much pain and damage as possible. As she looked at the bracelet, looking at her reflection in a particularly large diamond, she marveled that if only Hunter had loved her enough, maybe none of this would be. Maybe they would be living together. Maybe she would be kinder, gentler. If only Hunter had been kinder to her, had not spurned her for that little witch Penelope, maybe Violet would have joined the other coven. But now it was all too late. Hunter had had his chance, but he had lost it. And now, she would do everything in her power to make him pay, to make all of the Vladdicus pay for his mistake. And that awful little girl Rachel most of all. She smiled wide as she imagined herself tearing her to pieces. She looked up at the huge hole in the ceiling, at the passing clouds in the moonlit sky, and could not wait for the new moon. CHAPTER 6 Benji couldn¡¯t believe the news when he heard it. It was impossible. He thought his ears were playing tricks on him when he heard that Violet and her coven had gained possession of the Varithian Bracelet. He sat there in the library of his castle with Matilda, Hunter and Penelope in awe. They were all stunned. Benji stood up and quickly looked out of the stained glass window towards the moon. He saw a tiny sliver of the moon lighting up the night sky. He sighed in relief knowing that he still had a little bit of time to save his coven before Violet would be able to attack and destruct all the vampire covens in the world, but he knew it would be cutting it close. The ancient Coven Book said that the only way to stop someone who has possession of the Varithian Bracelet is to find the Waverly Mirror, which will reflect the sparkle of the bracelet back towards the coven using it, and all their harmful plans will then turn upon them. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Matilda asked. ¡°This is going to be the end of us. The end of EVERYONE!¡± ¡°This is awful,¡± Hunter said. ¡°We haven¡¯t heard news like this since, well¡­as long as I¡¯ve been alive. It¡¯s our biggest fear!¡± ¡°Hunter, No! Please don¡¯t say that. Please say we¡¯ll be ok, please!¡± Penelope yelled. ¡°I don¡¯t want to die.¡± ¡°Guys, calm down. Please. All this hysteria isn¡¯t going to help us or change the situation. We have to come up with a plan. We still have a few days. We have to stop Violet. We can¡¯t let her end all of the vampire covens,¡± Benji said, trying to act calm. ¡°Benji! Stop trying to pretend this isn¡¯t a big deal,¡± Matilda said. ¡°Maybe you don¡¯t realize what a huge calamity this is going to be. THIS IS IT FOR US! Don¡¯t you understand that?¡± ¡°Matilda, I didn¡¯t say it¡¯s not a big deal, but if we sit here and panic about it, it isn¡¯t going to DO ANYTHING. We have to find the mirror. The Waverly Mirror. That is the only way we can get out of this situation and save ourselves and the other covens. We MUST DO SOMETHING!¡± Benji yelled. ¡°But where is the Waverly Mirror?¡± Penelope sighed. ¡°Why must we always be on a mission to find these objects? Can we ever catch a break around here?¡± ¡°Listen, Penelope. It¡¯s what we have to do. When you sign on to be a vampire, these are the things you must do. It¡¯s not a choice that we have. It¡¯s an obligation. It¡¯s our duty to save our brothers and sister, our aunts and uncles, our ancestors. It¡¯s the only way,¡± Hunter said. ¡°The Coven Book said that the Waverly Mirror is located off the coast of Africa, on one of the Canary Islands. I¡¯m not sure exactly which island, the book didn¡¯t say, but it¡¯s on one of them,¡± Benji said. ¡°How are we ever going to find it?¡± Penelope said in a whiney voice. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We will do it together, the four of us,¡± Benji said. ¡°Together we can accomplish anything. With all our smarts, we¡¯re sure to find it¡­somewhere!¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be too sure about that,¡± Hunter said. ¡°It¡¯s probably well hidden and since nobody has gained possession of the Varithian Bracelet in thousands of years, it is probably well concealed.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, Brother, but we have to at least attempt to find it. We can¡¯t just wait for Violet to attack. We have to try and stop her. Are you suggesting we do nothing?¡± Benji said. ¡°Not at all! We have to do something but we have to go together,¡± Hunter said. ¡°Well, this is not going to be an easy feat,¡± Matilda said. ¡°Speaking of easy feat, you will never guess who stopped by here the other day looking for you and Rachel.¡± ¡°Who?¡± Benji said. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Remember that guy Rob? He said he know you from AHS. Well he came by desperately looking for Rachel. He said he had to find her and asked if I knew where she was,¡± Matilda said. ¡°It seems like everyone is on a mission looking for something or someone these days.¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± Benji yelled. ¡°What do you mean? And why did it take this long for you to tell me this news?¡± ¡°Why are you getting so angry? Isn¡¯t he a friend of yours?¡± Matilda said. ¡°A FRIEND! NO NEVER! AN ENEMY!¡± Benji couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing. ¡°OH GOSH, I¡¯m sorry, Benji. I had no idea,¡± Matilda said. ¡°So, what happened? What did you tell him?¡± Benji asked. ¡°Well, he said it was an emergency. He said he had to find her to set things right. I didn¡¯t know what he was talking about but it seemed urgent. He seemed desperate to see her so I took him to Uncle Drew¡¯s crystal ball. I used it to pin point her location and to show him where she was,¡± Matilda said in shame. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t know he was an enemy to you and Rachel. Oh gosh, what have I done?¡± ¡°This is a nightmare. Rob is after Rachel and in a few days time we are all going to die. I can¡¯t think of anything worse!¡± Benji said, putting his head in his hands. ¡°This is just awful.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Matilda said. ¡°Benji, what is he going to do to Rachel?¡± Hunter asked. ¡°You know he¡¯s always had a thing for her. At lease that¡¯s what I heard.¡± ¡°I have to go save her. I have to stop Rob from getting to her first. She can¡¯t be influenced by him. I can¡¯t let this happen,¡± Benji said. ¡°But Benji, Rachel doesn¡¯t remember you. You said it yourself. Even if you got to her before Rob, it wouldn¡¯t make a difference. She wouldn¡¯t know who you are or why you¡¯d be trying to stop her from seeing Rob,¡± Penelope said. Page 4 ¡°I have to go. I must. I have to save her, she would do it for me,¡± Benji said. He was seething with anger and jealousy. He wished that Rachel had remembered him. If she had, none of this would be happening. He couldn¡¯t let her get back together with Rob. Especially after all they¡¯d been through together. He had to find a way for her to remember him. He had to win her back and get her out of the amnesia spell. He didn¡¯t know how he was going to do it but his heart was pulling him towards her. He had to get to her and stop Rob. He couldn¡¯t let anything happen to her. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I can¡¯t go with you to find the Waverly Mirror. I have to go be with Rachel!¡± Benji said. ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re not going to come with us? We had a whole plan. Now what are we going to do?¡± Hunter said. ¡°You¡¯re going to have to go on without me. I¡¯m sorry,¡± Benji answered. ¡°Please tell me you are kidding,¡± Matilda said. ¡°You are going to sacrifice our whole coven and the whole world for a girl who doesn¡¯t even remember you? For someone who could care less about you or our Vladdicus Coven?¡± ¡°Stop saying that, Matilda! She WILL remember me. She will. I just have to prove to her who I am and our history together. She will come to, I know she will,¡± Benji said hopefully. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you are throwing us to the wolves like this,¡± Hunter said. ¡°This is disappointing of you.¡± ¡°Hunter, put yourself in my shoes. If this were you and Penelope would you try to save her? Would you try to save your love or would you let some other guy steal her away from you while you sit and watch idly by?¡± Benji said. ¡°I don¡¯t think you would. You have to understand where I¡¯m coming from.¡± Benji watched as Hunter looked over at Penelope and smiled. ¡°I love you,¡± Hunter said to Penelope. ¡°I love you more!¡± she whispered back. ¡°I understand, Benji,¡± Hunter said. ¡°You go and do what you have to do. We will go alone. But once you get to Rachel please bring her and come help us find the mirror. We need all the help we can get.¡± ¡°Great idea, Hunter! Bring Rachel. We could use her. She¡¯s a smart girl,¡± Matilda said. ¡°OK, you three go and I, well¡­we will catch up with you as soon as we can.¡± ¡°Hurry! There¡¯s no time to waste. You have a big search ahead of you,¡± Benji said. The four of them came together in the middle of the room and held out their hands to do their secret coven handshake. It¡¯d been a while since he¡¯d done the handshake, but felt it was an appropriate time as they were all setting out on their missions. ¡°1-2-3-Vladdicus!¡± Benji said. ¡°We can do it guys. Stay strong!¡± ¡°Good luck, Benji,¡± Penelope, Hunter and Matilda said. ¡°Hurry back to us. We can¡¯t do this without you.¡± ¡°Please go! You will make good headway until I return,¡± Benji said. With that Benji walked out onto the marble balcony, stood there for a moment and then took off into the night sky. He had to get to Rachel and fast. He knew he didn¡¯t have much time before Rob would get there and he had to stop them from falling in love. He couldn¡¯t let it happen. The mere thought devastated him and made his body feel weak inside. A tear rolled down his cheek just thinking of her not wanting to be with him anymore. CHAPTER 7 Rachel ran faster than she¡¯d ever thought her legs could carry her. She ran down the corridor of the old stone castle, running from someone or something, she couldn¡¯t make out what or who it was, but it was scary. The scariest thing she¡¯d ever seen in her life. She was panicked and almost in tears. Her legs were going faster and faster as she tried to get away from this monster. Then, all of sudden, it was gone. She lost the monster and found herself in a field. A large open field surrounded by tall oak trees that were so tall the tops of them were in the clouds. Then, she spotted it. A large elk with giant antlers. She ran over it to and pounced, knocking it to the ground, its hoofs kicking up in the air. Out of her fingers emerged long, sharp claws, almost like talons that would come out of an eagle or a giant fowl, and then she started attacking it, slicing its body with her sharp claws and watching the blood ooze out of the large gaping wounds. Her long, white fangs descended from her gums as she sank her teeth down into the neck of this animal. The taste of this elk was the best thing she¡¯d tasted in a long time and she knew she wanted more. She looked around to see if there was another elk in sight, but there wasn¡¯t. She lapped up all the blood from its lacerations and then she sat down next to it, leaning against its lifeless body. She cried. Large tears streamed down her face as she saw the blood all over her body and on the ground. She couldn¡¯t believe what she¡¯d done to this helpless animal. ¡°Why? Oh Why God? What has come over me?¡± Rachel asked. She then felt her body fall down to the ground and when she looked back the elk¡¯s body was gone. She looked around here; it was nowhere to be found. Her body shook and she started to cough, and then she sat straight up, sweating, breathing heavy in her bed. It felt so real to her. Did that really just happen? She looked down at her hands, searching for her talons, but they had disappeared. She tried to taste the blood still in her mouth but all she could taste was the left over toothpaste that remained on her lips from the night before. It was the most real dream she¡¯d ever dreamt. She looked over at the clock and it read 4:45am. It was still early: Too early to get up for school. She lay there, wide-awake, staring at the ceiling, as the minutes ticked by slowly thinking about her dream. Thinking about what it all meant. I felt so real to her. It felt natural. She didn¡¯t know what the meaning of it was, but she knew that it was more than just a dream. It was almost as if a past life was creeping into her brain. She couldn¡¯t get it out of her head. As much as she tried to change her focus she couldn¡¯t. Her mind kept racing back to her fangs, her talons, and the scary monster that was chasing her. It was all such a nightmare, yet all felt so real. BEEP BEEP BEEP. The sound of her alarm clock rang in her ear. She quickly reached over to her nightstand and pushed the snooze button. She wasn¡¯t ready to get up. She wasn¡¯t feeling quite like herself this morning. Maybe because she¡¯d been up for hours already or maybe it was her dream. Somehow she felt the urge to feed. What was she even thinking? What did that all mean? It was all too confusing to her and she knew she had to get up and get ready for school. BEEP BEEP BEEP. The alarm went off again, this time she rose out of bed and hit the alarm off button. She knew she had to let the bad dream out of her head before she got to school. She couldn¡¯t let it cloud her Monday morning. She had a fun week ahead of her with her friends and her afterschool activities and she didn¡¯t want anything to spoil it. Rachel felt excited to go to school in the morning. She¡¯d felt like it had been a while since she was at school, even thought it had only been three days since school let out on Friday. She couldn¡¯t wait to see her friends to talk about what had happened over the weekend. She knew they¡¯d have some insight on what went on Saturday night that left her in a field with a strange guy. She went downstairs to have breakfast and saw Mark and her dad already sitting there. Her dad was reading the local paper and Mark was texting on his cell phone. It was hard to talk to Mark these days since he was always on his cell. He barely lifted his eyes up from the screen. ¡°Morning!¡± Rachel said with a smile. ¡°Good Morning, Rachel,¡± her dad said. ¡°Good Morning, Mark!¡± Rachel reiterated. ¡°Oh..yo,¡± Mark said. ¡°Hurry up and eat, we¡¯re going to be late,¡± her dad said looking at the clock on the microwave. Rachel scarfed down a bowl of cereal and headed out to their station wagon, which sat in the driveway. ¡°Shot gun!¡± Mark yelled as he made his way to the front seat. ¡°Ugh! I get it next time,¡± Rachel said. ¡°At least we don¡¯t have to fight Sarah for it!¡± Mark said. ¡°Ha. True!¡± Rachel agreed. As the three of them drove to school, she couldn¡¯t help but think about this past weekend and how strange it all felt. She kept playing back her time in the field with Benji but for some reason the pieces didn¡¯t fit together. She couldn¡¯t make sense of it all. BUZZ BUZZ Her cell phone went off and she opened it and saw a text from Dana. Dana: Hey! You on your way? Rachel: Yup! Coming now! Dana: We are all here! WE CAN¡¯T WAIT TO SEE YOU! Rachel: Ditto! Rachel didn¡¯t know what the whole fanfare was all about or why Dana would be texting her so early. Especially since she knew she¡¯d see her in a few minutes at school. It seemed odd to her, but she didn¡¯t question it. As the car pulled into the semi circular driveway of her high school, she felt at ease. She couldn¡¯t wait to catch up with her friends and she couldn¡¯t wait to see what she got on her math test from last week. It was going to be an exciting day. ¡°Rachel, I want you to go visit your mother this afternoon,¡± her dad said. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I think it¡¯s time you two got together,¡± her dad answered. ¡°But¡­¡± Rachel said. ¡°There are no buts. You will go today after school,¡± her dad demanded. ¡°Fine!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I will pick you up at three and we will drive there together. Mark you will come, too,¡± her dad said. ¡°I can¡¯t go today, Dad. I have practice. Don¡¯t you remember?¡± Mark said. ¡°Ok, fine. You will go later in the week then.¡± Rachel got out of the back seat of the car, slammed the door shut and walked towards the front entrance of the school. She was immediately taken back by all the stares and whispers from upper and lower classmen. Even kids she didn¡¯t recognize were turning their heads and staring at her as if she were some alien from outer space. She touched her face and her hair to make sure she didn¡¯t have a booger coming out of her nose or her hair wasn¡¯t standing straight up. She looked down at her clothes, too, but there was nothing out of place. The stares and whispers grew louder as she walked in through the front doors. Page 5 She stood there for a moment, taking it all in. For a moment she had a flashback of a different school and a different time. She quickly snapped out of it when she felt a tap on her shoulder. ¡°Hey there!¡± Dana said. ¡°Dana! Hi!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Didn¡¯t think you were serious, but here you are! In the flesh!¡± Dana said. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Well, I¡¯m just surprised to see you,¡± Dana said. ¡°Really? I just saw you a day ago,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Maybe it feels like a day to you!¡± Dana answered. ¡°Um..I don¡¯t get it.¡± Rachel said. ¡°Well, it¡¯s been longer Rach,¡± Dana said. ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about. I was here Friday and we hung out Saturday night. I think we did anyway. Not too sure, it¡¯s kinda all a fog to me now,¡± Rachel said. ¡°What did happen to us anyway? We got separated right?¡± ¡°Rach, I wasn¡¯t with you on Saturday night and you didn¡¯t come to school last Friday. You haven¡¯t been here in almost two years!¡± ¡°Two years?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Are you in on this, too?¡± ¡°In on what?¡± Dana asked. ¡°This whole conspiracy about me being gone and everything,¡± Rachel said. ¡°It¡¯s like I¡¯m a crazy person or something. Every time I talk to people they look at me like I have three heads and tell me I¡¯m wrong or that I¡¯m forgetting something.¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± Dana said. ¡°Listen, D, I¡¯m not crazy! Let¡¯s just drop this whole thing and get to class!¡± Rachel said. ¡°What do you have first period?¡± Dana asked. ¡°Math,¡± Rachel said. ¡°With Mr. Peterson.¡± ¡°Alright, see you at lunch then,¡± Dana said. Rachel walked towards her locker, which was located close to her first period math class. As she approached the locker, she reached for the combination lock, and started to put her combo in. It didn¡¯t work. She tried over and over, but it wouldn¡¯t open. This is weird, she thought to herself. The second bell rang and she knew she had to get to class before she would be marked tardy. She¡¯d never been late to class ever and didn¡¯t want to be counted as absent. She had a perfect attendance record and didn¡¯t want to blow it. When she walked into her first period class she was surprised to see that the class was full of underclassmen. She looked around at the seats and they were all full, and some other girl had taken up her seat. She looked over at Mr. Peterson who looked at her in disbelief. ¡°Rachel? What are you doing back here?¡± Mr. Peterson asked, with a stunned look on his face. ¡°Um¡­I¡¯m confused. Aren¡¯t I supposed to be in this class?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Rachel, that was two years ago. You haven¡¯t been here in a long time!¡± Mr. Peterson remarked. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you though.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rachel asked. She could hear the whispers going around in the classroom, as she stood there dumbfounded, trying to sort things through in her head. ¡°I think it¡¯s best if you go to the main office and ask them for your new schedule,¡± Mr. Peterson said. ¡°Uh.. Ok,¡± Rachel said, feeling confused and out of it. ¡°Good idea!¡± Rachel turned and walked out of the classroom, and back into the now empty hallway. She looked around at everything and started wondering if everyone was right. If she had some sort of memory lapse or amnesia or something. She stood there, looking around at everything, looking for clues as to what was going on. She went back to her old locker one more time to see if the combo worked, but it didn¡¯t. She knew something was up; she just had to figure it all out. As she walked to the main office she looked in at the other classes already in session. She looked at the kids sitting there at their desks and realized she recognized none of them. It was like she was in a new school or something. Classroom after classroom of strange faces but familiar teachers. This was all mind-boggling. She pushed open the swinging wooden door to the main office and walked over to the secretary¡¯s desk. ¡°Hi, Mrs. Dusty, do you happen to have my class schedule here? I¡¯m a bit lost today!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Oh Rachel Wood. Your dad called and said you¡¯d be coming back to school today. We have been working on your placement schedule and have come up with a solution since you¡¯ve missed so much already this year,¡± Mrs. Dusty said. ¡°Can I ask you something, Mrs. Dusty? How long has it been since I¡¯ve been here?¡± Rachel asked, trying not to sound too odd. ¡°Well, our records show that you¡¯ve been out of school for nearly a year and a half,¡± Mrs. Dusty answered. ¡°WHAT?¡± Rachel said. ¡°A year and a half?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it says here,¡± Mrs. Dusty said, looking down at her computer. ¡°Here is your new schedule. You¡¯re supposed to be in French class now with Mr. Dappler. You should get going now.¡± Rachel reached out and took the schedule from Mrs. Dusty and then turned to walk away. A year and a half she kept repeating over in her head. What? She walked to her French class, which was in room 202. She had to go up the stairs and down a long hall to get there. She passed a few kids on the way and they exchanged friendly smiles, despite the fact that she didn¡¯t know them. When she got to room 202 she quietly opened the door as to not interrupt the class and then slipped in and took an empty seat. She slunk down in her chair in the back of the classroom, hoping that nobody saw her enter, which was obviously wishful thinking because everyone was staring at her. She couldn¡¯t bear it anymore. She hated being in the spotlight, and today she felt like she couldn¡¯t get out of it. The class started whispering and the teacher had to quiet everyone down and bring their attention back to the front of the room. ¡°Now class, eyes up here please!¡± Mr. Dappler said. ¡°But Mr. Dappler, Rachel¡¯s back!¡± Brian said. Then the class cheered and started asking in unison, ¡°What happened? Where were you? You¡¯re alive!¡± Brian was a guy in her class whom she¡¯d never been friends with before but thought he was hot. She was surprised actually that he even noticed she was back. She didn¡¯t even think he knew her name but apparently he did. She felt excited by that and felt a sense of belonging again in her high school. ¡°Hi everyone!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m back!¡± She figured she might as well go along with it until she gains some understanding of where the past year and a half of her life had gone. ¡°Where were you?¡± Brie asked. ¡°I thought you moved?¡± Deborah asked. ¡°But wait, I heard you died?¡± Kevin asked. ¡°Not now kids, you will have to save all of your questions for Rachel for after class. Right now we are speaking French!¡± Mr. Dappler said. ¡°Comprendez vous?¡± ¡°Oui!¡± the class responded. Rachel sat there, completely lost in this intermediate French class. She had no idea why they put her in this class, but apparently she missed the beginner¡¯s class last year while she was gone. She knew she¡¯d have to do a lot of studying to catch up and she couldn¡¯t risk her perfect GPA. She wanted to get into a good college and knew she¡¯d have to start applying soon, especially since it was almost the deadline. Actually, now that she thought about that, she started to get worried. She started to feel under an immense pressure to research all the colleges. She couldn¡¯t believe she¡¯d let this one slip through the cracks like this. It¡¯s not like it was a little thing either, it was COLLEGE for crying out loud. She couldn¡¯t let herself get carried away thinking about the future at a time like this; she had to deal with more immediate issues. She had to figure out where the past year and a half of her life went. She had to sort that out first. She sat there, looking at the clock, waiting for this class to end. She knew she only had one more class until lunch and then she¡¯d be able to catch up with her friends and find out more about what had happened to her. She knew if anyone were to know these details about her life it would be her friends. After all they were like sisters to each other; or at least they had been. The next hour and a half dug on as if it were a year. She¡¯d never been so out of it in her entire life. She couldn¡¯t focus on the class or the teacher and she was completely lost. She didn¡¯t know what they were talking about in her physics class and she couldn¡¯t understand the lab assignment either: it was all too complicated for her. It was also the first time she felt confused in a class. This day was getting worse and worse. RING RING The bell rang and it was finally time for Rachel to go to lunch. She was excited and nervous all at the same time. She didn¡¯t know what to expect, and worried that maybe her friends wouldn¡¯t remember her or they wouldn¡¯t accept her after all this time. Or worse off, that her friends wouldn¡¯t be friends with each other anymore. She didn¡¯t know but she was about to find out. She didn¡¯t have to go to her locker, since she didn¡¯t have one so she just walked over to the cafeteria. She arrived there a minute later and was one of the first to arrive. She looked around the big empty room with about twenty round circular tables, waiting to be filled by her classmates. She didn¡¯t know what to do: she didn¡¯t know where to sit. She stood there, and watched as kids started to filter in from the hallways. The noise level grew louder and louder as the cafeteria filled up. She continued to look around for Dana or anyone she recognized, but they weren¡¯t there. She knew some of the kids that were filing in, but not well enough to sit at their lunch table with them. As she stood there, she could feel the kids staring at her in awe. She could hear their conversations and it made her feel uncomfortable. She hated being the butt of jokes and rumors, but today, it was hard for her to escape it. She didn¡¯t want to stand there anymore, so she decided to walk around the hallway and come back in a few minutes, that way she¡¯d give her friends time to get to the cafeteria. Page 6 She walked back toward the main office and through the swinging door. She knew this might be a good time to sort out her locker situation since her backpack wasn¡¯t exactly light. She went back over to Mrs. Dusty¡¯s desk and stood there until she was off the phone. ¡°Mrs. Dusty, can you give me my new locker?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry, dear. I thought I gave it to you already,¡± Mrs. Dusty said, looking at her papers. ¡°No. I don¡¯t have it,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Here, let me get that info for you. I think you are locker 198. Let me double check¡­¡± Mrs. Dusty looked down a long list of names and locker numbers. ¡°Yes 198 it is!¡± ¡°Ok, thank you,¡± Rachel said. Rachel left and went over to her new locker. She pulled out the piece of paper Mrs. Dusty handed her with her new locker combination and she tried it. Success She put her backpack and books away and then headed back towards the cafeteria. Surely her friends would be there by now, she thought. As she approached the entrance to the cafeteria her heart began to race again. She could feel her body temperature rising as she walked through the doors. The stares were endless and then out of nowhere she heard a voice calling her, ¡°Rachel! Rachel! Come on, we¡¯re waiting for you!¡± Dana yelled out across the cafeteria. Rachel was thankful that Dana was there, and saw a few of her other friends sitting at the table, too. Phew, she thought to herself. She walked over to their table amid the glares and whispers of the kids in the cafeteria. She didn¡¯t acknowledge them and kept her focus on Dana and her friends. ¡°Rachel!¡± Dana said. ¡°Everyone¡¯s so pumped you¡¯re back!¡± Rachel smiled, ¡°Yeah!¡± ¡°Come sit,¡± Dana said, moving over and making room for her at the table. ¡°Rach, what¡¯s up girl?¡± Penny said. ¡°Great to see you!¡± Amy said. ¡°You¡¯re back!¡± Samantha said. ¡°Hi Guys, missed you!¡± Rachel answered back. ¡°Yeah, seriously! What happened to you?¡± Penny asked. ¡°Yeah, we were so worried about you!¡± Sam said. ¡°But why?¡± Rachel asked, hoping to gain some clarity. ¡°You¡¯ve been gone a while!¡± Dana said. ¡°I was trying to tell you that earlier.¡± ¡°I know, but where did I go?¡± Rachel asked hoping they would look at her like she was crazy. ¡°What do you mean where did you go? You don¡¯t remember?¡± Penny asked. ¡°Weird!¡± Sam said. ¡°It¡¯s been a year and a half!¡± Dana said. ¡°C¡¯mon you moved away remember?¡± ¡°Yeah! Duh! I knew that. Where did I move to?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Stop playing games with us!¡± Amy said. ¡°Guys, I¡¯m not playing games with you. Can I tell you guys something, but you have to promise not to tell anyone?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Yes!¡± the girls said in unison. ¡°Well, I have to be honest with you all. You¡¯re my BFFs and I know I can trust you,¡± Rachel whispered. ¡°I don¡¯t remember anything. I don¡¯t remember leaving Pennsylvania and I don¡¯t remember not being in school for the last year and a half. I need help putting the pieces back together.¡± ¡°WHAT?¡± Dana said. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± ¡°OMG!¡± Amy said. ¡°Seriously?¡± Penny asked. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m not joking around. Please I need your help,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Please fill me in.¡± ¡°Well, do you remember your big move?¡± Dana asked. ¡°No?¡± Rachel said. ¡°You moved at the start of last year to New York when your father got transferred for his job. You hated it at first and we talked everyday and then you made some new friends and I didn¡¯t hear from you as much,¡± Dana said. ¡°Ok¡­and?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°And you talked about different boys and then you said you liked some guy named Rob and said you were going on a date with him. Do you remember him?¡± Amy asked. ¡°Really?¡± Rachel asked with excitement. ¡°You¡¯re joking! I had a boyfriend!¡± The girls all laughed and then Sam said, ¡°You liked him a lot. He was on the football team at your new high school.¡± ¡°Stop it! You¡¯re lying to me,¡± Rachel said. ¡°We¡¯re not lying at all!¡± Penny said. ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± Sam chimed in. ¡°We swear!¡± ¡°Wow! I was popular?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Guess so if you were dating the QB of the football team!¡± Dana answered. ¡°So what else do you know?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Well that¡¯s where it gets unclear,¡± Dana said. ¡°One day out of the blue you completely stopped texting me. It was like you disappeared or something. Last thing you said to me was that you fell in love with some new buy named Benji. You said he was mysterious and special. Your relationship with him happened really quickly and then you stopped telling me about it and dropped of the face of the earth.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Benji?¡± For a moment her mind raced back to the moment in the field with Benji. She wondered if that was the same Benji they were talking about. She wondered if that was her true love. ¡°Yeah, you stopped texting me, too!¡± Penny said. ¡°Us too,¡± Amy and Sam said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I hope you can forgive me!¡± Rachel said. ¡°So where did I go?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°We don¡¯t know and I got so worried about you that I called your parents and they didn¡¯t know what happened to you either. There was talks that you had died in some fight, too,¡± Dana said. ¡°My parents didn¡¯t know either?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°No they were worried sick about you. Your mom was so stressed out that she went into a coma and had to be hospitalized. I think she¡¯s still in the hospital now,¡± Dana said. ¡°My dad mentioned she was in the hospital but it was all so confusing to me. I couldn¡¯t figure it out. He said it was my fault, too!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rach. This must be hard for you!¡± Sam said. ¡°Is there anything else you know?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°My dad wants me to go visit her after school today. Actually he¡¯s making me go. He said I have no choice.¡± ¡°Well, at least you will see your mom!¡± Dana said. ¡°She loves you very much.¡± ¡°I know, but now I just feel bad and guilty at what I¡¯ve done,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Listen, Rach, once you figure out everything that happened you will feel much better. This is all news to you, so it¡¯s obvi that you¡¯d be feeling a bit off. Don¡¯t stress out about it,¡± Penny said. ¡°I wish it were that easy,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m so worried about going to the hospital to see my mom, you have no idea! I¡¯m really scared.¡± ¡°You will patch things up between you and your mom. Don¡¯t worry. She will get better,¡± Amy said. ¡°How can you be sure?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure, but I have faith,¡± Amy said. ¡°So, what¡¯s been happening here since I left then?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Well, a lot has happened!¡± Dana answered. ¡°Like what?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Well, I started dating Dave!¡± Dana said. ¡°WHAT!? No! Dave Johnson?¡± Rachel asked ¡°Yup! He finally asked me out. Can you believe it!¡± Dana said. ¡°How about you girls? Anything I should know about?¡± Rachel asked hoping that they too would have boyfriend news. ¡°Well, Penny, why don¡¯t you tell her!¡± Amy said. ¡°I¡¯m going out with Danny!¡± Penny said. ¡°No, really?¡± Rachel said. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it. How about you Amy and Sam?¡± ¡°Nah, we¡¯re still single!¡± they both answered. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it! What happened with Gary?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°We broke up,¡± Sam said. ¡°Don¡¯t really want to get into it now.¡± ¡°It was a tough break up,¡± Amy whispered to Rachel. ¡°So what are you doing after the hospital?¡± Dana asked. ¡°Um..nothing. I guess just going home,¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Want to come out with us. We are going to Monday Madness at the movies tonight. It¡¯s half price tickets and free pop corn!¡± Dana said. ¡°Aw, I¡¯d love to!¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Actually. I better lay low tonight. I¡¯m kind of on probation with my dad. If I do anything he doesn¡¯t like then I¡¯m out he said.¡± ¡°Yikes!¡± Amy said. ¡°Ok, well think about it. If you change your mind that¡¯s where we will be!¡± Penny added. RING RING Lunch was over and Rachel had to get to her sixth period class. She checked her schedule and then headed to the second floor again for her math class. On her way up the stairs her stomach began to rumble and her head began to spin. She grabbed onto the railing and held tightly trying not to fall over. She fell increasingly dizzy as she went up the steps one by one. She was sweating and out of breath, she couldn¡¯t seem to catch her breath either. She didn¡¯t know what was happening to her. She¡¯d never had a panic attack, and figured that¡¯s what was going on. Her stomach made loud rumbling noises as she stood there on the steps. The kids walking by stopped and stared at her as if she were some foreign being. She wished she could pull herself together but she couldn¡¯t. She didn¡¯t know what to do. She quickly ran back down the stairs and outside. Her eyes began seeing double as she tried to focus on the trees outside. She hoped the fresh air would help but it wasn¡¯t helping. It was making it worse. She had fleeting images of deer running through her mind. It was all too confusing for her. Then, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, it stopped. Page 7 She looked down at her body, and touched her face. She felt normal again. Her breathing slowed down and she was able to catch her breath. The rumbling of her stomach stopped, too. It was the strangest feeling. She turned back around and walked back inside just as the second bell was ringing. She was late for yet another class. She ran back up the stairs and into her math classroom. The teacher stopped the class and said, ¡°Excuse me, you¡¯re late! Who are you anyway?¡± Rachel stopped in her tracks and looked back at the teacher in horror, ¡°I¡¯m Rachel Wood.¡± ¡°Rachel Wood? You¡¯re not in this class,¡± Mrs. Pepper said. ¡°I um..I just started today,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Are you new?¡± Mrs. Pepper asked. ¡°I guess you could say that,¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Well, take a seat in the back and don¡¯t come late again!¡± Mrs. Pepper yelled. She sat down in the only empty seat in the back of the classroom. She looked around to see who was in the class and was happy to see some familiar faces. She turned to her right and was happy to see Brian, sitting next to her. She looked at him and smiled and he smiled back. Her heart began to race with excitement. ¡°Hi!¡± Brian said. ¡°Sorry you got yelled at. She¡¯s a ball buster!¡± ¡°Yeah, apparently,¡± Rachel whispered back. ¡°No talking!¡± Mrs. Pepper said. ¡°You two in the back be quiet or else I will separate you!¡± Everyone in the class turned their heads and stared at Rachel and Brian. Her face got flush red as she was being reprimanded. She was mortified. She quickly turned to face the front of the classroom and took out her notebook and pencil. She had to at least pretend she was focusing on the class, even though all she could think about for some reason was Brian. She was elated that he spoke to her and smiled at her. It was her dream come true. She¡¯d always liked Brian, but he never paid any attention to her before. She wondered if this would last or if it was a passing thing. A few minutes later, Brian reached over and put a note down on her desk. She looked up at him and he motioned for her to open it. She unfolded the piece of paper and read it: Do you want to go to the movies tonight? She couldn¡¯t believe her eyes. She blinked and read it again, thinking she was seeing things. Do you want to go to the movies tonight? She looked over at Brian and shook her head yes. She couldn¡¯t believe it. She was asked out by Brian and couldn¡¯t have been happier. He smiled at her and then Rachel felt a hand come down hard on her desk. ¡°WHAT¡¯S THIS?¡± Mrs. Pepper asked, picking up the note from Rachel¡¯s desk. Mrs. Pepper opened the note and read it out loud, ¡°Do you want to go to the movies tonight? Do you want to go to the movies tonight?¡± she repeated. Rachel looked at Brian whose face was bright red with embarrassment. The entire class started oohing and aahing in unison. Rachel¡¯s face turned beat read as well. She couldn¡¯t believe this was happening, and she hoped that Brian wouldn¡¯t take back his invitation. She hoped that his friends wouldn¡¯t make fun of him for asking her out. ¡°There¡¯s no note passing in my class,¡± Mrs. Pepper said. ¡°Both of you go to the principal!¡± ¡°What?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t question me, young man. Go!¡± Mrs. Pepper said. The two of them quietly got up from their desks, gathered their belongings and headed out of the classroom towards the principals office. Rachel felt scared. She¡¯d never been sent to the principal before and she knew she¡¯d get in trouble for this, both in school and at home. She knew her father would be pissed to find out she disrupted class and she feared he¡¯d kick her out again. Her heart began to pound as they got to the bottom of the steps and were now on the first floor just steps away from his office. Until now the two hadn¡¯t said a word to each other, but then Brian turned to her and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Rach. It will be OK. I will cover for you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my first time going to Dr. Rundy¡¯s office. I can¡¯t believe my first day back and I¡¯m already in trouble,¡± Rachel said. ¡°He¡¯s not that bad really. I¡¯ve been sent to his office a few times before and to tell you the truth, he¡¯s not as scary as he appears to be!¡± Brian said. ¡°Really? I find him to be horrifying!¡± Rachel said, whispering as they got close to his office. ¡°Shh¡­¡± Brian said as the two stood outside of his office staring quietly at the large wooden door with a small glass window. Rachel began to panic as she stood there, waiting for Dr. Rundy to open the door. She surveyed the door as she stood there, and for some reason couldn¡¯t take her eyes off the gold embossed plaque on his door, which read, Dr. R.W. Rundy. The sight of his name made her heart sink into her chest and her body temperature to rise. Then, she heard loud footsteps coming to the door, and a large shadow appeared in the frosted glass window of the door. She knew it was he, coming to yell at them. She took a step back, so as not to be so close to the door or to Dr. Rundy when he opened it. She wanted to hide behind Brian but knew she couldn¡¯t do that. The doorknob creaked as she watched it turn, then the door opened slowly and within seconds, she saw Dr. Rundy standing there with a severe look of disappointment on his face. ¡°Rachel, Brian, come in,¡± Dr. Rundy said in a deep, slow voice. The two stepped into his office and waited for him to say something. ¡°Sit down there,¡± Dr. Rundy said, pointing to two chairs opposite his desk. ¡°What did you do to be sent to my office?¡± Rachel was silent and waited for Brian to answer, but he didn¡¯t. He waited, too. She couldn¡¯t believe this; she thought he was going to cover for her. ¡°Well.¡± Rachel started talking. ¡°What happened was that¡­¡± ¡°It was my fault, Dr. Rundy. Rachel shouldn¡¯t be punished for my mistake,¡± Brian said. Rachel looked over at Brian in relief as she listened to him talk. ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s all your fault? Mrs. Pepper said it was the both of you who disrupted her class today!¡± Dr. Rundy said, with the same scary look of disapproval. ¡°Well,¡± Brian said, ¡°What happened was completely my fault and Rachel here was just caught in the middle of it. She does not deserve to be sitting here.¡± ¡°Well, Rachel?¡± Dr. Rundy asked. ¡°Is this true?¡± Rachel didn¡¯t know what to do or say. Of course she wanted to get out of her punishment, but at the same time she didn¡¯t want to throw Brian under the bus, especially since she kind of had feeling for him. ¡°It¡¯s ok Brian,¡± Rachel said. ¡°It¡¯s as much my fault as it is yours. You don¡¯t have to take all the blame here.¡± ¡°C¡¯mon Rachel, I passed you the note and I was the one starting conversations with you. You didn¡¯t do anything,¡± Brian said smiling at her. ¡°Well, Rachel, it seems like Brian is the one who caused the trouble up in math class. You are free to go, but don¡¯t let it happen again!¡± Dr. Rundy said. ¡°Go?¡± Rachel asked, confused. ¡°Yes, you may leave my office now. But Brian, you will stay here with me. We have more to discuss!¡± Dr. Rundy said. Rachel slowly got up from her chair; feeling like this was all too good to be true. She wasn¡¯t getting in trouble after all, and it¡¯s all because Brian stood up for me and took all the blame. She was so grateful that he¡¯d done that. She couldn¡¯t bear the thought of going home and telling her dad she was sent to the principals office, or even worse, having the principal call home to tell him the news. Still, the thought of the frightened her as she slowly walked out of his office, shutting the door behind her. Part of her felt bad that Brian had to take the brunt of this situation, but it was only fair. He was the one who got her in trouble after all, and he was nice to tell the truth to Dr. Rundy. She wished she could have thanked him, but knew it wouldn¡¯t have been an appropriate time to do so. RING RING The final bell rang of the day and Rachel couldn¡¯t have been happier. She couldn¡¯t wait to go home to process everything that had happened in school. Then, she remembered her dad was picking her up to go to the hospital. Suddenly, she was feeling depressed about the idea of seeing her mom in a coma in a hospital bed. After all, she didn¡¯t know what she¡¯d say to her when she saw her, especially because this whole thing was her fault. Rachel went to her new locker and took out her backpack and books and headed toward the front door of the school. As she was walking down the hall, she heard her friends yelling her name, ¡°Rachel, Rachel! Wait for us!¡± Rachel turned and greeted them, ¡°Hey guys, what¡¯s up?¡± ¡°Nothing much! Just heading out, we¡¯re walking into town, wanna come?¡± Dana asked. ¡°Wish I could, but my dad is picking me up to visit my mom,¡± Rachel said. Dana¡¯s face dropped, ¡°Oh, for the first time?¡± ¡°Yeah, I haven¡¯t seen her there yet,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Oh brother. Well, good luck,¡± Dana, said. ¡°Text me after and hopefully you will change your mind about the movies later.¡± ¡°Thanks!¡± Rachel said. She stood there, outside the school building, all bundled up in her winter coat and scarf as she waited for her dad. She watched her friends walk away in the distance as they laughed, linked arms and skipped into town. She wished she could have gone with them instead of having to go to the hospital. She dreaded going to the hospital; everything about it was upsetting to her. The fact that her mom was in the hospital, for one, the smell of the hospital, the noises of the hospital, the whole thing. As the after school noises quieted down, she looked at her watch. Her dad was already fifteen minutes late to pick her up. She knew that was out of character for him, but continued to wait for him. She took out her cell phone and dialed his number. It rang and rang, until his voicemail picked up. Page 8 Hmm. Rachel thought to herself. This is odd. She waited another twenty minutes, but he didn¡¯t show up and he didn¡¯t call. She figured he¡¯d forgotten about their plans, so she decided to walk home. It was a rather far walk, especially for such a cold day, but she wanted to do it. She wanted to be outside and she wanted to have time to herself to think about things. CHAPTER 8 Rachel was freezing cold by the time she got home and here nose was dripping from the frigid air. Her face felt chapped and her ears raw as she walked up the driveway towards her house. She still didn¡¯t feel like she had any clarity on what had happened to her the past two years since she left Pennsylvania. She didn¡¯t know what to do but she knew she had to do something to give her peace of mind. ¡°Dad! Dad!¡± Rachel yelled as she went into her house. ¡°Where are you?¡± She waited quietly, but there was no answer. She went into his home office but he was not there. ¡°Mark? Are you home?¡± Rachel called out. Again, no answer. Rachel was home alone and didn¡¯t know where her father was or why he didn¡¯t pick her up from school. She went over to the answering machine to see if maybe he had called, but there were no messages. Despite the oddity of this, Rachel was excited to have the house to herself. She liked being home alone, and especially today. She wanted to rummage around to find clues about her past years she couldn¡¯t remember. She started in her parent¡¯s room. She knew she wasn¡¯t supposed to go through their personal things, but she couldn¡¯t help it. She had to see what has been going on with the family. She opened her dad¡¯s closet and opened his safe, and started perusing through his old coin collection, his old high school yearbooks and a few gold money clips. She flipped through the pages of his yearbooks, and laughed at the old pictures. Secretly, she was hoping her dad was hiding something in the pages of the books that would miraculously fall out and have all the answers for her, but there was nothing. Only dusty, old pages with funny old photos of the past. She poked around in his drawers but there was nothing secretive hiding there, and nothing out of place. So far her plan was not working. Then, she went into her mother¡¯s closet. All of her clothes were still in bags from the move and her personal items were still in boxes, which her dad had put neatly in the bottom of her closet. She felt bad as she rummaged through her moms clothes, and shoes, looking for signs of anything strange. Then, she decided to open one of the boxes titled Betsy¡¯s things. She opened the box and peeked in at its dusty contents. She saw old photos from when she was a kid, a few recipe books, her favorite sci fi novels, old keys on a key chain and some old scarves. Rachel was striking out and not finding any information that would explain why she¡¯d forgotten the past two years. She wasn¡¯t even finding anything that showed they had moved. Was everyone conspiring against her or was it really true. She couldn¡¯t figure it out. She left her parents room and walked towards her brother¡¯s room. She entered it, but then realized he probably wouldn¡¯t have any information. She walked to her sister¡¯s room, but when she went inside there was nothing there. Sarah had taken most of her belongings with her to Syracuse University and there was nothing left except her floor mirror, and her old record player. No boxes or bags for Rachel to search through. Rachel took out her cell phone and dialed Sarah. She hadn¡¯t spoken to her in a while, and wanted to find out what she knew. She pressed her number on speed dial and waited while it rang and rang. Then, her voicemail picked up and she left a message: Hey Sarah, it¡¯s your sister. Just wanted to say hello and see how you are doing. See what¡¯s been going on and I have a few things to ask you. So please call me back. Miss ya! Bye! She hung up the phone and then stood there, in the hallway wondering what to do next. She looked around and then the dangling string to the attic steps caught her eye. She walked towards it and then jumped up high to try and grab the string. She was too short. She looked in the coat closet and pulled out the step stood. She reached for the string and pulled down the folding steps, which led to the attic. She carefully climbed up the steps as her fathers voice rang in her ears from her childhood. Don¡¯t go up into the attic. It¡¯s not a place to play. She got to the top of the attic and looked around. She saw old Halloween costumes from when she was a kid, old stuffed animals, old clothes and shoes and a bunch of boxes. She looked around, and couldn¡¯t believe they¡¯d just moved back in. By the looks of this attic, you would think they¡¯d been living in that house one hundred years. It smelled musty and there was a layer of dust over everything. She blew on one of the boxes and read the label. Old Files Rachel pulled the masking tape off the box and opened it as a huge cloud of dust hit her in the face making her cough and sneeze. She opened the box to find stacks of old bank statements and old records. She picked one up but it was from when she was only ten years old. There were no recent documents in this box that she could find. Everything that she found was from the time they lived in that house and from the days she could remember. She was getting discouraged about her whole idea of uncovering the truth about the past two years. She knew she wasn¡¯t getting anywhere in her search and decided to go back downstairs. As she carefully walked across the floorboards of the attic, she saw an envelope sticking out from under one of them. She bent down and pulled it out from where it had been wedged in the floor. It was taped closed with duct tape on all the edges and looked like a private letter. On the front was her mothers name written in calligraphy in red pen. She didn¡¯t know if she should open it up, but her curiosity didn¡¯t give her much of an option. She carefully removed all the tape, without compromising the envelope or its contents. Then, she unfolded the small piece of parchment paper that was safely tucked inside. The paper was old, and discolored and crumbling at the edges. It was almost as if she¡¯d just found an old letter in a bottle or an old relic from the olden days. She began reading: Dear Betsy, Now that you are older, I can tell you who you really are and who we really come from. I can tell you the secrets of our family past and let you in on our secret life. This information is confidential and must strictly remain within our side of the family. You are never to tell your children or your husband. You have to promise me that you will not share our family¡¯s history with anyone and you will take it to your grave. For I am the only remaining survivor from the time and the only one who holds the secrets. Meet me in the cemetery at the tomb of your grandfather, and I will share with you what I know. Love, your mother. Rachel didn¡¯t know what to make of this letter and its ominous sounding text. She felt worried and scared by everything she¡¯d just learned. She couldn¡¯t help but wonder what this all meant and why her mother was never allowed to tell her. She had no idea what her grandmother was talking about and wished she were still alive to ask her. The letter almost sounded like sorcery or witchcraft to her. Her body began to shake in fear as she reread the letter over and over. How she¡¯d wished she could talk to her grandmother about this, but the only person who would know about this now was her mother, but she was in a coma in the hospital and she didn¡¯t know what condition she was in or if she¡¯d even want to discuss it with her. She folded the letter back up carefully and put it back in the envelope. She knew she had to confront her mother about this letter and she had to do it soon. It might shed some light on what¡¯s been going on with her recently. CHAPTER 9 Rachel couldn¡¯t wait one more minute to see her mom. She needed to find out answers and she needed to talk to her about the letter. She quickly ran out of her house with the letter safely zipped in her coat pocket as she headed out for the local hospital. The freezing cold air hit her face as she walked briskly into town. The thought of seeing her mom in a hospital bed frightened her. She¡¯d never seen her in a vulnerable state before and she didn¡¯t know how she felt about it. To her, her mom was a strong, fearless woman, but now she was sick, laying in a bed with nurses and doctors around her. It was night and day to how she¡¯d remembered her mom. She hoped that her mom would be able to speak to her and she hoped she¡¯d be able and willing to talk to her about her grandmother¡¯s letter. Her anxiety about seeing her mom was rising as she neared the hospital. She stopped as she approached the parking lot of the hospital and then turned around, and started walking away. She couldn¡¯t do it. She couldn¡¯t bear the thought of her mom in the hospital. She figured if she never saw her mom there, than it wouldn¡¯t be real. Then, she stopped again and turned back around and headed towards the front doors of the hospital. She had to see her. She couldn¡¯t live in a fantasyland anymore. She had to get to the bottom of things and she had to see her mom, for her own peace of mind. As she walking in through the large automatic sliding doors, the smell of hand sanitizer filled the air. She looked around at the stark white walls and fluorescent lighting, and the hustle and bustle of the nurses and doctors and they ran from one room to the next and then back out to their stations. She stood there and watched for a moment and then, a nurse came over to her and said, ¡°Can I help you?¡± ¡°Oh, right!¡± Rachel snapped out of it. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m looking for my mom.¡± ¡°Your mother, Dear?¡± the nurse asked sympathetically. ¡°Yes, I think she¡¯s at this hospital,¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Well, what¡¯s her name, Dear. I will look her up. Follow me,¡± the nurse said, ushering her over to her computer station. ¡°Betsy Wood is her name,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Let me see here,¡± the nurse said as she clicked away at her computer. Rachel watched as she scrolled up and down on the computer screen searching for information on her mother. Then, she saw the nurses eyes open wide and then make a frightened face. ¡°Yes, she is here,¡± the nurse answered. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡± Rachel didn¡¯t know what to make of that statement, but she figured it was going to be a bad situation when she saw her mom by the looks on this nurses face. Page 9 ¡°She¡¯s in room 501,¡± the nurse said. ¡°It¡¯s right down the hall and make a left.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± Rachel said, as she started in that direction. Nobody told her what to expect when she saw her mother for the first time and nobody could have prepared her for what she saw as she entered room 501. Her mom lay there, under the white hospital sheets with her head wrapped in bandages and air tubes coming out of her nose and mouth. There were wires hooked up to her body that poked out of the sheets and hooked up to loud beeping monitors that sat at the side of her bed. Rachel walked in slowly and quietly towards her mom¡¯s bedside. She peeked at her over the railing of the bed and noticed that her eyes were taped shut, too. It looked to her as if her mom were dying. A tear fell from her eyes and rolled down her cheek, and landed on the white sheet that covered her mom. She reached under the covers and grabbed her mom¡¯s hand, which had an IV coming out of her wrist. She clutched onto it, happily feeling the warmth of her body. BEEP BEEP BEEP Her eyes quickly focused on the monitor next to her bed as it started to beep louder and more frequently. The line that ran across the screen was jumping up and down in an erratic rhythm. The noises and the whole situation made her heart race and she began to feel panicked. Was her mom dying? Was her heart stopping? She watched as two nurses came running into her room to examine her. They opened her eyes and shined a flashlight in both of them watching her pupils expand and contract and then checked each of her heart monitors to make sure they were tightly secured to the round patches stuck to her skin. ¡°Is she OK?¡± Rachel asked, in fear. ¡°Shh,¡± one nurse said. ¡°We¡¯re checking that out now.¡± ¡°She¡¯s never done this before,¡± the other nurse said. ¡°It¡¯s almost as if she¡¯s waking up?¡± ¡°Is she OK? Please say she¡¯s OK and that¡¯s she not dying!¡± Rachel begged. ¡°Doctor! Doctor!¡± the nurse yelled out of the room. ¡°Hurry!¡± Within seconds a doctor came running in, wearing a white lab coat and scrubs. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± he said, looking at the nurses. ¡°Look! Her heart rate is plummeting, quick, get the AED,¡± the nurse yelled. Rachel watched in horror as the nurse ran out and ran back in with the machine to jump-start her mom¡¯s heart. The noise coming from the monitor was now a continuous loud tone and the beeping had stopped. It reminded her of when people would flat line in the movies, except this wasn¡¯t a movie, this was real life and it was her mother on the other end. It was all too much for her to watch so she ran out of the room sobbing as she slunk down to the floor put her head in her lap. She could still her the commotion from inside the room as the nurses and doctor tried to revive her. She couldn¡¯t believe what was happening and she hoped it wasn¡¯t her fault. She hoped that she didn¡¯t cause this. Perhaps her mom sensed that she was there to see her and went into shock. She felt awful. One of the nurses came walking slowly out of the room and over towards her computer station. ¡°What happened? Is she OK? Please tell me she¡¯s alive!¡± Rachel asked in fear. The nurse looked over at her, smiled and then said, ¡°She is OK. The doctor will tell you more.¡± ¡°Will she make it?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Why don¡¯t you wait to talk to the doctor? He will be out in a few minutes. They¡¯re just patching her up in there,¡± the nurse said. ¡°Please just tell me. I can¡¯t wait. Please!¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°That¡¯s my mother you¡¯re talking about!¡± ¡°The doctor will be right with you,¡± the nurse said, as she turned and walked away. Rachel couldn¡¯t believe how cold this nurse was to her. She¡¯d never experienced a situation like this before and she never expected the nurse of all people to shrug her off like that. Sometimes she wondered about people. She couldn¡¯t understand why they acted the way they did sometimes. Especially in hard situations like this one. She would have assumed the nurse of all people would have more sympathy for her. ¡°Young lady?¡± the doctor said from inside the room. ¡°Me?¡± Rachel asked as she peeked her head in. ¡°Yes, what¡¯s your name?¡± the doctor asked. ¡°I¡¯m Rachel. That¡¯s my mom,¡± she said. ¡°Rachel, Dear. I haven¡¯t seen you here before,¡± the doctor said. ¡°I¡¯m Dr. Henley. I¡¯ve been working with your mom since she arrived a while back.¡± ¡°Dr. Henley, will my mom be OK? What happened to her?¡± Rachel asked, with a worried look on her face. ¡°She made it this time. Thank God. Her heart had some unusual movement and it forced her heart rate to drop drastically. We had to jump start it, and it appears that she will make it. We will keep a close eye on her to be sure, but she looks to be doing fine now,¡± Dr. Henley added. ¡°But Dr. Henley, what caused this?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I wish I knew. It is very rare what just happened. She had been in a rater static state for months until just now. We don¡¯t know what set it off, but we will keep a close watch on it,¡± Dr. Henley said. ¡°She¡¯s not going to die is she?¡± Rachel asked, with tears running down her cheeks. ¡°Rachel, it appears she will be OK for now. I wish I could tell you for certain that she¡¯ll be OK, but I can¡¯t. Not after what just happened. Like I said, we are going to monitor her closely and take every step necessary to ensure that she is healthy and on the road to recovery,¡± Dr. Henley said. He then looked down at his watch and said, ¡°I have to run to surgery now. I hope to see you around more often.¡± ¡°But¡­¡± Rachel began. ¡°I have to go. I¡¯m sorry. I am late,¡± Dr. Henley, said, as he walked away down the hall and into the operating room. Rachel stood there until he was out of sight and then waited a minute until she calmed down before she went back in to see her mom. She pinched herself first to make sure this wasn¡¯t a dream, as it was all so surreal to her. She couldn¡¯t understand what had just happened to her mom to make her almost die. She couldn¡¯t believe she was here to witness it and that after all these months the one time something like this happens was when she was here. She slowly crept back in towards her mom, who was laying still in her hospital bed. She looked so lifeless laying there, with her eyes closed and her body motionless. Then, she noticed that her fingers were wiggling from inside the bed sheet. Rachel walked over and touched her hand again, and held onto it. Her mom¡¯s hand stopped moving and again she was comforted by the warmth of her body. She felt lucky to feel her warm body: to feel her alive was now something she would never take for granted again. ¡°Mom. Mom. Can you hear me?¡± Rachel whispered. She watched her moms face to see if she showed any signs of life, but she didn¡¯t. ¡°Mom, I¡¯m sorry. I hope you know I never meant to cause any trouble,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I know this is all my fault.¡± She looked at her mom¡¯s eyelids as they began to flutter without opening. ¡°Mom? Can you hear me? Squeeze my hand if you can hear me!¡± Rachel said wishfully. Rachel waited patiently for her mom to squeeze her hand or make another motion to let her know she was listening. Then, after a few minutes of sitting in silence her moms hand started moving. ¡°Mom!¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°Can you hear me?¡± Her mom moved her hand again so Rachel could feel it. ¡°Oh, thank God you¡¯re alive! I¡¯m so sorry this is happening. Can you speak, Mom?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°There are so many things I want to tell you and talk about. Please speak to me!¡± She waited and then heard her mom try to clear her throat and open her mouth. She no longer had the air tube going down her throat since they jump-started her heart. She saw her mom¡¯s lips move up and down but she couldn¡¯t make out what she was saying. ¡°Mom? Are you talking to me?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°What are you saying?¡± She watched again as her moms lips moved up and down. She tried to make it out and could see that her mom was saying I love you, Rachel. ¡°I love you, too, Mom!¡± Rachel said back. ¡°I love you so much! Please come back to us. Please!¡± Rachel watched her mom as she started to smile. A tear ran down her cheek and Rachel began to cry as well. She was happy yet scared at the same time. She couldn¡¯t help but think she¡¯d nearly just lost her mom forever and now, she was coming back to her and talking. Rachel couldn¡¯t have been happier at that moment. ¡°Mom, I can¡¯t believe it. You¡¯re OK!¡± Rachel exclaimed. Rachel looked over and her mom¡¯s eyes began to open wide and stare into space. ¡°Mom! Over here. Can you see me?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°This is a miracle!¡± Rachel¡¯s mom turned her head and looked at her. ¡°How is this happening? It¡¯s a miracle!¡± Rachel repeated again. ¡°Rachel?¡± her mom whispered. ¡°You¡¯re here!¡± Rachel flung her arms around her mom¡¯s neck and gave her a big hug. She didn¡¯t want to let go, but she wanted to keep talking to her mom. She couldn¡¯t wait to talk to her actually. ¡°Mom, what happened?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry you are here. In this place. Alone.¡± ¡°Rachel, I don¡¯t remember why I¡¯m here. Do you know?¡± her mom asked. ¡°I wish I could remember, but I don¡¯t. Dad and Mark said it¡¯s my fault. Because I left home,¡± Rachel said. Rachel watched as her mom tried to remember what had happened. She could tell that she was trying to recover the information somewhere in her brain. ¡°Oh. You left us,¡± her mom said. ¡°You ran away and didn¡¯t come back.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mom. I¡¯m truly sorry!¡± Rachel said. ¡°If I would have known, I never would have¡­¡± Page 10 ¡°Rachel, the past is the past.¡± Her mom whispered and then coughed. ¡°Mom, are you ok? Can I get you some water?¡± Rachel asked. Her mom continued coughing up flem as Rachel handed her a glass of water. ¡°But I don¡¯t understand what happened Mom. I can¡¯t remember anything!¡± Rachel said. ¡°There was a girl. She came into our house in all black and terrorized the place. She said she knew you and was going to find you,¡± her mom said. ¡°WHAT?¡± Rachel said. ¡°A girl?¡± ¡°In all black,¡± her mom said again. ¡°Ugly girl.¡± ¡°Mom? Are you feeling ok? What are you talking about?¡± Rachel asked. She didn¡¯t know if here mom was speaking the truth or having a delusional thought. It sounded pretty absurd to her, but then again, a lot of what everyone had been telling her recently sounded absurd. She wished she could remember what had happened to her, and ever story she was uncovering was crazier than the last. She began to worry. ¡°Mom, did we move?¡± Rachel asked. She figured if she started with something small she could gauge weather or not her mom really remembered what happened or if she was still a bit loopy. ¡°Yes, Dear. We moved the other year to New York,¡± her mom said. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember that?¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t remember that, but that¡¯s what everyone¡¯s been telling me,¡± Rachel said. ¡°What happened to you?¡± her mom asked. ¡°One day you just left us.¡± ¡°Mom! I don¡¯t know,¡± Rachel said, as she began to cry again. ¡°This is all so upsetting to me. I don¡¯t even remember moving. I don¡¯t remember anything about it. I feel like a crazy person, Mom.¡± ¡°Rachel, don¡¯t worry. We will sort this all out,¡± her mom said. ¡°Can you help me up?¡± She looked over at her mom and saw that she was trying to sit herself up in bed. ¡°Mom, I should call the nurse in here. I don¡¯t know if you should be doing that,¡± Rachel said. Then all of a sudden the beeping began getting louder and louder on her monitor. ¡°Lay back down! Lay back down!¡± Rachel said. Within seconds the same two nurses came rushing back into the room to check on her mom. ¡°What¡¯s happening with her today?¡± one nurse said. ¡°Oh no! Is she ok?¡± Rachel asked. Then, the beeping slowed back down to the normal rate and the nurses left the room. ¡°Mom, please stop scaring me like that! Are you trying to tell me something?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I already said I was sorry for everything I did. Please don¡¯t leave us!¡± Rachel didn¡¯t know how much time she¡¯d have left with her mom, so she reached into the pocket of her coat and pulled out the letter. She placed it in front of her moms face so that when she opened her eyes, she¡¯d see it. Rachel waited, and then, her mom opened her eyes. She could see her mom focusing on the letter and then look over at her. Her eyes grew big and a look came over her face she¡¯d never seen before. Rachel knew she was about to open up a can of worms and for a second regretted her decision to bring the letter in the first place. ¡°Mom, I found this in the attic. What is it?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°How did you find that?¡± her mom whispered, barely catching her breath to speak. ¡°I found it under the floor boards. It was peeking out, so I picked it up and read it,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Please don¡¯t be mad at me.¡± ¡°Rachel, you are not to tell anyone about what you found. You hear me?¡± her mom said, in a firm whisper. ¡°I promise, but mom, what does it all mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± ¡°Rachel, I couldn¡¯t. I couldn¡¯t tell anyone,¡± her mom said. ¡°But Mom, I don¡¯t understand. Who are we?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I wish I could tell you, Rachel, I really do,¡± her mom said. ¡°Well, then tell me! I beg you!¡± Rachel said. ¡°We are very special people. We are different than the rest,¡± her mom said. ¡°Different?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I always felt different. Why didn¡¯t you tell me this sooner?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t!¡± her mom explained. ¡°I couldn¡¯t betray your grandmother. She told me to keep it a secret all these years.¡± ¡°Well, she¡¯s not alive anymore, so you can tell me. I promise I won¡¯t tell anyone,¡± Rachel said again. ¡°Actually, Rachel. Your grandmother is still with us,¡± her mom said. ¡°WHAT? What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°She never actually died,¡± her mom said ominously. ¡°What do you mean, Mom?¡± ¡°She¡¯s still alive. We didn¡¯t know how to keep her from everyone. We had to keep her away from the family after I found out the secret and we had to tell you she died so that you¡¯d stop asking about her. She was a danger to us,¡± her mom said. ¡°We couldn¡¯t keep having her come into our house and messing up the life we tried to set up for you and your siblings. We wanted it to be as normal as possible, and with her around, it was getting out of hand.¡± ¡°But what is the big secret?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you everything, but we have a very special lineage and you have a very sacred destiny awaiting you,¡± her mom said. ¡°Lineage? Destiny?¡± Rachel asked again. ¡°That¡¯s all I can tell you. You have to find your grandmother to learn more,¡± her mom said. ¡°But what do you mean? I haven¡¯t seen her since I was five. Where has she been this whole time?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you guys were hiding her from us.¡± ¡°Rachel, it was for your own good,¡± her mom said. ¡°Trust me. Once you learn our family secret, you will see why we sheltered you from her all these years.¡± ¡°Is it really bad?¡± Rachel asked curiously. ¡°It¡¯s not necessarily bad. It just IS,¡± her mom said. ¡°What does that mean? I have to know,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I want YOU to tell me.¡± ¡°Rachel, Honey. I can¡¯t tell you any more than I already have. You should not have found the letter in the first place. I don¡¯t know why it was out of my safe to begin with. It should have never ended up in your hands or anyone¡¯s hands for that matter. It was a personal letter, one that I had intended to take to my grave. A family secret I wished would have never gotten out. I could have spared you all from this crazy life, but now, you know and you won¡¯t give up until you find out everything. I know you, Rachel. You¡¯re relentless when you want something,¡± her mom said. ¡°Well, where do I find her then?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I need you to tell me that. It¡¯s the least you could do.¡± ¡°Last I heard she was living down by the Atchafalaya Swamp in Louisiana,¡± her mom said. ¡°The what swamp?¡± Rachel asked in amazement. ¡°Atchafalaya,¡± her mom said. ¡°It¡¯s the largest swamp in the United States. She moved there to be with our relatives.¡± ¡°Our relatives?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Mom are you making this up. Please tell me you¡¯re joking.¡± ¡°Rachel, sometimes I wish it weren¡¯t true, but it is. Every word of it.¡± Rachel began to cry as she held her moms hand tightly. ¡°I wish I would have known sooner, Mom.¡± A tear came down her mom¡¯s cheek, as she looked deep into Rachel¡¯s eyes. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sorry you had to find out this way.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, too,¡± Rachel said. Then, as the two of them sat there, staring at each other and crying, her Dad walked into the room quickly and with a frightened look on his face. ¡°Betsy!¡± her dad said. ¡°John!¡± Betsy said. ¡°Are you OK? What are you doing? You haven¡¯t talked in months!¡± her dad said. ¡°I¡¯m fine now. Rachel¡¯s back. Did you know that?¡± her mom said. ¡°I know she¡¯s back. And she¡¯s a completely changed girl. She let go of her old antics and she¡¯s the Rachel we always knew. I think moving back to Pennsylvania changed everything for her. It was the right move,¡± her dad said. Rachel was surprised that they were having this conversation in front of her frankly and didn¡¯t quite know what to make of it. She wasn¡¯t sure if her dad knew about the family secret, but she wasn¡¯t about to bring it up. She figured this family secret was what made her forget She knew the only thing left for her to do at this point was to find her grandmother and get to the bottom of everything. She knew once she did that, all the pieces would fall into place and everything would start to make sense again. ¡°Rachel, how did you get here?¡± her dad asked. ¡°Well, I thought you were going to pick me up from school today and I waited and waited, but you never showed up, so I just walked here.¡± ¡°All this way?¡± her dad asked. ¡°Yup! It was freezing cold, but I wanted to see mom.¡± ¡°Rachel, you have no idea what you¡¯ve done here. You¡¯ve cured her. She¡¯s back to her self again.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m not so sure, Dad. She had some complications when I first got here. Did you hear about that?¡± ¡°Yes! That¡¯s why I came running in. The doctor called and told me what happened, then when I saw you two sitting here talking, I couldn¡¯t believe it.¡± Then, Rachel felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She took it out and looked at it. Brian: Hey Rach, still want to see that movie tonight? I need to tell you what happened with Dr. Rundy today. It was epic. Rachel: Yeah, I¡¯ll go. Let me just ask my dad. Rachel turned to her dad and said, ¡°Dad, can I go out to the movies tonight? It¡¯s Monday Madness and I want to go with a friend of mine.¡± ¡°What friend?¡± her dad asked. Page 11 ¡°Just some guy,¡± Rachel said. ¡°A GUY!¡± her dad said, looking skeptical. ¡°John, you should let her go. She¡¯s been a good girl,¡± her mom chimed in. ¡°Thanks, Mom!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Which guy?¡± her dad asked. ¡°Just some kid from my class named Brian. He¡¯s a nice kid. Don¡¯t worry!¡± she said. ¡°Well, if you¡¯re home by 10, I¡¯ll let you go. It¡¯s a school night, remember,¡± her dad said. ¡°Yes! I know, Dad. I promise, I¡¯ll be home by 10. Rachel took out her phone again and texted Brian letting him know she was on for tonight. ¡°I gotta go now! He¡¯s picking me up at 7 o¡¯clock. I have to get ready!¡± Rachel said with a giggle. ¡°Mom, I love you, I¡¯ll come visit you again soon,¡± she said. ¡°I love you, Rachel and I¡¯m so glad you are back home and safe,¡± her mom said. ¡°See you soon,¡± her dad said. ¡°I¡¯ll be a few minutes behind you.¡± CHAPTER 10 Rachel couldn¡¯t wait to go on her movie date tonight. It was her first date is a very long time, and she couldn¡¯t believe how quickly she was falling for Brian. She couldn¡¯t remember the last time she felt this way for a guy, and was happy to feel this feeling again. She wanted to impress Brian and had picked out the perfect outfit in her head; now all she had to do was find it in all the boxes of clothes that were still stacked in her bedroom. She hadn¡¯t had much time yet to unpack all her things and hang them in her closet, but she knew she had a super cute denim skirt from the Gap and a scoop neck black metallic tee shirt from Delia¡¯s. She rummaged through the boxes until she found the two items and then put them on. She was actually surprised that she remembered the clothes she had since apparently she hadn¡¯t worn them in a while. The weather was cold, so she put on black opaque tights and her favorite lace up Dr. Martin¡¯s boots. She knew she looked cool even before she checked herself out in the mirror. HONK HONK Rachel heard the horn beep from her driveway. She quickly checked her watch and saw that it was 7 o¡¯clock. She knew Brian was downstairs waiting for her. She looked in the mirror one last time, fluffed her hair, put on some lip gloss and ran downstairs and out the front door, hearing it slam behind her. Then, she heard her dad come running out behind her, ¡°Rachel, don¡¯t forget you need to be back here by ten sharp. Not a minute later.¡± ¡°I got it dad. Goodbye!¡± Rachel said, feeling somewhat embarrassed that her dad ran outside after her to remind her of her curfew. Brian rolled down his window as Rachel got closer, ¡°Hey Hun, lookin¡¯ good!¡± ¡°Hi Brian, thanks for picking me up!¡± Rachel said. ¡°You bet,¡± he said. ¡°Let¡¯s get outta here, we don¡¯t want to be late.¡± Rachel jumped into the front seat of his Ford pick up truck and off he drove towards the movie theater. ¡°Cool truck!¡± Rachel said, putting on her seatbelt and taking a look around. ¡°Thanks, Hun, it¡¯s my dads,¡± Brian said. ¡°Sweet, he let you take it out tonight?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Yup!¡± Brian said. ¡°Do you have a car?¡± ¡°Oh, well..I don¡¯t have my license yet, so no,¡± Rachel said. ¡°That¡¯s funny, you¡¯re almost 18 right?¡± Brian asked. ¡°You should have gotten your license two years ago!¡± Rachel thought for a moment as he had just made a good point. She didn¡¯t realize that not only had she forgotten the past two years, she was now behind in many things. ¡°Yeah, I just haven¡¯t gotten around to it yet,¡± Rachel, said, trying to dodge his question. ¡°Well, if you ever want a lesson, I¡¯ll be happy to teach you. I have my senior license now, so I can teach you and we can stay out past 9pm,¡± Brian said. ¡°Really if you have your junior license you have to be in by 9?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Yes, that¡¯s the rule!¡± Brian said. ¡°Sounds good,¡± Rachel added. ¡°I¡¯ll take you up on it sometime. Still studying for the written exam.¡± ¡°So what¡¯s playing tonight?¡± Rachel asked, curious about the movie. ¡°It¡¯s a double feature, not sure exactly what movie it is but it¡¯s a horror and a comedy. You like horrors?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Sure, why not!¡± Rachel said, trying to sound cool. She didn¡¯t like horrors that much but was just happy to be on this date that she would have seen anything. ¡°I hate to sound like a loser, but I have to be home by ten. My dad will kill me if I¡¯m not!,¡± Rachel said softly. ¡°I hope that doesn¡¯t mess up your plans!¡± ¡°No worries. I have to be in by ten thirty since it¡¯s a school night anyway. No sweat,¡± Brian said. Rachel felt a sense of relief that they had similar curfews. She was glad he wasn¡¯t the party type who stayed out all night since she¡¯d never been like that. She was glad that he seemed to respect his parents wishes and that they were both on similar pages. As the pulled into the movies, Rachel was surprised to see the parking lot flooded with people from her high school. She couldn¡¯t believe how popular Monday Madness was at this movie theater. It was as if everyone in the entire school was there and even people from surrounding schools as well. She¡¯d never seen this many teenagers in one place before. Brian parked the car and the two walked inside the theater. The smell of buttery popcorn filled the air and the loud voices from all the kids made it hard to her Brian even though he was next to her. ¡°You want a snack?¡± Brian asked her. ¡°Sure!¡± Rachel said. The two walked over to the enormously long line at the concession stand, and waited for their turn. As they stood there talking and laughing, Dana walked over with her other friends. ¡°Hi, Rachel,¡± Dana said, looking her up and down inquisitively. ¡°Hi D, What¡¯s up?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Thought you couldn¡¯t make it,¡± Dana said. ¡°Yeah, thought you weren¡¯t allowed out?¡± Penny said. ¡°Apparently that was a lie,¡± Samantha said, looking at her strangely and then looking at Brian. ¡°Guess she didn¡¯t want to go with us,¡± Amy chimed in. ¡°Guys, c¡¯mon, stop giving me a hard time. It was a last minute thing,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Clearly!¡± Sam said, looking at her perfectly polished outfit. ¡°Really last minute.¡± ¡°Hi Girls,¡± Brian added. ¡°Just taking Rachel out tonight.¡± Rachel turned to Brian and smiled at him and then leaned into him for a hug. She couldn¡¯t believe how comfortable she felt around him already and how close they were getting. It was perfect. ¡°Rach, can you come here for a sec?¡± Dana asked. Rachel looked at Brian and he nodded his head, ¡°Sure!¡± Rachel said. Rachel and Dana walked together into the girl¡¯s bathroom. ¡°Rach, what do you think you¡¯re doing?¡± Dana asked. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I¡¯m going to see a movie with Brian.¡± ¡°Yeah, exactly!¡± Dana said. ¡°So?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°The problem is that Sam has liked Brian forever now, and she thought he was going to ask her out soon,¡± Dana said. ¡°Huh?¡± Rachel asked sounding confused. ¡°Brian is Sam¡¯s guy. She¡¯s been after him for a while now,¡± Dana said. ¡°Well, how was I supposed to know that? She didn¡¯t mention anything to me,¡± Rachel said. ¡°You should really tell him you can¡¯t go out with him tonight. You have to back out of it. If you want to be friends with us, you will do that,¡± Dana said. Rachel couldn¡¯t believe what was happening. Was she really just given an ultimatum to be her friend? ¡°Listen, D. Thank you for telling me this, but Brian asked me out. I didn¡¯t do anything wrong here,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I like him now. I¡¯m not going to just drop him like this,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Rachel, you better drop him if you know what¡¯s good for you. You¡¯re practically a new girl here, and you don¡¯t want to lose the few friends you still have. Trust me, it¡¯s for your own good,¡± Dana said. Rachel couldn¡¯t believe the words coming from Dana¡¯s mouth. Since when did she care more about Samantha than her? This was all too crazy for her and she couldn¡¯t take it anymore. She was angry at the situation and even angrier at the ultimatum that she¡¯d just been given. Of course she wanted to keep her girl friends, but at the same time, she really liked Brian. She didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡°I¡¯m only telling you this because I¡¯m your friend, and I don¡¯t want to see you make a mistake,¡± Dana said. ¡°I don¡¯t want you to lose your friends all because of some guy.¡± ¡°This is really unfair,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I can¡¯t help it if he asked me out. He clearly likes me and not Sam. What can I do about that? Cover up my feelings?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯d do,¡± Dana said with a snicker. ¡°You¡¯re not being a good friend.¡± ¡°Listen, D, I¡¯m going through a lot right now. This is the last thing I should have to worry about. You guys all need to cut me some slack here,¡± Rachel begged. ¡°I did nothing wrong and I¡¯m going to keep our plans tonight. I¡¯m sorry if you or the girls get upset by this, but that¡¯s what I¡¯m going to do.¡± ¡°Ok, if that¡¯s your choice. That¡¯s what you¡¯ll do. But don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t warn you,¡± Dana said. ¡°Whatever,¡± Rachel said, as she turned to walk out of the bathroom and back towards Brian. ¡°I thought we were better friends than this.¡± Rachel couldn¡¯t believe what had just gone down in the bathroom. She couldn¡¯t believe her BFF Dana just treated her like that. It was unspeakable. She was upset and angry all at the same time. Not to mention, now she felt guilty for going out with Brian. She hated that she felt that way, but her girlfriends were important to her as well. She didn¡¯t want to lose them over a guy, but at the same time, she didn¡¯t know the whole back-story. The whole situation was unfair to her and she felt mistreated. Page 12 ¡°Hey Babe,¡± Brian said, as he motioned her over. ¡°We¡¯re next, what do you want?¡± Rachel looked at him and then back at Sam and Amy, who were standing close by. ¡°So, what will it be?¡± he asked again. ¡°Oh, sorry. I¡¯ll have Starburst,¡± Rachel said, looking in at all the candies on the shelf. ¡°That all?¡± Brian asked. ¡°A drink?¡± ¡°Sure, a blue slushy!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯ll get a large one, we can share it,¡± Brian said. Rachel smiled at him and shook her head. She couldn¡¯t help but look back at Sam, Amy and Dana as they all stood in a huddle talking and whispering and looking over at her. She felt awful and uncomfortable. Part of her felt bad for Sam, but the other part was mad at her. She couldn¡¯t believe that Dana had just told her to leave Brian and not talk to him anymore. Was she joking? Was she serious? She was dumbfounded by the whole situation, but she wasn¡¯t going to let it ruin her night. She was out with the guy she had a crush on, and nobody was going to get in the way of that. She looked back at Sam one last time and caught her rolling her eyes at her. She was so offended by that, she took Brian by the hand and gave him a big hug right in front of her. She knew it was rude, but at the same time Sam was being rude. ¡°Let¡¯s go get our seats,¡± Brian said. ¡°Yeah,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Back row?¡± Brian asked. Rachel didn¡¯t know how to respond. She knew what happened in the back row. It was almost as if he were asking her if she wanted to make out the entire movie. She was speechless. Part of her wanted to say yes, but the other part of her wanted to wait a little bit. She didn¡¯t want to risk sounding like a prude though, so she said, ¡°Ok, whatever you like.¡± As they entered the theater, she was surprised to see that the entire back row was full. There were no open seats. In fact, the entire theater was jam-packed. They would be lucky to even get a seat next to each other at this point. The poked around and walked up and down the aisle looking for two seats together. Then, Brian spotted them. ¡°I see two, right over there!¡± he said. Rachel followed him over to the seats and as they were scooting around the dimly lit theater she realized the only two seats available were directly in front of Dana, Sam, Penny and Amy. She couldn¡¯t believe her luck. Just when she thought she¡¯d get alone time with Brian, this had to happen. The previews started and Brian reached over and held her hand. She felt a little uncomfortable by this, but only because she could feel Sam¡¯s stares like daggers going into her body. She liked his touch though, it was comforting to her and she felt the same way about him. She was head over heels for him. She¡¯d had a crush on him for years, and now, since she¡¯d returned, it was turning into a reality. She couldn¡¯t help but feel like the luckiest girl on the planet. The two sat there holding hands and sharing the slushy out of the same straw. Rachel knew that Sam was getting more pissed off each second the two of them sat there. It was hard for her to focus on the movie, while all she could think about was Brian and Sam. She hated that they were sitting right in front of her. She turned to Brian after about twenty minutes of the movie and said, ¡°You like it so far?¡± ¡°Eh!¡± Brian said. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Thought it would be better,¡± ¡°Yeah, me, too!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Any chance you wanna get out of here?¡± ¡°I was hoping you¡¯d ask!¡± Brian said. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡± Rachel said, as she stood up slowly and shimmied he way out of the aisle. She didn¡¯t look back to see if Sam was watching or not. She was almost certain she was staring at them leaving, wondering where they were going, and if they were going to do anything together. She could sense the jealousy oozing out of Sam¡¯s body as they left the theater. She so desperately wanted to turn back and shoot her a smile, but knew that would be too mean. After all, she wasn¡¯t a mean person; she just didn¡¯t like how she was being treated. When they got into the parking lot, there were a lot of kids smoking and drinking. A cloud of smoke hit her in the face and she waved it away coughing. She hated the smell of cigarette smoke and made a vow to herself never to smoke. It was a gross addition, and one she didn¡¯t want any part of. ¡°You smoke?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Ew, no!¡± Rachel answered. ¡°You?¡± ¡°Eh, here and there, why?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Really? That¡¯s bad!¡± Rachel insisted, giving him a playful slap on his arm. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m going to quit though!¡± Brian said. ¡°You better! I don¡¯t like smokers!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Well then, I will quit right now!¡± Brian replied. Rachel laughed and said, ¡°Thanks!¡± Rachel saw Brian look down at his watch and then say, ¡°It¡¯s still early, do you want to stay out?¡± ¡°What time is it?¡± she asked. ¡°It¡¯s only 8 o¡¯clock,¡± Brian answered. ¡°You still have two more hours!¡± ¡°Yeah, sure, I¡¯ll do something else,¡± Rachel said. She didn¡¯t know what he had in mind, but hoped he didn¡¯t just want to go back to his place. She hoped he didn¡¯t think she was that type of girl. If he did, than he¡¯d be in for a rude awakening. She never did anything with a guy on the first date aside from kiss them. And even then, she¡¯d only kiss them if she were really into them. She wasn¡¯t a casual dater, and had to really like the person before going out with them. That¡¯s why tonight was so special. She¡¯d had a secretive crush on Brian for as long as she can remember. She never told her friends, because frankly she thought it was out of the realm of possibility. She thought a guy like Brian would never like her, and she didn¡¯t want to get her hopes up for nothing. She also didn¡¯t want to look like a failure in her friend¡¯s eyes¡¯ if she never went out with him. But in hindsight, she should have mentioned it. That way this whole thing with Sam never would have happened. She was still waiting to see the implications of her actions and knew when she went to school the next day she¡¯d have to face the music, but for now, she¡¯d enjoy the rest of her night with Brian. ¡°So what did you have in mind,¡± Rachel asked, bracing herself. ¡°Hmm,¡± Brian said, ¡°There¡¯s this cute caf¨¦ in town, I think it just opened up a few months ago. We can make s¡¯mores, there¡¯s chocolate fondue, hot chocolate, ya know.¡± Rachel was pleasantly surprised at his idea and really respected him for suggesting it and not suggesting going back to his place for a ¡°movie.¡± ¡°Really? That sounds awesome, I love chocolate fondue!¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Well, then chocolate fondue it is!¡± Brian said, as he shut her car door. ¡°When did this place open?¡± Rachel asked, trying to put the pieces of her amnesia puzzle together still. ¡°I think it opened at the end of the summer, but I¡¯m not sure. I haven¡¯t been there yet,¡± Brian said. ¡°Really? Why not?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Guess I didn¡¯t have anyone special to go with!¡± Brian answered smoothly. ¡°Aw! Well, thanks for waiting for me!¡± Rachel added. ¡°Anytime!¡± Brian said, as the drove off. When they arrived to the caf¨¦, Rachel looked around at the dimly lit, romantic ambiance of the place. There were plush couches that lined the walls, and curtains up for privacy between them. There were comfortable chairs that surrounded a large communal table where people were working on laptops and writing in journals. Then, sitting on the couch, she saw couples snuggling up to one another, sharing hot coco or making s¡¯mores over an open flame on their table. ¡°This is the coolest place I¡¯ve ever seen!¡± Rachel said, looking around. ¡°Yeah! Isn¡¯t is great?¡± Brian said, looking for a hostess. ¡°Hello there, can I help you?¡± the hostess asked. ¡°Yeah, two please,¡± Brian, said. ¡°For dessert!¡± ¡°Where would you like to sit?¡± the hostess asked. ¡°A couch or chairs?¡± Rachel was hoping he¡¯d say couch so they too could snuggle up to one another. Brian looked at Rachel and then back at the hostess, ¡°A couch, please!¡± ¡°That cool with you, Rach?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Yeah!¡± she said, smiling. The hostess took them to a quiet couch in the back of the caf¨¦. It was in the corner and cordoned off by beautiful curtains. It was a private couch, perfect for a first date. She was excited that they¡¯d left the movie and even happier to be spending the rest of the night here with Brian. The two sat down next to each other on the couch and opened their menus. The server came over and lit the candle that was sitting unlit in the middle of their table. ¡°Can I get you two started off with anything?¡± the server asked, looking at Rachel first. ¡°Miss?¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯ll have a hot chocolate with whipped cream, please!¡± She said. ¡°An you?¡± the server asked. ¡°I¡¯ll have the same,¡± Brian added. ¡°Thank you!¡± ¡°Do you know what you¡¯d like for dessert this evening or do you need a few more minutes to look over our menu?¡± he asked. Brian looked over at Rachel and said, ¡°Chocolate fondue?¡± Rachel nodded and smiled. ¡°With extra strawberries, please!¡± ¡°Can we do the chocolate fondue for two, with extra strawberries?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Sure thing! It¡¯s fantastic, have you had it here before?¡± the server asked. ¡°Nope, first time!¡± Brian said. ¡°Well, you two are in for a real treat,¡± he said, as he jotted down their order and walked away. ¡°It¡¯s nice to be here with you,¡± Brian said, turning to her. ¡°It¡¯s refreshing to finally go out with someone who¡¯s down to earth and everything.¡± Page 13 ¡°Oh, well, thanks,¡± Rachel, said. ¡°It¡¯s nice to be here with you, too!¡± ¡°So, why¡¯d you start this year now?¡± Brian asked. ¡°I mean, where were you the past few months?¡± Rachel dreaded that question, but knew it was inevitable that he¡¯d ask it. She didn¡¯t know how to address it either. She didn¡¯t really know where she was, but she¡¯d look like a total freak if she said she forgot. What did that mean anyway? ¡°Well, I was away,¡± Rachel, answered vaguely. ¡°Yeah, I heard you moved! How was that?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Apparently not so good if you and your bro are back here so fast!¡± ¡°Yeah, we are happy to be back, that¡¯s all I can say!¡± Rachel said, trying to dodge the question. ¡°So, what¡¯s new with you? How¡¯s the ski team doing this year?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°Oh, ski team is number one this season. It¡¯s so nice to finally be back on the slopes. We¡¯ve been lucky the weather got colder this year than last. Last year, we weren¡¯t able to hit the slopes until January, so we had indoor practice all the time. It was a drag. But we get to the mountain at least 3 days a week now!¡± Brian said. ¡°That¡¯s awesome, I¡¯d love to be on the ski team!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m not the best skier, but I love it!¡± ¡°You should so join, there are a few spots still open, and the season just started a few weeks ago!¡± Brian said. ¡°Really?¡± Rachel asked, sounding interested. ¡°Yeah! Totally, come tomorrow, Coach Croak will be happy to have you, I¡¯m sure of it!¡± Brian said. Rachel thought about it for a moment and then said, ¡°I guess I could come and check it out. I mean, I don¡¯t have any equipment or anything.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. A lot of us rent at the mountain. They have good deals on season rentals and you don¡¯t have to wait on long lines,¡± Brian answered. ¡°Ok, I¡¯ll go. You convinced me!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Great!¡± Brian said, smiling at her and inching towards her to put his arm around her. A moment later the server came back with their chocolate fondue. ¡°Here it is!¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± they said in unison. ¡°Can I get you anything else for the moment?¡± the server asked politely. ¡°I think we¡¯re ok for now, thank you!¡± Brian said. The two sat there, eating dipping their fruit and marshmallows into the fondue. Brian dipped a giant strawberry into the chocolate, then turned to Rachel and said, ¡°Open up!¡± Rachel opened wide and ate the strawberry off of his fondue fork. She returned the gesture by dipping a marshmallow and feeding it to him. A bit of chocolate dripped down his lip and she moved it with her finger. Brian laughed and said, ¡°Thanks, sweetie.¡± A moment later, Brian scooted closer to Rachel and then, for a moment, she took a whiff of his body and found it to be irresistible. It wasn¡¯t a specific cologne smell; it was the scent of his skin, of his body odor, of his inner workings that turned her on. It was a strong smell, like nothing she¡¯d ever experienced before. It was strange, but she wanted to taste him. She wanted to taste his body right then and there. He moved even closer, their bodies touching, and she looked him up and down, focusing on his neck, and watching his pulse go in and out. His large adams apple, protruding out of his neck, made him even more desirable. She couldn¡¯t resist him. It was a feeling foreign to her and she didn¡¯t know what to do. Her heart was racing as she sat there, staring at his body, watching it come closer to hers. She could feel her body changing and her mouth watering. Brian leaned in towards her mouth to kiss her and the second his lips touched hers, she felt a protruding in her mouth. It felt like her teeth were growing or something. It was scary; she didn¡¯t know what to do or what was happening to her. She quickly jumped back and moved away from Brian hoping the distance would calm her down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Brian. I¡¯m not feeling well,¡± Rachel said. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Brian asked. She couldn¡¯t stand there and look at him for one more second. She wanted him desperately, but not in a normal way. She couldn¡¯t explain it. She just had to get out of there. She stood up and ran out of the caf¨¦. CHAPTER 11 Rachel ran home, in the freezing cold and could barely catch her breath as she got to her front door. She was surprised by her speed getting home, but figured she was high on adrenalin from the night. She couldn¡¯t stop thinking about what had just happened with Brian. She knew she was acting weird and figured she¡¯d ruined their budding relationship. She was distraught about the feelings she was having at the caf¨¦ and knew that it wasn¡¯t normal. She didn¡¯t know what had happened to her or what had gotten into her. When she entered the house, she broke down and started sobbing uncontrollably. The tears kept streaming from her eyes and down her cheeks. ¡°Honey, what¡¯s wrong?¡± her dad asked as he came running down the stairs. ¡°Are you ok, what happened?¡± Rachel couldn¡¯t catch her breath to answer him, she was hysterical. Her hormones were raging out of control, and she couldn¡¯t pull herself together. ¡°I¡¯m..I¡¯m fine,¡± Rachel said, sobbing through her words. ¡°You¡¯re clearly not fine,¡± here dad said, with a look of concern. ¡°You¡¯re right, I¡¯m not fine!¡± Rachel said, now in a yelling tone. It was almost as if she couldn¡¯t control her rage and anger. She started storming through the house yelling, ¡°I hate this! I hate everyone! I¡¯m so angry!¡± ¡°Rachel, come back here this minute,¡± her dad said sternly. ¡°I must talk to you about this. You have to tell me what happened to you tonight. You are not acting right.¡± Rachel stomped around and then started crying again, ¡°I¡¯m not right. Something is definitely wrong. And maybe it¡¯s because I don¡¯t remember anything. Maybe that¡¯s it? Ya think?¡± she said, in a snotty voice. ¡°Don¡¯t get fresh with me, young lady. I¡¯m only trying to help you out,¡± her dad said. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not working. I can¡¯t be helped. Nobody can help me!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m way beyond that point now.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that, Rachel. We will get you help. You will see Dr. Goldman first thing in the morning. I will call him now and get you an appointment,¡± her dad said. ¡°I don¡¯t want to see a shrink! I don¡¯t need a shrink!¡± Rachel yelled, stomping up to her room. ¡°You are going! It¡¯s not up for debate!¡± her dad yelled up after her. ¡°NO!¡± Rachel shouted down. ¡°Yes you are. If I have to drag you there with my two hands I will,¡± her dad said. Rachel then slammed the door to her bedroom and cried herself to sleep. When she woke up the next morning, she saw a man dressed in a tweed suit sitting next to her bed on a stool. He had dark brown hair, glasses and a very long chin. His none was pointed and he had a short beard. Feeling scared, Rachel let out a yell and pulled the covers over her head. ¡°Who are you?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I¡¯m Dr. Goldman,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m here to talk to you today about what¡¯s been going on. Your father called me late last night saying it was an emergency so I figured I¡¯d come to the house today to see you.¡± ¡°Well you can leave now. There¡¯s nothing to discuss,¡± Rachel said, from under her covers. ¡°I¡¯m not leaving you, Rachel. I want to help you get through this hard time. Please tell me when this all started?¡± Dr. Goldman asked. ¡°When what all started?¡± Rachel asked, peeking her head out from under the covers. ¡°When you began to feel the way you are feeling. Was it a few days, a few weeks, longer?¡± he asked. Rachel wished she knew the answer. Part of her felt grateful that her dad cared enough to bring in Dr. Goldman, but the other part of her knew he wouldn¡¯t help her at all. The only person who could help her is her grandmother and she had to find her first. Dr. Goldman was going to be a waste of her time, but for her dad¡¯s sake, she figured she¡¯d go through the motions with the guy and see how far they get. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve only been back a few days. So a few days I guess. That¡¯s really all I can remember,¡± Rachel said. ¡°You¡¯ve only been back a few days?¡± Dr. Goldman asked. ¡°Where have you been, my dear?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s the problem. I can¡¯t remember where I¡¯ve been,¡± she said. ¡°You can¡¯t remember? Well, is there anything you do remember? Let¡¯s start with that,¡± Dr. Goldman prodded. ¡°Well, all my friends are telling me about the move and the guys I liked, and the friends I made up there, but I can¡¯t remember a think about it. Not one thing!¡± Rachel added. ¡°Not to mention my friends here hate me now. I totally messed that up. Everything is going wrong for me.¡± Rachel was surprised at how much she was opening up to this complete stranger. She then began to cry. ¡°Why are you crying? What are you feeling?¡± Dr. Goldman asked sympathetically. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m crying. I can¡¯t remember. I wish I knew what happened to me Doctor. I have no recollection of anything that has happened the past two years. It¡¯s like it¡¯s been erased from my memory or something,¡± Rachel sobbed. ¡°And now, I don¡¯t even feel like myself.¡± ¡°Describe what you mean when you say you don¡¯t feel like yourself,¡± Dr. Goldman asked. Rachel couldn¡¯t help but feel like she were in a movie. She replayed shrink scenes over and over in her head, and this was exactly the same. ¡°Well, I don¡¯t really want to talk about it. You wouldn¡¯t understand,¡± Rachel said. ¡°You¡¯d be surprised at just how much I understand,¡± Dr. Goldman reassured her. ¡°You can tell me anything.¡± Page 14 ¡°Well, I just have been feeling some strange urges, which I can¡¯t explain,¡± she started. ¡°What sort of urges?¡± Rachel didn¡¯t know if she should tell him about last night. About Brian and what happened at the caf¨¦. She didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d understand and she didn¡¯t want him to think she was crazy. But then again, he was a shrink; he sees a lot of crazies. ¡°Last night for example, I was out with the guy I really like, Brian, and then all of a sudden I had the urge to taste him,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Describe taste him,¡± Dr. Goldman asked with a confused look on his face. Rachel knew she couldn¡¯t turn back now. She had to explain what she was talking about. ¡°To taste his flesh and blood. I don¡¯t know what that is supposed to mean. It¡¯s like I¡¯m a cannibal or something,¡± Rachel sighed. ¡°This is a little confusing, can you please explain it some more?¡± Dr. Goldman asked. ¡°Well, he came close to me to kiss me, but all I could do was stare at his skin, at his neck, at his flesh and wonder what it would taste like. Is that normal? Has that happened to you?¡± Rachel asked hoping for some clarity. ¡°It has not happened to me before,¡± Dr. Goldman said. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Forget I said anything, I¡¯m sure it was nothing,¡± Rachel said. ¡°You should not feel ashamed to tell me these things, Rachel. That is why I am here. To help you,¡± Dr. Goldman said. ¡°But doc, I had to leave the caf¨¦. I couldn¡¯t sit there for one more second or else I would have acted on it. I could feel my body shaking and my mouth watering, it was nuts,¡± Rachel added. ¡°Is there anything else?¡± Dr. Goldman asked. ¡°Hmm¡­my mom. I don¡¯t know what happened to her. Everyone say¡¯s it¡¯s my fault. I know you saw her before her coma, and I need to know if I did anything wrong,¡± she said. ¡°Under confidentiality, I cannot discuss anyone else in our sessions. So, unfortunately, I cannot confirm nor deny these things for you. What I can tell you is that it seems you are suffering from a traumatic experience. Something we will need to uncover more,¡± Dr. Goldman said with a concerned look on his face. ¡°Will I be ok?¡± Rachel asked, worried. ¡°Everything in time, Rachel. We will work on your amnesia first, and then sort out the rest of this.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m not finished yet. I have other things that have happened to me that are scary. I had a strange episode at school the other day. I started sweating, my heart was racing, I was supremely hungry and I was out of breath. I had to run outside and then once I did, I felt better. I think it was the cold air on my face that helped,¡± Rachel said. ¡°That sounds like a panic attack to me. Those are the classic tell tale signs of one,¡± Dr. Goldman confirmed. ¡°I don¡¯t know, Dr. Goldman. It¡¯s scary when it happens and it¡¯s been happening a lot. It¡¯s like I don¡¯t know who I am anymore,¡± Rachel said. ¡°I wish someone could help me!¡± ¡°Rachel, are you feeling tired?¡± Dr. Goldman asked calmly. ¡°A little, I guess. I mean this whole thing is exhausting,¡± she said. ¡°Perhaps you should get some rest,¡± Dr. Goldman insisted. ¡°I¡¯m going to leave and we will see each other soon. I promise.¡± ¡°Ok, thank you,¡± Rachel said, as she slunk back into her bed and pulled up the covers. She didn¡¯t realize just how exhausted she was until she lay there a few minutes examining her weak body. She had a headache, her muscles hurt and she felt weak. It was definitely a feeling she hadn¡¯t felt before. It was a weakness she couldn¡¯t describe. CHAPTER 12 Even thought Mark wasn¡¯t quite feeling himself, he still wanted to take his girlfriend to the movies tonight. It was only their fourth date, and he was really into her. He wouldn¡¯t want to disappoint her and call her to cancel last minute. He didn¡¯t know if he was coming down with something or just tired, but something wasn¡¯t feeling right to him. He thought maybe it could be the beginning stages of the flu, since it was rampant in his grade right now, but his symptoms weren¡¯t matching up exactly. In fact, his symptoms didn¡¯t match any illness he¡¯d ever experienced before. He felt unsure about what was happening inside his body and knew it wasn¡¯t normal. He figured that since the movie was only a few hours long, he¡¯d just suck it up and deal with it later. He knew his sickness wouldn¡¯t come on that quickly, so he decided to forge ahead and keep his date night with his new girlfriend, Gina. He was also excited because tonight was the first night that he was allowed to use his parent¡¯s car. He had just got his license and was proud of himself for passing his road test. He was actually a bit surprised that the lady who administered his road test passed him as he distinctly remembers stopping at a green light to be extra cautious and brushing the curb during his parallel parking. He had heard rumors about the road test and was fearing the worse, but he was pleasantly surprised that it was not as bad as everyone had made it out to be. It was either that, or the woman who tested him was in a good mood that day. Either way, he was thrilled to be out on his own, in the car picking up Gina for the first time. He felt empowered and independent. Last time he went out with Gina, her mom dropped them off at the diner in town for dinner. That made him feel like a little kid and he was embarrassed by it. He felt so cool as he put his right turn signal on and drove into her driveway. He put the car in park, shut off the engine and got out to pick her up at the door like a gentleman. He knew she came from an old school Italian family and they would appreciate his chivalry. He wouldn¡¯t dare pull into the driveway and honk for her. He rang the doorbell in anticipation and waited for someone to open the door. Her dad opened the door and greeted him, with a weary smile. Mark knew he was a bit skeptical of him, and he felt inadequate whenever he was around him. He felt the way he assumes most guys feel when they are around their girlfriend¡¯s father, terrified! He felt like he would never be good enough for his Gina and that he could never live up to his standards, no matter what he did. But putting that aside, he liked the guy and feared him all at the same time. ¡°Gina¡¯s not ready yet,¡± he said in a stern voice. ¡°Wait down here.¡± He pointed to a large living room area with floral print couches. ¡°Take a seat and I¡¯ll go get her.¡± ¡°Thanks, Mr. Doony!¡± Mark said. ¡°I¡¯ll be right here. Thanks so much.¡± ¡°Gina! Gina! Your friend is here to see you,¡± Mr. Doony yelled up the stairs. He didn¡¯t know why Mr. Doony kept referring to him as her friend, but he figured he probably should correct him. He didn¡¯t want to get on his bad side or rub him the wrong way. ¡°Be down in a minute, Daddy!¡± Gina yelled down. Mark could hear the humming of her blow dryer from all the way in the living room and figured she was still getting ready. He know from experience with his sisters that when they¡¯re going out on a date or with friends it took them forever to pick out their outfits, make up and hair. It was such a silly production and he didn¡¯t know why girls go through all the trouble. He actually preferred Gina without makeup. He thought she had a natural beauty and glow to her that was masked when she put on all her eye make up. A few minutes later, Gina came down the steps looking gorgeous. He¡¯d never seen her looking so good before and couldn¡¯t figure out what was different about her. He immediately stood up to greet her and then saw her father coming in to the foyer area to see them off. ¡°Gina princess. You call if you need anything, you hear?¡± her dad said. ¡°I want you home by 9:30 not a minute later.¡± Mr. Doony shot Mark a look as if to tell him no funny business and then followed it with an eerie smile. Mark didn¡¯t quite know what to make of those gestures, but he figured he¡¯d better not pull any funny business and get her home right on time or early if he wanted to stay on her dad¡¯s good side. ¡°You know I will, Daddy! See you later,¡± Gina said to him with a smile and then gave him a big hug and kiss on the cheek. ¡°Mark,¡± Mr. Doony said, ¡°Can I have a quick word with you?¡± ¡°Yes Sir,¡± Mark said, walking into the other room with her dad. ¡°You take care of my little girl, you hear?¡± Mr. Doony said. ¡°I don¡¯t want her home one minute past her curfew and you better drive safely in that vehicle of yours,¡± he said, as he peered out through the window at his old station wagon. ¡°Absolutely, will do!¡± Mark said, smiling, yet nervous. ¡°You have nothing to worry about.¡± ¡°I should hope not young man. Now you two have a nice time at the movies, and we will see you shortly,¡± Mr. Doony finished. ¡°Ok! Bye, Daddy!¡± Gina said as the two of them left her house. ¡°So, you ready for a fun night?¡± Mark said, trying to sound excited. ¡°You bet!¡± Gina said. ¡°Can¡¯t wait to see this movie. I hear it¡¯s supposed to be amazing.¡± ¡°Yeah, me, too!¡± Mark replied. ¡°So, what¡¯s new cutie,¡± Gina said, looking over at Mark. ¡°Oh ya know, nothing much,¡± Mark said. ¡°Well, I heard your sister came back. You must be happy about that?¡± Gina asked. ¡°Sure!¡± Mark said. ¡°Well, you¡¯re a man of many words tonight, aren¡¯t you?¡± Gina said, jokingly. ¡°Sorry, Hun. I¡¯m not feeling so well,¡± Mark said. ¡°Want to go home?¡± Gina asked. ¡°Um, not really,¡± Mark answered. Although that was about the only thing he wanted to do right now. ¡°Seriously, if you want to go home, I understand. You don¡¯t have to worry about me,¡± Gina said. ¡°It¡¯s not that I want to go home necessarily. I¡¯m just not sure I can sit out for an entire move,¡± Mark said, feeling queasy at the thought of it. Page 15 ¡°I have an idea,¡± Gina said. ¡°Why don¡¯t we just go back to your house and watch a movie there? At least that way, you will be comfortable in your own home.¡± Mark actually liked that idea. He didn¡¯t want to disappoint her though and make her stay in with him because he wasn¡¯t feeling well. ¡°If you want, I can drop you at the movies and you can meet your friends there? I don¡¯t want to hold you back, babe,¡± Mark said. ¡°Really, or, I can bring you home. You don¡¯t have to come over and take care of me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be silly, I want to be with you. I want to take care of you. Please let me,¡± Gina begged. Mark felt so lucky to have such a sweet girl in his life. He didn¡¯t know what he did to deserve a great girl like her, but he didn¡¯t want to risk losing her. ¡°Ok, then you can come over. It will be fun, I promise. We can make popcorn and watch whatever movie you want,¡± Mark said. The two were stopped at the stoplight in town and Mark looked over at Gina. HE couldn¡¯t help but notice how delicious she smelled. She wondered if perhaps she¡¯d gotten a new perfume, but felt silly asking her that. Guys aren¡¯t supposed to notice those things and he didn¡¯t want to come off as weird to her. ¡°You smell nice,¡± Mark said, trying to hold back his excitement. ¡°Oh, really?¡± Gina said, sounding a bit confused. ¡°Thanks!¡± ¡°Sure!¡± Mark said, feeling a bit silly for saying anything at all. The scent of her body infused the car and he could barely control himself. He didn¡¯t know if it were his hormones raging or if it was something else. Either way, it made him feel hungry. He felt a huge hunger pain that made his stomach make a loud, grumbling noise. ¡°You hungry?¡± Gina asked, looking over at Mark¡¯s stomach. ¡°Oh, yeah! Guess so!¡± Mark answered. ¡°Should we pick up some dinner?¡± Gina said. ¡°I just had dinner,¡± Mark said. ¡°Not so sure why my stomach is acting up.¡± ¡°Did you have enough to eat?¡± Gina asked. ¡°Yeah, I did. I think, anyway,¡± Mark replied. The light turned green and he floored the car trying to get his mind off of Gina¡¯s scent, but he couldn¡¯t. He put the windows down thinking it might help but that didn¡¯t help either. ¡°Mark, are you ok?¡± Gina asked. ¡°Why?¡± Mark asked. ¡°It¡¯s freezing out!¡± Gina replied. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sweating, I¡¯m not sure what¡¯s happening!¡± Mark said, getting all hyped up. Gina leaned over and put her hand on Mark¡¯s neck and then put her hand on his forehead. Mark couldn¡¯t help but to put his tongue out and take a small lick of her skin as she moved her hand up to his forehead. She didn¡¯t even notice he did so. ¡°You feel cold,¡± Gina said. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re feeling hot?¡± ¡°Stop questioning me!¡± Mark yelled. ¡°I know how I¡¯m feeling.¡± ¡°Geez, no need to get upset, Mark. I was just trying to help.¡± ¡°Well you¡¯re not helping me! You¡¯re making it worse,¡± Mark snapped. He couldn¡¯t believe what was happening and he couldn¡¯t believe this temper that was coming out of him. It was completely out of character for him, and he didn¡¯t know what to do about it. He couldn¡¯t control himself despite how much he tried. ¡°Who are you?¡± Gina said. ¡°I feel like I don¡¯t even know you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know myself right now,¡± Mark said, as he pulled up to another red light on the outskirts of town. He looked around and realized he was the only car on the road. It was a desolate part of town, and he knew this was his opportunity. He knew he had to seize on his feeling and on his cravings for Gina. He hated to do this to her, but at the same time, he knew he had to. He knew the only way to find out what was really going on was to give in and taste her. To taste her blood and flesh. ¡°Gina, I¡¯m sorry,¡± Mark said, as he turned to her and unbuckled his seat belt. ¡°What are you doing, Mark?¡± Gina said. Mark didn¡¯t answer. He climbed over the center console on the car touching Gina¡¯s neck and face and tugging on her hair. ¡°Mark, you¡¯re scaring me.¡± He looked into her eyes, and his eyes became bright red. ¡°MARK! MARK!¡± Gina yelled. ¡°PLEASE SNAP OUT OF IT!¡± Mark couldn¡¯t even hear what she was saying, all he could think about was her scent and the fact that he was about to indulge in his first feed ever. He saw Gina quickly take out her cell phone and speed dial home, but Mark didn¡¯t care. He even heard it ringing and then, just as he was sinking his large white fangs into Gina¡¯s neck, he heard the voice of her father on the line. ¡°Gina? Gina? Are you OK?¡± But Mark didn¡¯t care. He pressed the end button and indulged in the most pleasant feeding of his life. CHAPTER 13 Rob knew he was close to Rachel now, and knew he was only minutes away from finding her in her school. As he approached her Pennsylvania high school, he could tell she was close. He knew there were a lot of schools in the area, but he thought he smelled he scent in the air that morning and followed it to a school off a winding country road. He walked into the school like he owned the place. His head held high and his gait stern and steady. He wore a black trench coat and black combat boots, which actually made him look a little bit like a terrorist, but he didn¡¯t care. He refused to wear anything else and this look had become his daily uniform. He didn¡¯t care how he came off to people, though, he meant business and he wasn¡¯t going to let anything get in his way. He couldn¡¯t wait to find Rachel to tell him his true feelings about her. He knew it would sweep her off her feet and they would live happily ever after. At least that¡¯s the way he saw this fairy tale ending. He tramped through the halls, the sound of his boots clomping loudly on the floor. He could feel the stares he was getting by the kids and the teachers as he breezed by them, following his nose to Rachel. He didn¡¯t care what people thought of him, in fact, he kind of wished they were a little scared of him. He enjoyed their intimidation and he enjoyed his Napoleon complex. He only had one thing on his mind, and that was to get Rachel and whisk her off with him. As he came down the hall, he passed a bunch of lockers, putting his nose up to them and then moving onto the next one. Then when he came to locker number 198 he stopped and touched it with his hands. He knew it was hers and he could tell she had recently been there. He quickly turned his body around, and pushed through the crowd that had swarmed around him as he continued searching for her. ¡°Um, what are you doing?¡± Brian asked, watching him smell Rachel¡¯s locker. ¡°Excuse me! I¡¯m talking to you,¡± Brian repeated. ¡°Yeah, well I¡¯m not talking to you!¡± Rob said, with beady eyes. ¡°What is your problem? Who are you anyway?¡± Brian asked. ¡°Who are you?¡± Rob asked back, although he could care less who this guy was. ¡°Brian. Rachel¡¯s boyfriend!¡± Rob stopped in his tracks at the sound of that word. ¡°Boyfriend?¡± he asked, quickly turning to face Brian. ¡°You heard me!¡± Brian said. Rob walked over to him and looked him up and down. He couldn¡¯t imagine Rachel would ever go for a guy like Brian, but then again, he could see the similarities between the two of them. His body began to sweat, as he got angrier and angrier with Brian. ¡°What do you mean you¡¯re her boyfriend?¡± Rob asked. ¡°Who are you anyway?¡± Brian said. ¡°I don¡¯t owe you any explanation!¡± ¡°Well you kinda do, because I¡¯m her boyfriend, too!¡± Rob said. ¡°What are you talking about? You are delusional!¡± Brian said. ¡°She has never once mentioned your name. So that leads me to believe she doesn¡¯t have feelings for you. Not to mention, we had a hot date last night. So what are you gonna do about it?¡± Rob was getting livid as Brian continued to speak. He could barely control himself. He wanted this kid gone and out of Rachel¡¯s life forever. He didn¡¯t need any more competition. He couldn¡¯t stand it. ¡°Why don¡¯t we talk about this outside?¡± Rob asked. ¡°Oh yeah!¡± Brian said. A crowd of kids surrounded them as they started throwing punches at each other. The kids all cheered, ¡°Go Brian, Go Brian!¡± but Rob didn¡¯t care. He wasn¡¯t here to get people on his side. He was here to win the heart of his one true love back, and he knew the only way to do that would be to eradicate this Brian character. He was no good, and didn¡¯t want him in Rachel¡¯s life anymore. RING RING The bell rang and the kids that surrounded them scurried off to their classes. The only people that remained in the halls were he and Brian and he knew he had to take this outside. If he were really going to get ride of him, he couldn¡¯t do it in the middle of the hallway of this high school. ¡°Come outside!¡± Rob said. ¡°This isn¡¯t the place for this. Be a man.¡± ¡°A man?¡± Brian questioned. ¡°The only man here is me! Who do you think you are for questioning me?¡± Rob started walking out the double doors at the end of the hallway, which led to the back of the school. He saw Brian following him, seething at his words. As the two got outside, Rob turned to Brian to continue their conversation. ¡°So if she¡¯s really your girlfriend, why don¡¯t you tell me where she is?¡± Rob asked. ¡°I just got to school and she¡¯s not here yet! So how am I supposed to know?¡± Brian replied. Rob¡¯s body started shaking and his eyes grew wide with envy. Then, out of nowhere, he reached over with his fist and clenched it around Brian¡¯s throat. Brian stood there gasping for air as his face turned red and then purple. His body fell to the ground and then Rob let go. ¡°That¡¯s what you get for going out with my girl!¡± Rob said. Page 16 Brian quickly stood to his feet and went to throw a punch at Rob, but Rob caught his fist in mid swing and threw him over his shoulder, flying into the air high above the trees. Brian fell down through the branches screaming and cursing as he hit the ground. He lay there, badly beaten and then Rob went over to him like lion in the jungle and sunk his teeth deep into his throat, sucking out the remaining life in his body. Rob stood up, and looked at Brian¡¯s dead, lifeless body laying there in the middle of the brush. He covered his body with the fallen leaves and then walked away, immensely satisfied with his victory. CHAPTER 14 After days of searching, Hunter, Penelope and Matilda were still no closer to finding the Waverly Mirror. They searched high and low, and tried to follow the clues, but they hadn¡¯t yet found it. It seemed that each clue brought them only a little bit closer to finding the mirror. In fact, each clue took them to different islands. The first day, they spent the entire day on the Isla de la Palma. They looked all over the island, but they were unsuccessful. Then, they flew to the Isla de El Hierro, where they thought they were getting close, but when they got to the bridge where they thought the mirror was hidden, it turned out that the bridge had collapsed decades ago and the only remaining structure were the beams that stood up out of the water. They searched around the beams, even diving underwater to look, but there was no sign of the mirror there. They wished that Benji had come with them because they thought he might have a better sense of where the mirror was hidden. They knew that time was running out and they didn¡¯t have time to be flying all over the islands looking for clues that didn¡¯t exist anymore. It was a complete waste of their time and they knew it was only a matter of days before Violet and her coven would take over the world. ¡°We can¡¯t do this anymore,¡± Penelope complained. ¡°The mirror is nowhere to be found.¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t finished searching everywhere yet,¡± Matilda said. ¡°There is still one place left to look.¡± ¡°Where is that?¡± Hunter asked. ¡°I thought we had covered everything.¡± ¡°No. We only covered the major places. But there is one more place, a minor place, that is mentioned in the scripture of our forefathers. Uncle Drew said that if we can¡¯t find it anywhere else, we should look there.¡± ¡°Where?¡± Penelope asked. ¡°The Teide volcano,¡± Matilda said, ¡°on Tenerife. It is the highest mountain in Spain. And an active volcano. Uncle Drew said that if we can¡¯t find it anywhere else, it may be hidden deep inside the volcano.¡± ¡°So we should fly inside the volcano!¡± Penelope screamed. ¡°What if it erupts?¡± ¡°We may have no other choice,¡± Hunter said. The three looked at each other grimly, then finally nodded to each other in resolve. As one they set off into the air, resolved to do whatever they had to to find the mirror and save the world. CHAPTER 15 Rachel lay there in bed after Dr. Goldman left, half awake and half asleep. She kept waking up from her dreams, her heart racing and out of breath. She didn¡¯t know what was going on and was now scared to fall back asleep. She was having night terrors, which she¡¯d never had before. As if things couldn¡¯t get worse for Rachel, she was now being haunted in her sleep. BUZZ BUZZ The sound of her cell phone was going off under her pillow. Dana: How are you? Are you coming to school today? Rachel: No, staying home. Dana: There was a big hoopla here this morning between Brian and some guy named Rob. Rachel: Rob? Dana: Yeah, says he¡¯s from your old school. He said he¡¯s your boyfriend. Rachel: HUH? WTH? Dana: I don¡¯t know. Anyway, he was here looking for you but he¡¯s gone now. Not sure where he went or if he knows where you live, but just a heads up. Rachel: Um, thanks, I guess. Dana: How was the rest of your night with Brian? Rachel: Fine Dana: We all heard what you did and I think it¡¯s very big of you. Rachel: What did I do? Dana: You left him at the caf¨¦ because you didn¡¯t want to be with him anymore. Rachel: What? Dana: Yeah, Sam told me you did it for her! She¡¯s so grateful, too! Rachel: Really? Dana: Didn¡¯t she text you? She said she was going to text you to thank you for doing that. She said she owes you big time! Rachel: Um, no. She didn¡¯t text me. Dana: Well, I gotta go. Let¡¯s chat later. Class is starting. Rachel: K Bye Rachel didn¡¯t know what to make of that conversation. She knew that something had gone wrong and there was a complete miscommunication between her and Brian. She wondered if he was the one spreading the rumor that she left him or how Sam even found out in the first place. She was confused by the entire situation with Brian, not to mention this news about Rob. She didn¡¯t even remember who Rob was, but figured he probably was her boyfriend. She hated not knowing these things or people and she just wanted it all to end. She slunk under the covers again and tried to avoid the situation. Then, she heard another buzzing noise coming from her cell phone. Sam: Hey there! Rachel: Hi Sam: I want to say thank you. Rachel: For what? Sam: You know! Rachel: ? Sam: For everything with Brian. Rachel: Um¡­ Sam: I heard what you did and I can¡¯t thank you enough. I mean, I honestly felt bad about last night and how we treated you. I really didn¡¯t think you were going to leave him so I was upset. Rachel: Oh Sam: I hope you¡¯re not mad at me or at us. It was all my fault. I turned them against you and I want to apologize for that. You didn¡¯t deserve it. Rachel: Yeah, thanks. Sam: So will I see you today? Rachel: No, taking the day off to rest. This has all been a whirlwind for me. Sam: Well, I¡¯ll come by after school today to see you then. Can I bring you anything? Rachel: Nah, I¡¯m cool. Sam: Well, see you later then. Rachel: Later Rachel couldn¡¯t believe that Sam really thought she left Brian so that she could have a turn with him. She was flabbergasted by the idea, but part of her was glad that she was misinformed, because now all her friends don¡¯t hate her. She felt a little bit of a relief from that. It was hard enough not remembering the past two years of her life and was even harder to have all her best friends mad at her. Feeling a little bit better about things she felt able to get out of bed. She looked in the mirror at her wild bed head and her smudged make up from last night, but didn¡¯t care. She didn¡¯t care how she looked and didn¡¯t have the energy or the drive to do anything about it. She threw on her Gap hooded sweatshirt over her Walmart Christmas tree PJ set, and headed downstairs. She walked down the hall and as she got to the top of the steps she heard men¡¯s voices whispering downstairs. She stopped and listened for a minute and could hear the voice of Dr. Goldman, talking to her father. She couldn¡¯t make out what he was saying, but she assumed she was talking to her father about their session. Part of her was mad that he was still there talking to her father, because she¡¯d thought their session was confidential. She felt a little bit betrayed by Dr. Goldman, but on the other hand, she was kind of glad he was sharing some things with her dad, because it had been hard for her to express herself recently, and she wanted her dad to know what was going on. She desperately needed help, and without her families support, she wouldn¡¯t get the help she needed. Rachel started walking down the stairs and then heard her dad stop talking and say, ¡°I think she¡¯s coming now.¡± She continued walking down and then saw her dad, standing there at the bottom of the stairs, and then look back towards the kitchen and make a gesture. She didn¡¯t know what he was doing, but continued down anyway. ¡°Hi, Dad,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Good morning,¡± her dad said. Within seconds of her going into the kitchen, two strong men wearing white lab coats quickly grabbed her. They put a blindfold on her eyes and said, ¡°You¡¯re coming with us.¡± ¡°DAD! DAD!¡± Rachel shrieked. ¡°Rachel, it¡¯s for your own good,¡± Dr. Goldman said. ¡°You are a very troubled girl, you need to go to a special home for a while to figure out what¡¯s been going on with you.¡± ¡°NO! I WANT MY DAD!¡± Rachel screamed. ¡°Rachel, I¡¯m right here. I have arranged for this. I knew you wouldn¡¯t take it well, so we have to do it this way. You will be fine,¡± her dad said. Rachel felt the men start dragging her out. Her body grew limp as he heels skidded across the floor. She couldn¡¯t believe this was happening to her and didn¡¯t quite understand why. ¡°BUT WHY!?¡± she yelled out, as she was being carried outside. ¡°You are a very rare case,¡± Dr. Goldman yelled out after her. ¡°They will help you.¡± Her body stopped moving as the sliding door to what sounded like a big UHAUL van opened. She could hear it sliding on its hinges and then heard other kids voices in the truck. She couldn¡¯t understand what was happening to her and she knew she couldn¡¯t let this go on. She had to get out of it. Then, all of a sudden, she felt a bolt of energy surge through her body and she started to flail around. She felt the strong, firm grip of one of the men grab her even tighter, causing her skin to burn. She then ducked down and got out of his grip, ripped off her blindfold and stood there, staring them right in the eyes. One man reached into his pocked and pulled out a stun gun and quickly shot her in the leg. Rachel looked down at her leg and realized that the bullet had stopped right before it hit her, turned around and then hit the man who shot it right between his eyes. He started screaming in pain as the other guy pulled it off of his face. ¡°How¡¯d that happen? The man asked. ¡°What¡¯s going on here?¡± the other man said, looking back at Rachel in sudden fear and terror. She then, walked over to the man who had shot her and grabbed him by the throat and lifted him high up into the air. She didn¡¯t know how she was doing this, but her body was surging at an uncontrollable rate and she couldn¡¯t stop her motions. She was fearless and unstoppable, and she was going to do everything in her power to put an end to this. Page 17 She started circling him above her head, and then with a big surge of power, threw him into the air and he went flying so far, she wasn¡¯t sure where he landed, but she was sure, he wasn¡¯t going to come back after her. The other man in the white lab coat started running down the street as he watched his colleague get launched into the air. Rachel knew she couldn¡¯t let him get away, because she knew he¡¯d be back to get her or even worse, steal other kids from their homes. She started running at lightning speed to catch up with him. Within one second she was standing there, in front of him as he rounded the bend. She started at him and then, all of a sudden he stopped running and laid down on the ground. Rachel didn¡¯t know how she was doing this, but it was almost as if she was controlling his mind and his actions with her thoughts. She kept thinking about what she wanted to do to him, and watched it play out before her eyes. She watched him lift himself up into the air really high and then drop back down onto the hard pavement with a thud. She repeated this over and over until he lay there, in a puddle of blood with his tongue hanging out of his mouth. The smell of his blood permeated the air, and she went over to him, and touched his blood with her fingertips. Then, she put her fingers to her nose and sniffed it slowly. The smell was like something she¡¯d experienced before, in a past life. Something that she wanted to taste, but didn¡¯t know why. She quickly stood up and ran away from the man when she heard the voice of her dad and Dr. Goldman running up the hill. She didn¡¯t want them to see her standing over him or catch her and try to lock her away for good. She knew she had to get out of there and fast. She had to run away, but she didn¡¯t know where she could go that would be safe for her now. CHAPTER 16 Rachel ran at lightning speed down the streets of her neighborhood and into her town. She could already hear the chatter and the buzz around her about what had just happened. She pulled the hood of her hooded sweatshirt over her head and pulled the strings tightly around her neck in an attempt to hide her face from passersby. She knew it would only be a matter of time until people knew that she was the one who committed this crime, and she knew she had to get out of their quickly to avoid what she had coming to her. She was no longer safe in her town, or in her house. She couldn¡¯t go back at this point. She knew her father; Dr. Goldman and probably the police at this point were all looking for her. Just as the thought crossed her mind, she heard loud sirens coming down the street. It was the sirens of both the fire trucks and the police cars. The sound was louder than she¡¯d ever heard before. It almost sounded to her like all the firemen and police of the surrounding counties were alerted to this event. She plugged her ears with her fingers as the cars started zooming by towards the scene of the crime. She had to think quickly and get out of their fast. Then, it dawned on her that the only place she could escape to was to the swamps to find her grandmother. She knew she¡¯d be safe down there since it was so far away from Pennsylvania, and she was sure this news wouldn¡¯t travel down to that part of the country, at least for a while. She knew she had a few days until the FBI, police and others would be searching for her. She quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out her cell phone. She knew she¡¯d be able to be tracked by it and quickly turned off the power. She knew she could only use it in serious emergencies or else, she¡¯d be found. She went into a local store and asked to use their phone. She dialed a cab company and then waited behind the store until they came. She couldn¡¯t escape the loud sounds of the fire and police cars and they flew down the streets with their sirens and lights blaring. She stood there, with her back against the wall of the building, trying to hide from everyone and everything. Waiting for this cab felt like it was taking years, even though she knew it had only been three minutes since she called. Then, as she stood there, watching the people walk by in confusion with all the chaos around them, the cab drove up and rolled down its window. ¡°You call a cab?¡± the cabbie said. ¡°Yes!¡± Rachel said. She was so grateful that the cab was here and she was finally going to make her big escape. She knew she was cutting it close as people started flocking into town to hear about what had happened. It was like a scene from a movie. ¡°Where to?¡± the cab driver asked. ¡°The train station,¡± Rachel said, hiding her head still to ensure the cabbie wouldn¡¯t be able to track her down once the news broke. She didn¡¯t want him to remember that he drove the criminal to the train station to make her get away. The car started driving along towards the train station and as she rode in the back seat she couldn¡¯t help but feel ashamed of what she just did. She didn¡¯t know what had come over her to do such a thing. She realized it was a strength she never knew she had before and it was almost uncontrollable. Her mind was telling her body to do things she didn¡¯t even know were possible. ¡°So, where you headed?¡± The cab driver asked. Rachel looked up at him and saw that he was staring at her through the rearview mirror. His large brown eyes looking back at her made her feel a bit nervous. She didn¡¯t know how to answer that question, after all she was a fugitive and she didn¡¯t want anyone to know who she was or where she was going. Not even the most unassuming of people, like her cab driver. ¡°I¡¯m going to visit my grandmother,¡± Rachel said. That was the truth, after all. ¡°That¡¯s nice of you. No school today?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m taking the day off!¡± Rachel answered. ¡°Oh, well then. Do your parents know what you¡¯re doing?¡± he asked, in a concerned tone. ¡°They might punish you for skipping school.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, please, Sir. I am fine. My parents don¡¯t care. Everything is just fine!¡± Rachel replied, getting upset at his nosiness. ¡°Maybe I should be driving you to school instead of the train station!¡± the cab driver said. ¡°Sir, please just take me to the station,¡± Rachel yelled. ¡°I don¡¯t have time for this.¡± ¡°You know cutting school is an offense!¡± the cab driver said. Rachel couldn¡¯t help but think that killing two people was a bigger offense and she¡¯d better get out of there quickly before they found her. She figured the police didn¡¯t care if she was cutting school. ¡°Listen. I don¡¯t really want to talk anymore. Can you please just drive?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to be rude, I¡¯m just not in the mood.¡± ¡°I can, but people call me Dr. Billy. I¡¯m not really a doctor but my friends like to talk to me about anything. They say I can cure people of anything. So if there something you need help with my child?¡± the cab driver asked. Rachel didn¡¯t quite know what to make of this conversation. It was getting weirder and weirder by the minute and they were still a far ride from the train station. She wished at that moment she had called a different cab company, or gotten a different cab driver. The last thing she needed was a therapy session from this cabbie. She knew she was in for it though, since she wouldn¡¯t let him turn around and drive her to school. ¡°I¡¯m ok!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Thanks, though.¡± ¡°I have a girl your age, you know. She¡¯s going through a lot now with her friends and boys. I help her though everything. Trust me, there¡¯s not a situation I can¡¯t help someone with. So, try me! I¡¯m all ears,¡± the cab driver insisted. Rachel didn¡¯t know what to say to this guy. He was clearly not taking no for an answer and desperately wanted to talk to her. She thought this was little creepy but decided she¡¯d indulge him in some of her problems. Why not? She had nothing to lose. ¡°Well, if you insist,¡± Rachel said, as she took a deep breath to begin her story. ¡°I am a senior in high school, and have been away for two years, but the thing is, I completely forgot what happened the past two years. I¡¯m suffering from amnesia, I completely ruined my relationship with Brian, there¡¯s a guy named Rob who¡¯s come back from my unknown past saying that he is my boyfriend, my mom is in the hospital because of the stress I caused her, my sister is away at college, my brother is acting a bit strange, I have supernatural strength that I didn¡¯t know I had. Oh, and my friends all ganged up on me last night. I think that pretty much sums up what I¡¯m going through right now. No wait, there¡¯s one more thing! My dad is making me see a shrink because I¡¯m so crazy.¡± Rachel stopped talking, and looked at the driver¡¯s eyes in the rear view mirror. She could see his eyes growing big and bright as if he¡¯d just heard the craziest story of his life. ¡°So, now that you know my story. What advice do you have for me?¡± Rachel waited for the cabbie to answer her, but he was dumbfounded. It seemed as if he didn¡¯t know what to say back. She waited for a minute and then said, ¡°Well, Dr. Billy, it looks like I¡¯ve stumped you!¡± Rachel said. ¡°I¡¯m not stumped, I¡¯m just trying to process everything you said. Boy, you really are going through a lot. Now, I see why you took the day off of school. It must be hard for you to wake up and face each day with all of this going on. I wish I could help you, but I¡¯m afraid you need a real professional to help you with these issues. These stretch far beyond any problems my children have had and anything I¡¯ve heard of for that matter. I¡¯m sorry, really I am,¡± the cab driver said. Rachel slunk back into her seat as she heard him speak. She knew she was in way over her head now. As if the problems she was facing weren¡¯t enough now she was a criminal, a true criminal running from the law. She carefully omitted those details in her list of problems to the cabbie. She couldn¡¯t imagine his response if she¡¯d added that one in. He would probably have crashed the car. ¡°Do you mind if I turned on the radio?¡± the cab driver asked. ¡°Nope,¡± Rachel replied. The cab driver turned on the radio and started tuning to different stations. Breaking news, two are found dead after beating by a young girl in Pennsylvania. Girl said to be¡­ Page 18 ¡°PLEASE TURN THAT OFF!¡± Rachel yelled, trying to stop the driver from listening to the news. ¡°Do you hear this?¡± the cab driver said. ¡°What?¡± Rachel asked. ¡°The news! Apparently there was a killing. Right in our town!¡± the cab driver yelled. ¡°I can¡¯t believe this. Who would do such a thing?¡± Rachel couldn¡¯t bear it anymore. ¡°Are we almost there yet?¡± she yelled from the back seat. ¡°Be quiet for a minute girl!¡± the cabbie yelled. ¡°This is very important!¡± Police are on the look out for a girl, age eighteen, brown hair, brown eyes, 130lbs. If you have seen her, please contact your local law enforcement station. The news blared through the speakers. She couldn¡¯t escape it. She just hoped this cab driver wasn¡¯t smart enough to put two and two together and hoped that even if he were that smart that he wouldn¡¯t realize it until after he dropped her off at the train station. The car ride felt like it was taking forever. She wished the train station were in walking distance because she would have definitely walked, or ran, instead of this. This ride was torture to her and getting worse by the minute. Finally, the cab driver put on his blinker and got off at the exit for the train station. ¡°We¡¯re just about here,¡± the cab driver said. ¡°This will be twelve dollars.¡± At that moment, Rachel realized that she didn¡¯t have any money with her. All she had were the clothes on her back, shoes, and her powered down cell phone. Everything else was still in her house. ¡°Sir, I¡¯m so sorry, I just realized I forgot my purse. I don¡¯t have my wallet on me,¡± Rachel said, in sorrow. ¡°I don¡¯t have the money.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have the money?¡± the cab driver questioned. ¡°Why would you leave without your wallet?¡± ¡°I completely forgot. I guess I was too scatterbrained when I left this morning,¡± Rachel said. ¡°Well, because you are going through a lot right now, I¡¯ll let it slide this time. You don¡¯t have to pay me. It¡¯s on the house!¡± the cab driver said with a smile. ¡°Thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to me!¡± Rachel said. ¡°Well, here you are my dear. We have arrived. Now, you be safe out there. We don¡¯t want you to get hurt. There are crazy people out there!¡± the cab driver said as he opened her door and let her out of the back seat. ¡°Well, thanks again, I gotta run!¡± Rachel said, putting her head down so that the cabbie wouldn¡¯t be able to see her full face. ¡°Bye now!¡± Rachel ran into the train station and looked up at the big board of arrival and departure trains. She knew there was no direct train to Mississippi, but she knew she could get a connecting train through Wasthington DC; all she had to do was sneak onto the next train to DC since she didn¡¯t have any money for a ticket. The next train going her way didn¡¯t arrive for another twenty minutes, which was actually lucky timing for her because she didn¡¯t even check the schedule before she arrived. She was glad it was only twenty minutes and not hours. She looked around the big train station and saw police with guard dogs walking up and down the platform. She feared the worst and assumed they were out to get her. She quickly ran to the bathroom and into one of the stalls, and waited there, hiding from everyone and everything. She couldn¡¯t believe her life had come down to this. As if things weren¡¯t bad before, now they were exponentially worse. She actually thought for a moment that she¡¯d be better off dead than in this scenario. She knew she had it coming for her, she just didn¡¯t know how long she had until she was caught. Train number 192 to Washington DC now arriving on platform number 2. Again, train number 192 to Washington DC now arriving on platform number 2. Rachel quickly opened the stall door and headed down to the platform. She quickly breezed by one of the security guards at the station who was busy looking down at his cell phone. She knew she had just narrowly escaped her fait, now all she had to do was get onto the train and she¡¯d be able to escape, for now anyway. The train doors opened and throngs of people exited the train. For a moment she felt like she was in a movie, making her great escape. The people all lined up to get onto the train as the conductor greeted everyone at the door, ¡°Tickets please!¡± he yelled as the passengers started filing in. ¡°Have your tickets ready!¡± Rachel had to think quickly. She knew she had to get on this train or else she might not ever see the light of day again. She tried to hide behind the person in front of her, but then realized that was pointless and wouldn¡¯t work. She stood back up and then started rummaging around in her pockets as if she were looking for something. ¡°Ticket young lady?¡± the conductor asked. ¡°I um, I¡¯m trying to find it,¡± Rachel said. ¡°You can¡¯t come on this train unless you have a ticket. Please step aside,¡± the conductor sneered. Rachel knew this was it for her. She knew there was no way she was ever going to get onto this train with no ticket and no money. ¡°Excuse me, is this your ticket? I just found it on the floor?¡± a lady asked her. ¡°Oh, thank you!¡± Rachel said. The lady handed Rachel the ticket and the conductor took it from her and pointed to a set of open seats. ¡°Thank you, you may find a seat.¡± Rachel walked towards the back of the train and took the first open seat she could find. She slunk down into her seat with her head hung low and her hood still on her head. All you could see was her mousey brown hair peeking out of the bottom of her hood. As she sat there and waited for the train to move, she couldn¡¯t help but realize that she had just narrowly escaped what was coming for her. She couldn¡¯t wait to get down to the swamp to find her grandmother. She knew she¡¯d be able to help her with everything. And hopefully, she wouldn¡¯t be caught before she made it down there. Rachel put her head down and said a silent prayer, just as she finished her prayer; the train started pulling out of the station. She was finally on her way. CHAPTER 17 Benji hovered over Rachel¡¯s house as he watched all the police and fire trucks surround the place. He didn¡¯t know what was going on but knew that it was not good. He hoped and prayed that Rachel was ok and that she wasn¡¯t hurt. He also hoped that Rob hadn¡¯t gotten there before he did. He didn¡¯t want her to fall back in love with him, especially because he knew Rachel still didn¡¯t remember who he was. All he could do was pray that everything was ok, and that these police and fire trucks were here on a false alarm. He flew a short ways away and then landed in an open field and walked to Rachel¡¯s house. He didn¡¯t want anyone to see him flying or landing. As he approached the house, he saw Rachel¡¯s father and brother standing outside, talking to the policemen. He walked up the walkway and everyone turned and looked at him. ¡°Mr. Wood?¡± Benji asked. ¡°Yes? Who are you?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m Benji. I¡¯m here to see Rachel!¡± he said, smiling. ¡°Rachel?¡± her dad questioned. ¡°Your timing is not good young man. I¡¯m afraid you will have to come back another time.¡± ¡°But I came all the way to see her,¡± Benji said. ¡°I can¡¯t leave until I do.¡± ¡°I said, you can¡¯t see her now!¡± he yelled. ¡°Sir, I have to see her. I love your daughter and I need to tell her that face to face,¡± Benji said. ¡°Who are you anyway? And how do you know my daughter?¡± he asked. ¡°I met her in Bedford. Don¡¯t you remember?¡± Benji said. He watched as the expression changed on her father¡¯s face and then he turned and scowled at him. ¡°BENJI? The BENJI?¡± he shrieked. ¡°Um..I¡¯m not sure exactly what you mean by that, but yes, I am Benji. I don¡¯t know if I am the Benji.¡± ¡°Shut up! I don¡¯t want to hear another peep out of you. This is all your fault!¡± he said. ¡°My fault?¡± Benji questioned. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Everything that has happened to my little girl is because of you!¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, maybe you¡¯re thinking of a different person,¡± Benji retorted. ¡°No! I am not thinking of anyone else but you!¡± he said. ¡°Does the man have anything to do with the crime, Mr. Wood?¡± a police officer asked. Benji looked at the policeman, who was reaching back towards his handcuffs, waiting for him to respond. He looked back at Mr. Wood who was turning red with anger. ¡°No,¡± he said. ¡°He does not have anything to do with this crime.¡± Benji took a deep breath and knew that even though he was saved, there was a big problem going on here. ¡°What happened?¡± Benji asked the police officer. ¡°It¡¯s none of your business!¡± Mr. Wood said. ¡°Does it have to do with Rachel?¡± Benji asked. ¡°Maybe he can help us find her?¡± the police officer said. ¡°We can use him.¡± ¡°NO! We will NOT be using this buffoon to locate my daughter,¡± Mr. Wood said angrily. ¡°I can help! Please let me!¡± Benji said. ¡°We are looking for Rachel. She just committed the most heinous crime this town has ever seen. Two people are dead because of her,¡± the policeman said. ¡°WHAT?¡± Benji said. He couldn¡¯t believe what he was hearing. He knew there must be a reason for this and if he tuned into her and channeled her energy he¡¯d be able to find out what really happened. ¡°No! I don¡¯t want him to help. Please leave now. You are not welcome on my property any longer,¡± Mr. Wood said, turning his back to Benji. ¡°Ok, if you insist,¡± Benji said. ¡°I¡¯ll be off now!¡± Benji didn¡¯t linger around any longer. He knew what had happened and he knew where he could find Rachel. He was so deeply connected to her that he knew where she was headed and that he didn¡¯t have much time to catch her before she boarded the train to DC. He knew he had to get to the station fast if he had any chance of catching her and making her run away with him. Page 19 Benji quickly ran out of sight of everyone and then took off into the air. He only had a few minutes until her train would pull out of the station and she would be gone again. As he arrived at the station he ran up and down the different platforms looking for her. Then, he heard the announcement. Final call for train 192 headed towards Washington DC leaving the station now. He looked across the platform and saw a train sitting there, about to take off. He quickly ran up the steps and down the other set of steps that led him to the correct platform. He searched the windows of the train as it began to pull away, and then, for a second, he caught a glimpse of Rachel, a hood pulled over her head, looking down into her lap. He was too late. ¡°Rachel!¡± he screamed. She looked up, as if maybe she had heard him, and for a moment, her eyes met his. She stared at him through the glass with a puzzled look, as if trying to remember a distant stranger. Her eyes were filled with sadness and confusion. She looked so helpless, so lost. It looked as if she were trying to remember him. But try as she did, she did not. Her face never transformed into recognition. As he watched the train pull away, as he watched Rachel disappear from view, he felt as if his whole world were being taken out from beneath him. The train gained speed, faster and faster, entering the tunnel too fast for him to reach it in time. As it disappeared into the tunnel he felt it had taken his heart with him. ¡°RACHEL!¡± he screamed again. But his screams merely echoed in the reverberating silence, as her train disappeared into blackness.