me?
Then comes the
most chillingvoice I
have ever heard. It was dark, deep, and
terrifying. “It’stime Logan.We gave you
the opportunity tocome touson your
own, but we can wait no longer.”
“Nothing was supposed to happen
untilmy 18 th birthday unlessmy anger
was able totake control. I stillhave afew
months.”
“No. We won’t wait that long, so
make your choice now.”
“My choice is the same as it was the
day you stood infront of my house. I’llnot
bend toyou or whoever you serve. My life
is my own to command.”
“So be it, but you are makinga
huge mistake. I hope you are ready todeal
withthe consequencesthat willcome from
this.”
He was gone.Iturnaround incircles
tryingtolocate where he was,but allthat
was around me was darkness. A breeze
tore throughthe house, makingit come
alive withcreepy soundsandcausingme
toshiver. My attention isdrawnback to
the empty lot. The sound of bubbling
water is replaced by a gurgling. I startto
make my way over tothe hole in the
ground and see what Ithought waswater
isthick and reekedof decayingflesh. The
street light castsan eerie glow on the
street. The ground that wasonce sandy in
color is now a deepred.
Istart toback away when the light
catcheson somethingin the poolof blood,
asilver bracelet. Abracelet that Inever
wanted tosee covered by blood. In that
instant,my feet have amind of their own
andare makingtheir way tothe armI
see. The body comes intofocus,andIdrop
to my knees. It’s flowing all around me
now, encasingme in thistorment and
agony. My mother.
I woke up gasping for air, tangled in
the sheets of my bed. It was just a dream
Logan. I knew it wasn’t though. It was a
warning of what was to come. The smell
of death was still clinging to my skin. I still
felt the warmth of the blood on my knees
and the overwhelming heartache of seeing
her lying there motionless.
I kept having this dream over and
over again over the following few weeks.
Before I knew it, Deandra would be
coming into town for Christmas. I couldn't
help but not want D here. I wanted to see
her, but if this was going to happen soon,
and I know it would, I wanted her far
from here. Have you ever heard of the
saying, “Be careful what you wish for??”
Well it’s true. I got a call from Deandra
the next day saying she wasn’t going to
make it because her dad had to go away
on business. The relief of hearing this was
instantaneous. I knew D would have
gotten hurt if she was here when
everything went down. She is fierce and
protective and would have done anything
she could to help me.
I could feel it coming closer. It’s like
a black cloud was hanging around and
slowly expanding to cover the valley. The
air was charged with an unseen electrical
force. The pigeons that were usually
walking in the streets ignoring the cars
have all but disappeared. The spiders and
bugs went into hiding. The dogs that used
to bark constantly were suddenly quiet.
Time moves slow when you are
waiting for something that you really
want. It’s like the clock stops just to piss
you off. I wished it would have stopped in
this instance. Though I knew I needed to
be ready for whatever was coming for me,
or my mom, I was not. I wasn't prepared
for this fight; I didn't even know what I
would be fighting. All I knew was that I
wouldn't let anyone tell me what to do.
The darkness had been growing within me.
I felt it the moment it came alive. It was
at the same time I noticed all the subtle
changes taking place in the neighborhood.
It was once bright and full of life. Kids
would play in the yard, dogs would bark,
and laughter was all around me. Not
anymore! Toys were deserted around
people’s yards. I had not seen or heard a
dog in weeks.
It was the end of January, which
meant I had 16 days until the big day.
The month had passed by in matter of
moments. It was Christmas one day and
the countdown to my birthday the next.
My birthday was not going to be epic
because I would finally
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