The Call of the Sea: Prologue

Prologue

“At great periods you have always felt, deep within you, the temptation to commit suicide. You gave yourself to it and breached your own defenses.”

                        --Cesare Pavese

            I can’t take it anymore; it’s just too much.

            The wind howled like a wild beast at my back and blew my unruly curls across my face in tangled wisps of flame. Lightning flashed and danced, illuminating the dark, stormy sky like fireworks on the fourth of July, exploding in bursts of silver and bolts of purple. The thunder shouted its wrath in my ears with the sound of a thousand canons firing at point-blank, echoing throughout the bay. Rain came down hard in near horizontal sheets, stinging my skin, leaving both my long sleep shirt and the shorts underneath soaked through in minutes, but I didn’t care. Soon it wouldn’t matter.

            “No matter what you do,” my mother always told me when I was a child, “Never, ever, go swimming during a storm.”

            No.

I couldn’t think about her right now. I began shivering from the cold, my teeth chattering uncontrollably—I hadn’t had a chance to change clothes or grab a jacket, I had left in such a hurry after my parents broke the news.

            “This doesn’t mean we love you any less, sweetheart,” my dad said, doing his best to smile through the pain, “Your mom and I—we’re just not working right now.” His emerald eyes, the mirror image of mine, begged me to understand.

            Separated. Wasn’t that just divorce without the dramatic, paperwork filled mess? The word ricocheted through my mind like a bullet off of steel. I couldn’t understand. Why? My parents always seemed like the happiest couple, sure they’d been having some hard time recently after my dad got laid off, but certainly not enough to warrant a split—at least I didn’t think so.

            That was the last straw; the one that broke the proverbial camel’s back. After they’d broken the news, I went to my room telling my parents that needed some time alone. I’d locked the door with a soft click and crossed the room. Silently, I eased my window open, cautiously removing the screen, and slipped out onto the roof, not even bothering to slip on a pair of shoes. I slipped over to the big oak that made for the best escape and, within seconds, I was racing off into the woods like I had done so many times before, only this time I wasn’t sneaking off to meet Liam. This time I had no intention of going back.

            I had stumbled through the foliage, my shirt catching on branches and twigs as they sliced my exposed arms and legs while stray rocks bit into my bare feet, until I reached it, reached here—my special place. It was the place I always went to think, where I could be alone with my thoughts because no one ever went up there.  It almost seemed like the entire town was scared of this place, they all thought it was creepy and cursed.

            Who cared what everyone thought anyway? To me, it was truly beautiful. The trees opened at a clearing about fifty yards from the edge and wildflowers grew all over. The old lighthouse that resided there had been long since abandoned but still managed to withstand the test of time, leaving me a perfect place to relax and think within the tower.  It was the perfect place to watch the sun rise or set—I had done so, so many times before. If you went to the edge of the cliff on a clear day, you could look out and see the light reflecting off the crystalline blue waters for miles, it was breathtaking. But none of that was visible now.

            I looked down from the edge and saw the angry gray water beating against the jagged rocks just over eighty feet below. I could almost see the headlines now: “Superi Sound Teenager Leaps”, or maybe “High School Swim Team Captain Drowns”, possibly “Rhode Island Teen Falls to Her Death”, something like that.

            When they find me, my mother will scream and cry, my father will wrap his arms around her to hold her up while fighting back his own tears—or maybe he wouldn't, they’re separated after all. They’ll call Nash and he’ll probably do something stupid, not to mention completely unpredictable, that may or may not get him expelled. When my best friend Lily is told, oh God, so soon after Faythe, she’ll loose it. She’ll scream and throw things, she will curse my name and cry for days, but she, like everyone else, will be okay eventually. Liam, bless his heart, will wonder if it was something he did, if he could have done something to stop it, hopefully then, he’ll realize that I broke up with him for his own good. Then there’s Jordan, that disgusting son of a bitch, he’ll comfort Liam and say that it was my own doing, but in private, he’ll smile because he will know that it was partially because of him, and the bastard will be proud of it.

            At that point, I wasn’t sure if the wetness on my face was from the rain or my own tears—probably both.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

Suddenly, before I could change my mind, I jumped. The wind rushed by me and I relished in the brief sensation of complete and total weightlessness as I felt my clothes billow out around me. It was surreal, both thrilling and terrifying.

As it turns out, when jumping off a cliff, the fall isn’t the worst part—it’s the sudden stop at the bottom. Before I knew it, those crashing waves were rushing up to meet me and I braced myself for impact.

I must have only missed the rocks by inches; there was a loud thwack as my body struck the surface of the stormy water. I plunged down as the icy coldness surrounded me, the weight of the built up carbon dioxide pressed and burned in my chest. I opened my mouth and let the water pour in. I guess it was a little uncomfortable at first, but it was over before I knew it.

The feeling in my chest seemed distant and my vision began to grow fuzzy. I had always been skeptical of the stories I had heard about drowning being an extremely peaceful way to go; now I had proof they were right.

It won’t be long now and then it all will be over, only a few more minutes, I thought dreamily.

Then, he was in front of me, appearing seemingly out of nowhere. A boy about my age, a year older tops, but I didn’t recognize him. Which was strange, I knew everyone, let’s face it, Superi Sound, Rhode Island isn’t exactly a hot-spot on the map, not to mention that tourist season was still a good few months off. He grabbed my arm in a firm grip and started to tow me up, his inky hair floating around him.

But I resisted, I struggled and pulled, fighting him every bit of the way. He faltered slightly, surprised at first, but he must have just written it off as panic. In desperation to get free and continue my descent, I beat my hand against his toned, shirtless chest. Had I not been so determined, I might have enjoyed it. Hell, I still did on some level.

Startled, he looked down at me and our eyes locked. If I’d had any oxygen, I would have gasped in surprise. They were the exact same color as the ocean, a silvery blue, beautiful yet tormented by some unseen storm.

Please, I silently begged, let me die.

Understanding flashed across his face, but he ignored my plea, crushing me against his chest and propelling us up with strong kicks. The world was growing darker by the second as we rocketed to the surface. My head broke above the water line and I sputtered and coughed up at least part of the sea. I immediately started to shiver as the brisk air brushed my wet body and I realized the storm was over. Blinking the water from my eyes, I noted the way the moonlight cast an eerie shadow on the sun-kissed skin of my “rescuer” as he wasted no time dragging me to shore.

When we reached the beach, the same one that I had spent long summer days laughing and playing on with my friends just several months before, he laid me down on the sand. As he dropped to his knees beside me, the moon projected a glow onto his toned chest and slightly reflected off of a silver pendent around his neck, immediately catching my attention. It kind of looked like a dog tag but shaped a little different, but it was too dark to make out the rest. 

The boy took my face in his hands, their warmth soaking into my cheeks, and forced me to look at him, then he spoke to me in a low, deadly serious tone, “Never try to pull some crazy stunt like that again! Do you hear me? Don’t hurt the people who care about you like that! No matter how hard it gets, no matter how bad others make you feel, that is not a reason to end your life. Your life is worth living. You are worth it.  Things will get better, even if it doesn’t seem like it, I promise. Never forget that,” His voice was captivating; slightly rough yet soothing, like the gentleness of waves brushing the rocks on a warm summer day, speaking with a light accent that I couldn't place, yet there was a tinge of desperation in his words, begging me to understand.

It was almost like he knew, knew how bad I was hurting—knew me. Something in my mind just clicked; he was right, I had been through hell these last few months with everything—Faythe’s death, my parents’ separation, what Jordan did… But in the midst of it all, I had almost made a terrible mistake and hurt everyone that I loved. And he’d stopped me. He’d rescued me—twice—once from icy waters of the Atlantic that were dragging me down, and once from myself, who had put me there in a moment of desperation.

I was so extremely tired and cold, I was just lying in the sand, trembling head to toe, my thin, now, thanks to the water, see-through, white t-shirt clinging to my soaked body, and sleep was begging to claim me, but I had to know.

“Wh- what’s your name,” I chattered. He had saved my life, so I owed him mine; I was damn well going to know his name.

He removed his hands from my face and looked like he wanted to laugh, his lips twitched into a smirk, but he answered anyway, “Niko,” He said, barely containing his amusement, “My name is Niko.”

A hundred other questions swirled through my mind. Why did you save me? Where are you from? Do you have a girlfriend?

As if sensing the puzzlement brimming in my eyes, Niko gracefully stood from his kneeling position at my side, the wet sand clinging to his equally soaked jeans. “Take care of yourself, Rae,” he advised, giving me one last lingering look before taking off down the shore.

I felt my eyes widen in shock, “How do you know my name,” I called feebly, struggling to sit up, but he was gone, and his footprints on the beach were already disappearing with the tide.

My arms shook from the effort of holding me up and I collapsed back down onto my back. I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally, freezing to the point of popsicledom, and confused beyond belief, I finally let the darkness steal me away as the sound of approaching sirens reached my ears and red and white lights flashed in the distance.

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Here's a teaser from my newest story, any feedback is appreciated, so what do you think? If you want to keep it going, vote "yes" on the poll on the main page or comment on this post!  Thanks!

                                                                  ~Jade Night

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PS: I currently have three chapters of my newest story, "The Call of the Sea", written and waiting to be posted, someone just needs to grow a pair and say something! 

ATTENTION

Hey everyone (who, at this point, may only consist of about three people tops)! I have a great new story idea! I already have the first two chapters finished. But I may not be posting it here due to lack of interest (based on the lack of comments towards AFD). How do you feel about Sirens, Demi-gods, and other aspects of Greek mythology? And for those of you who are wondering what’s up with the lack of advancement towards Angels Falling Down, please refer to my previous post “Miss Me?”.
Oh, and please do comment to tell me what you think!  

Thanks!

~Jade Night

Angels Falling Down: Chapter Four

Chapter Four

Fallon

         When I got up this morning, or any time in my life for that matter, if someone had told me that arguably the most gorgeous guy in the world would fall out of a tree and land in my lap while I was eating my lunch, I would have immediately had them institutionalized. But it happened.

          At first I was eating what the kitchen staff claimed was a chicken sandwich and enjoying the scenery. In the next second, I heard a snap, looked up, and caught sight of him.

          “Shit!”

          He crashed onto me. I could still feel through both our clothes that he was made of  pure muscle, sinew, and bone, but that did not, by any means make him a lightweight.

          “Ooof!” I grunted, which, as Mary says, is very unladylike by the way.

          “Sorry,” He mumbled, keeping his head down and face cast in shadow by his messy midnight locks.

          I waited a second, but he didn’t move.

          “Um, could you get off me, please,” I asked, I was starting to loose feeling in my legs.

          His head snapped up and he met my eyes. I gasped. They were the stormiest silver and I had only seen one pair like it before. It’s him.

           A devilish grin lit up his face and he raised an eyebrow, “Like what you see,” he teased.

          And me, like an idiot, sat there gaping like a fish. It can’t be him, that was seven years ago. He would have to be at least in his late twenties by now. But he doesn’t look a day past eighteen. It’s not possible.

          He reached up and gently shut my mouth and proceeded to pluck a stray orange leaf from my hair. He examined it for a moment then cast it away to drift in the light autumn breeze. He stood with the grace of a jungle cat, beautiful and dangerous, and stretched his hand down to grab mine. He pulled me up with ease, like I weighed nothing, and a warm tingle flowed through my hand at his touch.

          I finally regained the ability to speak, “What? How? Who are you,” I sputtered.

          He smirked once more, shook his head, and replied with a simple, “Not yet.”

          Aggravated and confused, I started to ask just what he meant by that when the bell to signal that I had one minute to get to class rang and silenced my questions.

          He pointed to the doors, “Hurry up, you don’t want to mar up that perfect attendance record of yours, Fall,” He advised, and disappeared into the woods. Leaving me with more questions than answers.

          I was still standing there, staring blankly at the foliage, when the final bell rang.

Make sure you check out my post “Miss Me”. Thanks! Please Comment!

Miss Me?

Hey everyone! I'm so sorry it's been so long! I got my tonsils out a few days after my last post and have been super busy ever since! A new chapter of Angels Falling Down will probably be posted within the next day or so. I'm also working on a new story idea but I'm not sure if I'll be posting it here. I won't be posting very often anyway if no one comments, what's the point if I don't know what you people, my amazing readers think? Saying, "But I don't have an account so I can't comment," isn't an excuse. You don't need an account to comment J.

STEPS FOR COMMENTING:

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~Jade Night

Angels Falling Down: Chapter Three

 Chapter Three

Ryker

        

God, had she grown up over the past seven years. She’d gotten taller of course, time does that, her raven hair had grown longer, it was all the way to the bottom of her back now, her frame had filled out as well, and left no doubt in anyone’s mind that she was a young woman.

Her eyes were still the same bright, vibrant violet orbs that they had been the day I’d plucked her out of that blood spattered bedroom. She was walking outside the way she always did during lunch, distancing herself from everyone, the fall wind picked up a bit, scattered the leaves and tousled her hair gently across her face. Annoyed, she pawed it back and settled herself at the base of her favorite tree- the tree I was currently perched in.

I knew I shouldn’t have been watching her now, I wasn’t supposed to have helped her all those years ago, I wasn’t supposed to pick her up and leave her in the grass outside, and I wasn’t supposed to let her see me. But I did, and I should’ve drawn the line there. After I left I should have went away forever and never come back, never seen her again. But I did. I’d come back every year since, but I’ve never let her see me. At least I’d kept one of my rules.

I watched as she pulled today’s book from her bag and opened it as she picked at her lunch. She put up a good front, she had almost everyone fooled, she looked like nothing bothers her, nothing ever got under her skin, and that she didn’t care what anyone thought about her. But not me, no I knew her to well, even if she didn’t know me. I knew I nearly killed her inside knowing that she watched her parents die and she couldn’t do anything to stop it and I knew it hurt her to see her old friends everyday and not be able to run up and tell them the truth.

Every time I saw her, I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like if I would just walk up and introduce myself, become the friend that she so desperately needed, and gave her a hug- something that she hasn’t had in a really long time. I let myself think about it for a while and then stop myself, it can’t happen. Not only is it against the rules, but what would I say? “Hey Fall, I’m the guy that carried you outside the night your parents were murdered and just left you in the grass and have been secretly watching you off and on ever since. By the way, my name’s Ryker,” Yeah, that will go over real big.

I quietly let out an aggravated sigh and shifted my weight trying to get myself into a more tolerable position- damn, trees are uncomfortable! During my careless movements, a branch snapped halfway under my weight with a loud crack. She glanced up and caught sight of me.

Damn it!

          My sharp intake of breath was just too much for the limb to bear and it snapped the rest of the way through.

          “Shit!” I yelped as I plummeted to the ground.

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Miss me anyone? What did you think? Please comment!

Preditor & Prey: Chapter Three

Chapter Three

       Finally, I was able to tear my gaze away from Zev’s, and focus my attention on Mr. Mahoney, or, at least, look like I was. Still, throughout the lesson, I felt Zev glancing at me, attempting to be discreet. Not that he was the only guilty part o the matter, mind you; I was stealing my own fair share as well.

       Stop it. You need to focus. You need to-

       My earring buzzed. Yes, my earring. One of the ups of working for the Paranormal Assassination Force is that we get all of the new, top of the line, toys; my earring pager being one of them.

       I should know, I’ve been here the longest, with the exception of Will being as he had been trained to be an operative since he was an infant, where as I joined the program when I was five. Actually, I’m not sure that joined would be the correct word for what happened; I think forced fits it better. My parents gave me up, they didn’t want me, they handed me over to PAF like was a tool and not their daughter; they didn’t even give me a choice. They just left me, without a thing for me to remember them by; I don’t remember their voices, their names, or even a sliver of a face. Almost as if they never existed. There is only one thing that I have to remind me of my past, a dagger shaped birthmark in the small of my back; that’s it. But that’s okay. PAF gives me a purpose.

       And, right now, that purpose was to go on a mission, that’s what my pager was telling me, which means I have to get back to the compound.

      

My hand shot up as I formulated a plan to get me out of class without getting in trouble.

“What is it, Kira,” Mr. Mahoney asked.

“I don’t feel well sir. May I please go to the nurse,” I said, feigning illness.

“Yes, of course. I’ll get someone accompany you, we don’t want a new student to get lost, do we,” Mr. Mahoney answered, attempting to be helpful.

Oh, crap.

I stood up, collected my things, and began walking to the door.

“Now who will volunteer to escort Kira to the nurse?”

With my back turned there was no way for me to know who raised their hand.

“I will.” A somewhat familiar voice replied.

“Ah, thank you Zev. Remember to grab a pass on your way out,” our teacher reminded.

“My pleasure, Mr. Mahoney.”

I heard the rustling of papers Zev gathered his things.

Double crap.  

***

          I made sure I kept up my sick ploy as we made our way down the hall towards the main office. We had only traveled about three hall lengths before Zev stopped dead in his tracks and spun to face me.

          “What,” I questioned.

          Zev didn’t answer, and just stared at me like I was a puzzle that he was determined to figure out.

          “What!” I hissed.

          “You’re not sick,” Zev stated, looking me in the eyes, “So why are you in such a hurry to get out of class?”

          I was momentarily speechless; how had he figured that out? Not to brag, but I have some major acting skills.

          I opened my mouth to spin some lie, but Zev quickly hushed me.

He tilted his head slightly to the side as if he was listening to something, a couple minutes trickled by and I heard the faint sound of footsteps coming down the hall.

          With lightning speed, Zev dragged me down the hallway and ducked us into a janitor’s closet. He locked the door and flipped on the light before he turned to me, and locked his graze with mine, in his own. I looked into his green eyes and saw nothing but raw determination.

          “Now, answer my question.”

Preditor & Prey: Chapter Two Part Two

Chapter Two (continued)

       I stumbled into my biology class and barely remembered handing my passbook for Mrs. Tucker to sign before I took my seat. I couldn’t concentrate. Thoughts were a swirling through my mind, racing, and jumping over one another fighting for my attention. Questions and theories unwound themselves from the jumbled mess. There were two thing off about Zev, one I knew and one I did not. I had never known anyone who was able to sneak up on me or away without me knowing it, not even the extremely talented Will; and for the mysterious Zev to have done so twice in a row, so effortlessly? What a strange boy he was indeed.

A strange, gorgeous boy, my mind whispered.

       I squashed the thought immediately. I had a boyfriend. His name was Will. Will the most talented paranormal assassin that the world had ever seen. That meant strange, mysterious, beautiful boys were off limits.

       But that doesn’t stop you from looking.

       Did it? I didn’t have the time to ponder that because the bell rang, forcing me up out of my seat and out into the hallway.

       After that, it wasn’t long before Will caught up and kissed my cheek.

       “Hey,” hey whispered, wraping his arms around me.

       “Hey,” came my still distracted reply.

       “Babe? What’s wrong,” Will asked, concerned.

       I opened my mouth to tell him about Zev and how something was…off about him; but something stopped me. What it was- I don’t know.

       “Nothing, I’m fine. I just didn’t like my class, that’s all,” I lied.

       Will nodded, but didn’t seem to believe me. He kissed my cheek once more and dashed off to class.

Preditor & Prey: Chapter Two

Chapter Two

       I hid out for a few more minutes until I finally had to make an appearance in my classroom before Jasper found out that I had gone AWOL and cut me into little pieces- literally!

       I know that so far today Jasper has came off like a complete and utter stick in the mud, but she really isn’t. Stavros has just been on her case constantly lately, he blames her for the three of us getting kicked out of the last to schools we’ve attended, when, in reality, the blame rests solely on Will, and Stavros knows it. Not that he’d ever admit it. Will? His shining star? Never. So the target of his tirade is Jasper, the oldest and our team leader.

       I had been wandering the halls for a few minutes before I realized that I had absolutely no idea where I was going.

       “Dang it!” I growled.

       “Need some help?”

       I whirled around. Behind me stood one of the most gorgeous people I had ever seen in my life. A boy, around my age, awaited my reply.

       “Yeah. Do you know where Mrs. Tucker’s biology class is,” I asked coolly.

       “Sure. I’ll take you there, it’s on my way anyway. I’m Zev by the way,” he replied, his voice was deep and melodic as he held out his hand.

       “Kira,” I answered, and met his hand with my own only to yank it back as a warm shock made its way from my palm all the way up my arm.

       What the hell?

       Zev pulled his back as well and ran his hand through this longish hair that was darker than the night itself looking flustered.

       “Follow me,” he called, and darted down a random hallway, making me speed walk to catch up with him.

       We walked in silence for a bit before coming to a stopped in front of an open doorway.

       “Here you are,” Zev announced.

       It took a minute for his words to register; I was, at the moment deep in thought, trying the figure out how he had been able to sneak up on me after all my years of training.

       When they did though, I immediately spun around to thank him only to find myself alone in the hallway. Zev was nowhere in sight, and I hadn’t even heard him walk away.

       Again, what the hell?!

Preditor & Prey: Chapter One

Chapter One

       “Kira,” Mr. Delany called, taking roll, and, like most people, he pronounced my name with a long ‘I’ sound.

      

       I rolled my eyes in annoyance, “It’s pronounced ‘Key-ruh, Mt. Delany,” I corrected.

      

       Jasper’s stormy grey eyes glared daggers at me from under her sharp blue bangs. Yes, I said blue, a deep navy blue that contrasted well with her tan skin. And no, it isn’t dyed, it’s all natural, a weird side effect from the trauma of losing her parents at the young age of five.

      

       Don’t start, her eyes practically screamed.

      

       Chill, I won’t mess this up, my eyes said back.

      

       Jasper snorted and the bell rang signaling the end of homeroom.

      

       “I’m just saying, Kira. We don’t need to get kicked out of another school,” Jasper said as we collected out our books and made a B-line towards the door.

      

       She said another school because our team of three had managed to get expelled from our last two schools- I won’t go into detail just yet, but I’m pretty sure Stavros won’t tolerate another, and, believe me, you don’t want to be on his bad side.

      

       “Hey, baby,” a familiar voice said, wrapping their arms around me.

      

       He had obviously been waiting for us.

      

       “Hey, Will,” I said, turning around in his arms so I could stand on my tip-toes and kiss his cheek.

      

        William Dodds, the third member of our deadly trio, top Paranormal Assassin- and my boyfriend of two years. I studied him as that affectionate smile spread across his face. I drank him in, his six-three frame, his blonde hair, his grey eyes, and to think he’s just a year older than me. It has always puzzled me how this boy could be so ruthless as to kill in cold blood.

      

       “Will! Kira! No PDA on school grounds! I know it’s your first day but that’s no excuse,” a nearby teacher yelled.

      

       We both stepped away from each other and Will opened his mouth, to mutter what I’m sure was a witty comment, but stopped when he felt Jasper’s dagger poking into his back.

      

       Don’t even ask how we get our weapons through school security- it isn’t easy, trust me.

      

       I glanced around; nobody noticed the weapon Jasper had pressed against Will.

      

       “They’re sorry Miss Simmons, it won’t happen again,” she said sweetly.

      

       “Be sure that it doesn’t,” the teacher said and turned on her heel and walked away.

       “Do not mess this up! Go to class,” Jasper hissed, and stalked off.

      

       Will winked at me, and then took Jasper’s advice, leaving me alone.

      

       Instead of going to class I went to the restroom- Hey I’m new; I can always say that I got lost, right? - And observed myself in the mirror.

      

       Long black hair? Check.

      

       Blue eyes? Check.

      

       The irritating height of five-eight? Yup.

      

       All the looks of innocence, I thought as I fingered my switchblade in the concealed pocket of my jeans.

      

       But, true to my name, I’m a killer.

(No Title)- help would be appreciated

Prologue

      “Jaylen! Stop! We only want to talk to you,” one of the men called.

        I kept running and didn’t reply.

        Yeah, right, I thought, you two showed up and said that my “father” sent you to collect me, you must not have done your homework or else you would have known that my father has been dead for ten years.

        I took a sharp left into the alleyway that I knew so well and darted into Lizzy’s shop before my pursuers even turned the corner. I leaned against the door, breathing hard. Lizzy was right; track really did pay off. While I was waiting for my breath to return I pressed my ear against the door and listened as their pounding footsteps faded into the distance. What creeps. They had been waiting for me as I walked out of school today and I took off before they even finished getting the first sentence out of their mouths.

        “Are you alright dear?” I turned to meet Lizzy’s familiar blue eyes tinged with worry, and her blonde locks framing her face.

        “I’m fine,” I lied. I didn’t need to worry her; she was still frazzled over mom.

        Mom.

        “It’s for the best, honey,” the female officer soothed my ten-year-old self as they hauled my screaming mother away, “Your mother’s sick and she needs help. Look on the bright side, you get to spend some time with your aunt Lizzy,” she continued on about how much fun I was going to have with my father’s sister. Lizzy, and how I could visit my mother in the hospital, but I wasn’t listening. I was eavesdropping on two nereby officers’ conversation, “Poor girl,” one officer said, then shook his head in pity, “First she loses her father in a plane crash, now her mother goes off the deep end,” his partner nodded his head in agreement, then they got in their squad car and left.

        That was the day my mother was taken to the crazy house. She had always been a bit eccentric, but it had gotten worse after my father died when I was six, just four years before my mother cracked.

        I remember that day well.

        It was a warm summer day when my mom decided that we needed to go shopping for next year’s school clothes, so we hopped in the car and drove to the small store I town. We had been sifting through the racks for a little bit when my mom stopped dead and starred across the aisle at a man who was glancing our way.

        My mother whispered a word that seemed to strike a terrible fear into her heart; she seemed so utterly terrified that even I was beginning to become afraid.

        Then she started screaming.

        “Stop that man! Stop him! He’s here to take Jaylen! He is going to take my baby! Somebody stop him please,” she cried hysterically.

        Some clerks rushed to see what the commotion was about, but when they looked to where my mother was pointing to where the man had been standing, there was no one there. He was gone. Vanished.

        I’m sure you know how it went from there.

        But that one word, that one word my mother whispered. The one that scared her so bad; it still haunts me to this day.

        Faery.