Awakened

by Emma Knight

  “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.

  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 co
vered 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 café 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.

  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.