by A. M. Miller
“…It… hurt…” Raven said. Her voice was cracked and dry, every word a labor. Her sore throat ached and tears welled in her eyes.
A hand rested on Raven shoulder. “Careful, your body has been through a great deal. You don’t want to make it worse.”
Raven opened her eyes again. The light still stung but she fought to let her eyes adjust. The blurry image of a tall woman in a white lab coat came into focus. Her heart-shaped face and crooked nose seemed familiar. Her eyes were focused on Raven’s face.
“Where…?” Raven started to speak.
“You’re in the emergency care unit at Corvix treatment center. I’m Dr. Nisswa. One of the nurses on staff found you passed out inside of one of our patient’s rooms. There was a heavy amount of bleeding but we couldn’t find any signs of physical harm. We’ve been monitoring you since then,” the woman in the lab coat, Dr. Nisswa, said.
Raven tuned out her last statement. While Dr. Nisswa was retelling the events of her capture Raven’s memory had come flooding back. She remembered why she’d come here. It was for her mother. She was supposed to save her mom, but something had gone wrong. Something was not right inside her mother’s head.
At the last minute Raven had fought against the pull, but the darkness had overpowered her and pulled her in. Then came the pain. Unimaginable excruciating pain that caused her to blackout.
“Miss?” Dr. Nisswa asked. Raven turned her attention back to the woman. “Miss, I need you to tell me what you were doing in there. I need you to tell me everything that happened so that I can better treat you.”
Don’t. Lu’s voice hissed in Raven’s ear. Don’t tell them anything. Something’s not right here.
“I, uh, I don’t remember,” Raven said, looking down at her lap.
Dr. Nisswa frowned at Raven. She didn’t look convinced. She turned toward the nurse and held out her hand. The woman in blue scrubs handed Dr. Nisswa a white lab coat.
Dr. Nisswa held it out for Raven to see. There were stains of red around the collar left from Raven’s bleeding nose.
“Ms. More, you are aware that breaking into a patient's room and falsifying identification is a crime, correct? We found you with two IDs on you. One was Nurse McCall’s and the other belonging to one Angelica Donavan. Imagine our surprise when one of our nurses identified you as Ms. Raven More. He said he remembered you from an earlier visit you had with your mother a Denise More. The same patient’s room you broke into,” Dr. Nisswa said with a raised eyebrow.
Raven closed her eyes and sank back into the bed. This was exactly what she didn’t want to happen. She’d failed in every way possible.
It’s over. It’s all over.
“Miss More the last thing I want is for the police to get involved. It would be bad for both you and your friends in the waiting room,” Dr. Nisswa said.
“No.” Raven opened her eyes. It still hurt to speak but she ignored it. “Please, they didn’t have anything to do with it. They didn’t even know what I planned to do. I told them that I was just visiting my mother. They’re innocent.”
Raven tried to sit up. The movement caused her head to spin and her vision to blur. She couldn’t let her friends get in trouble because of her. This was her dumb decision. Her hand tightened around the metal frame as she pushed up.
“Calm down Ms. More,” Dr. Nisswa said. She put a firm hand on Raven's shoulder, guiding her back toward the bed. Raven laid back down. She had to take several deep breaths in order to stop the room from spinning. “As I said before I don’t want to get the police involved. If you tell me what happened, maybe this is a problem we can settle internally.”
Raven looked down at her hands. She couldn’t tell the truth but she couldn’t let Tiffany and Dion get in trouble either. She had no choice.
“I really don’t know what happened,” Raven said looking up at Dr. Nisswa. Her eyes watered. “What you said is true. I did come here to see my mother and I did lie. After they told me my mom was being put in isolation I knew I had to see her. With the way she’s been acting recently, I knew I probably wouldn’t get to see her before I moved.”
Tears fell down Raven’s cheeks. She wiped them away. “Everything seemed to be going according to plan, but then I started to feel sick. Honestly, I haven’t been feeling all that great lately. It’s all the stress of normal life and everything that’s been going on with my mom. I was just talking to her when I started to feel really dizzy. I’m not sure what happened next.”
Dr. Nisswa pulled out a small flashlight. She flicked it back and forth in front of Raven’s eyes.
“Did you take something before coming here? How are you feeling now?” Dr. Nisswa asked.
“No, I’m not on drugs. I just wanted to see her. I didn’t know I was that sick but I’m better now. If you allow it, I’m sure my friends could take me home. I won’t try that ever again. I was stupid and wasn’t thinking, but I know better now.”
“Not so fast Ms. More.” Dr. Nisswa crossed her arms and gave Raven another stern look.
“I told you the truth. You have to believe me,” Raven said.
Dion and Tiffany were waiting for her. She wasn’t even sure how long she’d been out. They would probably be worried by now. She wouldn’t blame them if they got angry with her for this.
“I believe you Ms. More. You weren’t on drugs. We ran some test on you while you were out. They came back clear but that doesn’t mean I can just let you go. What you did was incredibly dangerous. Your mother is in isolation for a reason. Her visitation is canceled now but in the future, if you want to see your mother, I think it would be best if you don’t come without a guardian. As for your friends I’ve already sent them home. We had your father’s number on file so we called him to pick you up,” Dr. Nisswa said. She picked up the clipboard at the end of Raven’s bed.
Raven just stared at her. She’d never be allowed to see her mother without her father there and her father would never come. Her eyes watered but she swallowed back the bitter emotions. She’d known this was coming. This was the price of failure.
Dr. Nisswa scribbled something down on the clipboard before looking back up at Raven.
“You hit the floor pretty hard so I’m prescribing something for the pain. Take them only when necessary. Your father should be here soon,” Dr. Nisswa said.
“I’m surprised he even picked up,” Raven whispered to herself. Neither the nurse nor Dr. Nisswa heard Raven’s comment as they exited the room.
Raven listened to the sound of the door closing. The empty hollowness she’d felt returned to Raven. She’d failed her mission. Even with this new power, she wasn’t able to save her mother.
Raven tossed her arm over her eyes. She was so tired of crying.
Raven. Lu’s voice called.
“Please, just leave me alone,” Raven said. She didn’t care if anyone saw her talking to herself.
Dear goddess, pull yourself together. Lu’s voice hissed in her ear. You need to be alert. It’s not safe here.
“You said that before. What do you mean it’s not safe here? We’re in a hospital.”
Something went wrong when you tried to enter your mother’s mind.
“I’m fully aware of that,” Raven said between clenched teeth. “I failed just like you said I would.”
No, Raven, I said you’d die if you entered your mother’s head.
“Well I’m sorry to disappoint you but I’m still here.”
Would you please stop being so melodramatic and use that brain of yours. I know for a fact that if you entered your mother’s mind you would have died. But here you are still breathing with your sanity intact. Don’t you think that means something?
Raven thought about what Lu said. It did seem odd that she was still alive. She remembered the excruciating pain she’d felt when she tried getting into her mother’s head. It was like being smashed into a wall.
“I didn’t get in,” Raven said, everything finally falling into place. “Or at least I didn’t
make it all the way in. Something stopped me.”
Finally, we’re getting somewhere. Lu’s voice whispered.
“How?”
There was a mental barrier around your mother. Someone made sure that no one could get in. It was probably the same person who broke your mother’s mind in the first place.
“Who? Who would do that to her?” Raven asked. Her mother was a good woman. Before the incident, she’d never hurt anyone. She didn’t have any enemies. What reason would anyone have for hurting her?
I told you there was an evil in this world. He is an infection that untreated will spread until there is no good left.
“But why would he pick her. She doesn’t have anything to do with him. I didn’t have anything to do with this until I put on this stupid ring.” Raven said holding up her hand. “My mom’s been sick for four years.”
I’m not sure but it can’t be a coincidence. Nothing he does is without reason, Lu said and then after a pause added, I need time to think.
“Wait-“ Raven called but she felt Lu pull away before she could finish. Raven search the deeper parts of her mind but she could not feel Lu’s presence anywhere. She sighed.
Raven thought back over Lu’s words. She’d been right about her mother. What happened to her had not been natural. There was still hope. This supposed madman had purposely turned her mother into a crazy woman. There had to be a way to undo it.
Anger boiled inside of Raven as she thought of him. Four years her mother had been locked inside this place. For four years she’d lived with a void in her life where her mother should have been. Now because of him, her mother might be trapped like that forever.
He’d pay for what he’d done. She didn’t care if he was supposed to be a super powered villain from another world. She’d make him release her mother and then she’d watch him suffer.
“Lu?” Raven called. There was no response.
“I’ll do it. I’ll fight for you.” As Raven spoke the words, Lu’s presence slowly began to return. She felt it inside of her, not as strong as before but it was there.
“How do I stop him?” Raven asked.
Find the gate and destroy it. Cut the ties he holds on this world. Destroy the Hatter.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you to all who helped this book come to life. Thank you:
Ursula Miller who is my mother, friend, and critic, you were the first person I was courageous enough to share my story with. For your encouraging words and creative mind that helped shape and mold my story.
Steve Miller, my father, for financially supporting me and believing in the possibilities. You taught me to be a student of the world and learn from everything. It is because of you I learned to see the world for more than what is initially presented.
Bianca Brooks, for sharing your love of stories with me and helping me to envision mine.
Jade A. Martin, for making me believe in my own talents and reading every crazy story I’ve ever given you.
The city of Detroit, for being the only place I’ve ever considered home and for the beauty that existed even when others could not see it.
Black girls, who are as strong as they are vulnerable as they are magical.
About the Author
A. M. Miller is a Detroit born author with a love of story telling and dark magic. Her hopes are to increase the amount of diversity available readers. When she’s not writing or reading she spends her time searching the city for hidden stories.
Follow her at @ammillerwrites