Torn

by Ashley Stambaugh

  After a few moments of silence, she spoke up again. "I know Walter and Phinneas don't think that has anything to do with what's going on with me, but I can't help but think that it does. It doesn't take much to trigger these evil feelings, and when they take over, it's so quick, like the good in me isn't strong enough to put up much of a fight." She shook her head. "I should be able to fight off these feelings and suppress them, but they only keep growing stronger."

  "And they'll continue growing stronger until they've finally taken you over," a female voice said from behind her.

  Melina's eyes widened as she slowly turned around. There stood Maura with her dark hair flowing down over her red coat, her eyes hidden behind a pair of black sunglasses.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  "Maura," Melina said as she slowly stood up from the ground.

  "Surprised to see me?" she asked.

  "I just… I didn't think you'd approach me out in the open like this."

  Maura tilted her head to the side. "Why wouldn't I? I'm not going to harm you or do anything that would draw attention. I simply want to talk." She paused for a moment and then asked, "Have you figured out yet what I was trying to tell you last night?"

  "I think so," answered Melina.

  "And?" Maura asked while raising her eyebrows.

  Melina swallowed hard. "That I have somehow absorbed Noxin demon powers as well as guiding angel powers."

  Maura's lips spread into a devilish grin as she let out a low, menacing laugh. "Very good."

  Melina's lip started to quiver. "So it's true? I do have Noxin demon powers?"

  Maura nodded.

  "But how?" Melina asked. "How did I absorb them and angel powers, and how do you know?"

  "Well, let's see," said Maura as she started to walk closer.

  Melina instantly backed away.

  Maura stopped in mid-step. "Oh, I'm sorry. Still don't trust that I'm not going to hurt you?"

  Melina stared at her.

  "Fine," she said, briefly lifting her hands up in the air. "I'll stay right here then, and we can continue to yell at each other so we can hear one another talk."

  "We're not yelling at each other," said Melina. "And we can hear each other just fine."

  "If you say so," said Maura. "Now, where was I? Oh yes. I first heard of you from Adelia. She told me that you were a strong one, and that it would benefit us Noxin demons greatly to gain guiding angel powers from you."

  "Wait," said Melina. "Were you working with her?"

  "Of course," Maura said, her forehead creasing. "You haven't figured out exactly who I am, have you?"

  Melina cleared her throat. "I know that only really powerful and high up demons have names."

  "Ah," said Maura as she raised her eyebrows again. "It seems you've been talking to some of your guiding angels about me. Phinneas and Walter, is it?"

  Melina didn't answer her.

  "Well, they're right," Maura said. "But I'm not just any powerful Noxin demon. I'm the most powerful Noxin demon in existence."

  Melina's breath caught in her throat. Everything seemed to be happening all over again. She had absorbed supernatural powers that were threatening to take control over her, and the most powerful being of that particular supernatural group was after her. Was her life at risk again, too?

  "No," said Maura. "Your life isn't at risk."

  Melina's brow creased. "You can hear my thoughts. Does that mean…"

  "That I stole guiding angel powers by taking the soul from a human like you?" Maura asked. "Yes, it does."

  Melina gulped. "It means that you demons can use the powers. But for what? What are you going to use them for?"

  Maura gave her a small grin. "You'll found out in due course, my dear. But for now, let's keep the focus on you. So back to what I was saying… Adelia was sure that your demise would be a quick one because of how strong the angel powers were in you, so she sent Noxin demons after you a lot sooner than she normally would have. You see, she didn't want the powers to do you in before the demons had a chance to steal them from you first.

  "She and I both knew that sending demons after you so soon after you'd just absorbed angel powers might risk you also absorbing Noxin powers," she paused to shrug, "but neither one of us thought you would survive, so we didn't care."

  "You both knew that I could also absorb demon powers?" Melina asked.

  Maura nodded. "All humans like you can. Especially if the absorbing power is as strong as it is in you." She ventured a step closer as she continued to explain. "All humans like you have an absorbing ability, but how strong that ability is differs from each individual. Both of your parents had it, so it's very strong in you. So strong that after it was opened, it didn't close right away and allowed you to absorb powers from another type of supernatural being."

  Melina stared at her, confused.

  Maura sighed. "Look at it this way. Picture your absorbing ability as a type of gauge. The gauge opens when contact is made with a supernatural being who's in a human form. Once it opens, it fills with that particular supernatural power and then closes. But your gauge is much bigger. Yours didn't fill up completely after making contact with Walter, and it stayed open until—"

  "Until that next morning when I made contact with a Noxin demon in his human form."

  "Very good," said Maura.

  Melina's gaze fell to the snow-covered ground as her entire body went numb. "That must be why the demon's touch was able to burn through my skin so quickly. It was the transfer of powers."

  "My my," said Maura. "You are an intelligent one."

  Melina swallowed the knot in her throat and looked back up. "How do you know all of this? You seem so sure of it all, but you could just be lying to me. Has this happened before?"

  "Adelia and I have been working together for a very long time, ever since the first human like you was discovered," Maura said. "We experimented with the first dozen or so until we had answers to all of our theories."

  Melina cringed at the word 'experimented.' She didn't even want to think about what Maura and Adelia had probably done to those poor people.

  "So yes," continued Maura, "I'd say I'm pretty sure of it all."

  "But how did you even know that I had absorbed demon powers?" asked Melina. "Did Adelia know, or…"

  "One of my minions told me," said Maura. "All Noxin demons can sense when another Noxin demon is nearby. He was out causing random mischief one morning when he felt what he thought was another Noxin demon in the area. When he went to find the other demon, he found you instead."

  Melina's eyes widened. "The demon I saw outside of Nina's… it sensed the demon powers in me?"

  Maura nodded. "When he came back and told me, I wondered if it was the human Adelia had told me about, the one with the strong absorbing power. I was so intrigued that I had to see for myself, so I tracked you down and followed you. I wanted to see if I could witness the demon powers being displayed in you, and your little incident at the poetry reading confirmed that the demon powers are now stronger than the angel powers. It won't be long before you're consumed by them."

  "Consumed by them?" Melina gave her a confused look. "But that's what Adelia said was going to happen to me with the angel powers. So how am I not in danger of the demon powers killing me?"

  "When you gained control of your angel powers, you gained control of all of the supernatural powers within you."

  Melina jerked back, her eyebrows scrunching together. "Angry outbursts and violent reactions. You call that having control over the demon powers?"

  Maura snickered and then flung her long, black hair over her shoulder. "Angry, violent, hateful, mischievous… it's all in the nature of a Noxin demon. The reason it all seems so out-of-control with you is because you immediately try to stop those feelings when they arise. But that only causes them to fight even harder to come to the surface." Maura shook her head. "Don't fight them, Melina."

  Melina paused for a moment to think about everything Maura had
told her so far. It was all so confusing, and her head felt like it was spinning, yet it made perfect sense at the same time. "So if the demon powers aren't going to kill me, then I guess I'm confused as to why you don't want to kill me. I mean, you mentioned earlier how Adelia had told you how much it would benefit you to gain guiding angel powers from me."

  Maura cocked her head to one side. "Now why would I kill someone who possesses both guiding angel powers and Noxin demon powers? Do you know what a powerful combination that is?"

  Melina shook her head. "But my guiding angel powers are slipping away. I've already lost two of them. I'm sure it won't be long before the others are gone, too."

  "No," said Maura. "You haven't lost them. They're just being suppressed. The demon powers are trying to come forward, and in order to do so they're suppressing your angel powers one by one. The angel powers will remain suppressed until you've allowed the demon powers to become dominant."

  "No," Melina said in a sharp tone while shaking her head again. "I won't let them become dominant in me. I'm going to find a way to get rid of them."

  Maura threw her head back and started to laugh hysterically. "Silly girl. You can't get rid of them. Once you've absorbed a supernatural power, it's a part of you. Forever."

  "No," Melina said again.

  "Yes," said Maura as she nodded her head. "And that works out perfectly for me. Once the demon powers take over in you, which shouldn't be long now, you are going to be one of my strongest weapons."

  Melina's forehead wrinkled. A weapon? What did she mean by that? "What is it that you're planning?" she asked. "And what do I have to do with it?"

  Maura gave her a mischievous grin. "As I said earlier, all in due time. I think it's time I go now and let this whole process finish itself out. But don't worry. You'll see me again soon." And with that, Maura vanished, leaving a cloud of black smoke in her place.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Melina stood frozen, staring at the spot where Maura had been mere seconds ago. She had to be lying. There had to be a way for her to get rid of the demon powers. There had to be. Because if there wasn't…

  She fell down to her knees and finally allowed herself to cry. And it wasn't just crying in self-pity. It was a scared cry, an angry cry, and a disappointed cry all in one. She was scared for what was going to happen to her, she was angry that it was even happening to her in the first place, and she was disappointed in herself for allowing the evilness inside her to grow so strong. What was she going to do?

  A heavy sob escaped her as she looked between her parents’ gravestones. "What do I do?" she said out loud. "What do I do?" She lowered her head down into her hands and continued to cry.

  "Melina? Is that you?" a male's voice called out from behind her.

  She hastily wiped the tears from under her eyes then stood up and turned around. "Lee," she said as a faint smile crossed her lips.

  "I thought it was you," he said, returning her smile, "but I couldn't tell with your hood up."

  "Oh, yeah," she said as she walked over to him. "The sun's bothering me a bit today. How long have you been standing there?"

  He pulled the collar up on his black wool coat and rubbed his bare hands together. "Long enough to know that it's too cold for you to just be sitting out here."

  "I'm really not that cold," she said and then instantly wondered why. Her thoughts were put on hold, though, as Lee brushed her cheek with his hand and then gently lifted her chin up.

  "You've been crying. Are you all right?" he asked.

  Melina sniffled loudly and then shook her head. "No," she said in a shaky voice. "No, I'm not."

  He reached for her sunglasses, but she grabbed a hold of his hand and stopped him. "Please, leave them on."

  He furrowed his eyebrows as he lowered his hand back down to his side. "What's going on?"

  "It's an effect from the demon powers," she said. "This sudden sensitivity to daylight. I think it's also why I'm not that cold right now. Noxin demons are literally burning on the inside, so it makes sense that the powers would cause an internal feeling of warmth in me."

  "You're talking as if you know for sure that you have demon powers. Did something happen?" His brow remained creased as he waited for her to reply.

  She crossed her arms tightly in front of her as she took in a deep breath. "I saw Maura again."

  "What?" Lee asked, his narrowed eyes widening. "Where?"

  "Here," she said. "She must've left just a couple of minutes before you arrived."

  "I can't believe she approached you out in the open and during the day."

  "She just wanted to talk," said Melina.

  "And?"

  Her lower lip started to quiver as more tears slid down her cheeks. "She told me that I did indeed absorb Noxin demon powers."

  "Are you sure?" Lee asked. "She could be lying."

  Melina shook her head. "She's not lying."

  "How do you know?"

  "Everything she said made sense. Believe me, after hearing it all, you'll know that she's not lying." Melina swept the tears away from her cheeks as she recounted the conversation she'd had with Maura. As she talked, she tried not to start crying again, but she couldn't help it. By the time she was recalling the last few details, she was bawling.

  "Melina," Lee said as he reached out and touched her arm. "It'll be okay."

  "No, it won't be," she said between sobs. "I can't get rid of the demon powers. I'm stuck with them forever."

  He gently pulled her into him and wrapped his arms around her. As she nuzzled her head into his chest, her entire body started to shake as her emotions took over.

  A few minutes later, Melina was finally able to calm herself down some. After catching her breath, she peered up at Lee. "I'm scared," she said, her body still trembling slightly.

  "I know," he said as he gently stroked her back. "But I'm sure Walter and Phinneas will have an idea of what to do. Let's get you home so you can call to them."

  She nodded and then glanced back at her parents’ gravestones. "I'm sorry," she whispered and then turned back toward Lee.

  He leaned over and planted a soft kiss on her forehead and then took her hand and led her back to her Jeep.

  ****

  When they arrived back at her apartment, Melina and Lee both removed their coats and hung them by the door. She then reached up for her sunglasses, and as she slid them off, Lee's eyes grew big.

  "Melina, you don't look well."

  She turned around and glanced in the small mirror that hung by the door. The dark circles around her eyes had grown even bigger, and her once bright green eyes now appeared dull and lifeless. Her entire face was drained of color, and the skin on her cheeks looked sunken in.

  She raised her hand and touched her fingertips to one of her cheeks. "I'm even starting to look like a monster now."

  "Hey," Lee said as he turned her back around to face him. "You're not turning into a monster."

  "Aren't I, though?" she asked. "Maura said it wouldn't be long now before the demon powers took over." She paused as she briefly shook her head. "How I'm acting now is bad enough. I don't even want to think about how I'll be once the powers have full control over me."

  "Then don't let them."

  Her gaze hardened. "Don't you think I've tried? It's not that easy."

  She started to walk toward the living room, but he grabbed her hand and stopped her.

  "Look," he said. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. Have you eaten anything yet today? You need to keep your strength up, and making sure you eat well and get enough rest will help with that."

  She pulled her hand back from his grasp and started toward the living room again. "I'm not hungry."

  "Melina," he said as he followed her into the other room. "You need to eat. Please, just let me fix you something."

  "No!" she yelled as she whirled back around. "I said I'm not hungry."

  Lee stopped in his tracks and then raised both of his hands up in a defensive manner
. "Okay, okay. Forget about the food for now and let's focus on calling to Walter and Phinneas. All right?"

  She took in a deep breath and then closed her eyes as she shook her head. "I'm not sure how much more of this I can handle. It doesn't take much to set me off anymore, and these malicious feelings come and go so quickly." She opened her eyes again and looked over at Lee. "I'm so sorry…"

  "Don't," he said as he stepped closer to her. "None of this is your fault. You have nothing to be sorry for." He tucked a loose strand of her wavy brown hair behind her ear. "Do you know how beautiful you are to me?"

  Melina narrowed her eyes. "You're joking, right? I look awful, and you even said yourself that I don't look well."

  He leaned his face close to hers. "I can still see you through all of this anger and violence, and you are beautiful. You'll always be beautiful to me."

  Her eyes started to fill with tears, but she did nothing to stop them. Maybe I don't need to be scared of losing him. But his behavior since all of this started has been so back and forth. How do I know…

  Her thoughts were cut short as Lee cupped her face in his hands and pressed his lips to hers. She closed her eyes as she kissed him back, causing all of her built up tears to stream down her cheeks. His touch was so gentle and his kiss so full of affection that for a brief moment her fears and anxieties were calmed.

  A few seconds later, he lowered his hands from her face and slowly pulled away.

  Melina opened her eyes to look at him.

  "You need to call to Walter and Phinneas," he said. "I'm sure they can find a way to help you."

  She nodded as she wiped the tears away from under her eyes. "I should probably get in touch with Dean first, though."

  Lee's brows furrowed. "Is that necessary?"

  "Well yeah," she said. "Didn't you see how scared he looked last night when I asked if this could happen to him, too? He needs to be here when I explain everything so he knows that it can't. Plus, I don't want to have to keep talking about it over and over. I'd rather just tell everyone at once."