Crazy Files

by Yvi Valentin

  “To watch your every move while I’m gone,” I suggested.

  “That way, if we get close, they can warn Lucifer so he can be ready,” Andy offered.

  “That or move her,” Jen added. There was a loud bang on the door that made all of us jump. “How could they have found us so fast?”

  “I don’t know but we need to get out of here,” I said.

  We ran for the stairs and hoped to fly through a window before whoever was on the other side of the door managed to come in. We barely got up the stairs when the door was broken down. The first thing I saw was the vampire who tried so hard to kill me before.

  “Does anybody have weapons with them?” I asked.

  “No,” everyone else answered in unison.

  “Aimee, come on!” Andy shouted as he tried to pull me up the stairs with him.

  “I can’t Andy,” I argued. “She wants revenge and she’ll keep tracking me down until one of us dies.”

  “We don’t have any weapons with us,” Brian pointed out.

  “This is suicide, Aimee, come on!” Andy yelled.

  “Andy, I have to do this,” I shouted.

  “Why don’t you come meet your death already?” the vampire yelled.

  “It’s you who’s going to die today,” I said calmly.

  We stood across the room from each other. It looked like we were having a staring contest and Andy, Jen and Brian were watching it go down, waiting to see who would be the winner. I wondered how I was going to kill her. She definitely had the upper hand in this fight. I thought about how much I wanted her dead so I could go back to work.

  In a flash, someone came through the door and decapitated the vampire from behind. It was Frank and Liz was right behind him. We all flew up the stairs and locked ourselves in the nearest room. Brian opened the window and formed a chain so he could take us to the place he had in mind. In no time at all, we were inside an abandoned building. There was graffiti everywhere and the building looked rundown.

  “How did they find us?” Jen asked.

  “They probably followed our energies,” Brian answered.

  “So we’re not safe anywhere,” I panicked.

  “We’ll figure something out,” Andy said trying to calm me down.

  “I wish I could be invisible to everyone,” I mumbled as I turned a corner to explore the building.

  “Aimee,” Andy called. “Where are you?”

  “I’m over here.” I rushed out of the room I was in. “Why? What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t feel your energy,” Andy answered, confused. “How can that happen?”

  “Maybe it’s one of the abilities Uriel gave me,” I offered.

  “You went to see Uriel?” Brian asked, shocked.

  “I thought you were going to see Raphael,” Jen questioned.

  “We did but then Raphael sent us to Uriel and he gave me more abilities,” I replied. “I was going to tell you, but we hardly had the time.”

  “This can be useful,” Andy pointed out.

  “Yeah, if Aimee can go invisible, then we don’t have to run anymore,” Jen added.

  “But they can still sense your energy,” I pointed out. “Andy, they’re going to expect us to be together. I think it’s best if we separate.”

  “No, Aimee you can’t possibly think that would be a good idea!” Andy shouted.

  “I think it is,” I said weakly. “If I go off on my own and stay invisible I won’t have to run anymore. I’ll be able to sneak up on anyone to get what I want.”

  “We should stay together,” Andy protested.

  “Whenever someone comes around we could hide you and say that you went off on your own,” Jen suggested.

  “That could work,” Andy said.

  “It’s dangerous,” I objected. “Anyone Lucifer sends your way wouldn’t hesitate to torture you to find out where I am. I’m not willing to let that happen.”

  “It won’t,” Andy protested.

  “With you being able to go invisible, you could take down anyone who comes to torture us and they would never see it coming,” Brian explained.

  “Please, Aimee,” Andy pleaded. “You can’t leave us.”

  “Alright, I won’t,” I sighed.

  “Good,” Andy said, relieved.

  “What are we going to do next?” Jen asked.

  “We’re going find a place to stay where none of Lucifer’s goons can find us,” Andy answered.

  “Do you guys hear that?” I asked.

  “No,” Brian replied.

  “What is it?” Andy asked.

  “It sounds like there’s someone upstairs,” I said.

  “How can you hear them but we can’t?” Jen asked.

  “Maybe it’s one of the abilities Uriel gave me,” I explained.

  “Heightened senses could come in handy too,” Andy pointed out.

  “It seems like such a simple ability,” I said. “Would there really be a reason why he would wait to give it to me?”

  “Because there was never any need for you to have your senses sharpened until now,” Brian offered.

  “What’s the reason I need it now?” I asked.

  “To help you defeat Lucifer,” Brian answered.

  “And she couldn’t have done that without bat like hearing?” Andy asked.

  “I don’t know, I’m just offering up suggestions,” Brian answered.

  “They’re coming,” I whispered in a panic.

  “Who are they?” Andy asked.

  “I don’t know, I can only hear their footsteps,” I replied. “But they’re coming downstairs.”

  “Do you recognize their energies?” Jen asked.

  “Can you tell how many of them there are?” Brian asked.

  I listened closely to try to determine how many people were in the building with us. I heard the footsteps of four different people though I didn’t have the slightest clue as to who they were. “There are four of them.”

  “Are you sure?” Andy asked.

  “I can hear their individual footsteps,” I answered. “They’re each very distinct.”

  “Can you tell who they are?” Jen asked.

  “No but I know they’re 10 floors above us,” I said. “And they’re coming closer.”

  “Is there any way you can find out who they are?” Andy asked.

  “I don’t know,” I answered. “I have a bad feeling though.”

  “We should get out of here,” Brian suggested.

  “We should find out who they are so we can decide what exactly to do about them,” Andy countered.

  “That’s a good idea,” I said.

  “What if they’re just homeless people?” Jen asked.

  “Then we have nothing to worry about and shouldn’t waste any energy in finding a new place to go,” Andy replied.

  “They’re coming down faster,” I said. “I can hear them talking.”

  “What are they saying?” Brian asked.

  “They’re talking about their plan to sneak up on us and grab me,” I answered.

  “Then we should get out of here,” Jen recommended.

  “I want to find out what else they’re up to,” I protested. “I have a feeling there’s more to it than what they’re saying.”

  “What else do you think they’re going to do?” Andy asked.

  “I don’t know, but it’s not going to be good,” I replied. “They’re two floors above us.”

  “We should be ready for them,” Brian suggested.

  “We don’t even know what to be ready for,” Andy pointed out.

  “We’ll prepare ourselves for anything and everything,” I replied.

  “I smell smoke,” Jen mentioned.

  “I’d say now’s a good time to get out of here,” Andy said.

  “Oh please, I can put out a fire easy,” I bragged. I listened closely to the people upstairs. “They’re getting closer.”

  “Why are we still standing here?” Jen asked.

  “Because I’m do
ne running,” I answered.

  The four men came into sight and one of them said, “I guess this job is going to be easier than we thought.”

  “That was my intention,” I replied.

  “Well the building is on fire so you can’t go upstairs to get away,” one of the men said.

  “Which means the only way is down,” said another man.

  “Very good,” I replied condescendingly.

  “Come on,” said the third man.

  Each man grabbed one of us and headed downstairs. It was going to be easier than I thought to get out. They were basically leading the way for us. I was calm as the men led us to the exit which was a little off-putting for them. I could feel every emotion they felt as they felt it. They were all getting more and more anxious the closer we got to the exit, Andy, Jen and Brian included. It seemed unreal to me that I managed to be so calm in such a situation but it was better that way.

  I realized I was questioning my sanity less and less. I was sure if the entire thing turned out to be a dream, I was going to be devastated. I would miss Andy, Jen and Brian. I would miss all the adventure even though I thought I was crazy every step of the way. I wondered what my life would be like if I woke up to find that the whole thing never happened. I wondered if I was in a mental institution. I needed to put those thoughts out of my mind; I had a job to do.

  The exit was in sight as I sent an electric current through my body, causing the man holding me to fall to the ground. Everyone else followed my lead and escaped from the men who had a grip on them. We ran down the last few steps and just before we left, I decided to set fire to the building. I created a fireball and threw it at the wall. I watched it catch fire and spread but not fast enough. The men who tried to escort us out of the building made their way down and I looked around for something to accelerate the fire.

  “Aimee, come on!” Andy yelled.

  I ran out of the building where I found a fire extinguisher by the door. I stared at it for a moment and wondered why it was there. Someone must have known what was going to happen. I watched the extinguisher explode and spray into the building. Andy grabbed my arm in attempt to get me to leave but I felt like I couldn’t. I stared at the scene in front of me in horror. I didn’t want to kill anyone, it was in my nature to not want to cause any harm. I knew they weren’t good people but that didn’t mean they deserved to die.

  “Aimee, we have to go!” Andy yelled as he pulled me away from the scene. I snapped out of it and started in his direction when I felt a pull on my other arm. It was Evan. I felt like I was the rope in a game of tug of war between the man who was after my heart and the man who already had it. “Let go of her Evan!”

  “You let go of her!” Evan yelled. “I need her!”

  “Well I love her!” Andy yelled.

  “Both of you let go of me!” I yelled as I sent a mild electric current through my body. I just wanted to shock them enough to let go of me. I grabbed Andy’s hand. “Let’s go.”

  We turned around to find Jen and Brian so we could get as far away from Evan as possible but they were nowhere in sight. I started to panic as I got the feeling something horrible was about to happen when I felt a surge of energy hit my body. I turned around to see Evan laughing and coming towards me. I tried to grab Andy’s hand but missed and fell.

  Everything went dark.

  Chapter 32

  I woke up in a panic. My vision was still blurry so I couldn’t tell where exactly I was. All I knew was that I was indoors. I felt weak and scared. I wanted to call out someone’s name but I didn’t know where I was or who was around. I tried to listen for any sign of where I was, but I could only hear a ringing in my ears.

  Everything came into focus and I saw that I was on a cot. I wondered if my vision finally came true or if I had just awoken from my dream. I was still too scared to call out for anyone, unsure of what was going to happen. I closed my eyes and cried in silence. I hoped I hadn’t lost Andy. I would have rather been captured by Evan than find out it was just a dream. I would never see Andy again unless I managed to have the same dream all over again and that wasn’t likely. It was all too much to handle.

  The ringing in my ears lifted and I heard the door open. I didn’t have the courage to open my eyes to find out who entered my room, but I quickly realized I could feel their energy. Hope filled my heart even though I didn’t recognize the energy of the person standing by my side.

  I slowly opened my eyes and was shocked by who I saw. It was like looking in a mirror….if that mirror aged me by about twenty years. “Mom!?” She was in a hospital gown identical to the one I wore. Her shoulder length, dark brown hair was disheveled and I could feel every emotion she felt.

  “Oh good, you’re awake,” she said with tears in her loving brown eyes.

  “Where are we?” I asked trying to hide my emotions.

  “The mental institution,” she answered. “Let me go get your sister. She’ll be thrilled to know you’re finally awake.”

  “Eve is here?” I called as she rushed out the door. I was stunned and confused. It wasn’t long before my mom reentered the room with Eve right behind her. She wore a hospital gown too and my heart broke as I realized my entire family was trapped in a mental hospital.

  “What’s going on in here?” I turned to see Evan standing in the doorway. I was scared out of my mind at the sight of him and tried to hide it but was certain my efforts failed. “Aimee, you’re awake.” I was surprised at how pleasant he sounded. I still wasn’t sure what my reality was. It was possible the two worlds meshed together but that was going to make it harder for me to figure out what was real. “Let’s see how you’re doing, shall we?”

  “Please don’t touch me, I’m fine,” I said in a panic as Evan tried to check my pulse.

  He struggled to keep the shock from his face. “Alright, no problem.” I could tell he was conflicted as he left the room.

  “What was that about?” Eve asked.

  “I…I don’t know how to explain it,” I answered. “How did we all end up in here?”

  “We had a nervous breakdown after you ran away,” Eve explained as she nervously twirled her curly brown hair.

  Most people who saw us together never would have guessed we were sisters. Her caramel skin color next to my fair skin was the biggest contrast. Her heart shaped face compared to my round face and her extremely curly hair to my wavy hair. The only thing we shared was our mother’s eyes. Technically Eve was my half sister but since we grew up together, we only acknowledged it when we had to explain it to people.

  “Then how did I end up in here?” I asked.

  “You came back after you found out we were sent here,” my mom started. “When you came to visit us, you started screaming about the apocalypse. The doctors thought it was best to have you committed too.”

  “Why don’t I remember any of this?” Confusion, frustration and a whole cocktail of emotions read across my face as I struggled with the new information.

  “On your first day here you freaked out and hit your head against the wall. You passed out and slipped into a coma,” Eve replied, sadness in her eyes.

  I was disappointed to hear her answer. It meant everything I had initially doubted and grown to love was gone. I was devastated, I was never going to see Andy, Jen or Brian ever again but I didn’t want to let it show. Part of me thought the story was rehearsed but I wasn’t sure if it was real or just what I wanted to believe. It was harder than ever trying to figure out what was real.

  “Is there any way I can see my file?” I asked.

  “I doubt it,” my mom answered. “The doctors keep those locked up.”

  “What do you hope to find in there?” Eve asked.

  “Details,” I answered.

  “I just gave you details,” Eve said.

  “I need to know more,” I snapped.

  “Is everything alright in here?” I cringed as I heard the voice. It was Lucifer.

  “I’m fine,” I answered withou
t looking at him.

  “Are you sure?” he asked as he stepped closer to me. I cringed even more as I felt the familiar energy. “What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing, I want to be left alone with my family!” I yelled.

  “Evan told me you refused his help,” Lucifer started.

  “I feel fine!” I shouted.

  “I still need to check your vitals. Just to make sure everything is alright.” Lucifer seemed different, almost cheerful and caring. It had to be an act. I refused to believe the devil was capable of being cheerful and caring.

  “Aimee, just let him help you,” Eve snapped.

  “He’s a doctor,” my mom explained. “He just wants to help.”

  “It’s alright, Rosie,” Lucifer said. “Didn’t you tell me she’s afraid of doctors?”

  “Yes, but she’s never acted like this around one,” she answered.

  “I’m not surprised this is happening,” Eve mumbled.

  “It happens all the time,” Lucifer said with a smile. “Do you two mind giving me a moment alone with Aimee?”

  “Sure,” they replied in unison.

  “No, please don’t leave me alone with him,” I begged. But it was too late, they were already out of the room and the door was closed. I prepared myself for the worst. I still wasn’t sure if this man was the devil or just a doctor trying to help.

  “How much do you remember about what happened before you woke up?” Lucifer asked. I felt like it was a test. He wanted to find out what I knew before he decided what to do with me.

  “I…I don’t remember anything,” I lied. “I barely know who I am.”

  “But you seemed to remember your mom and sister,” Lucifer said suspiciously.

  “I only remember they’re my family,” I answered. “Everything else is pretty fuzzy.”

  “What about your dad?”

  “I don’t know. I only remember my mom and sister being there for me.”

  “Alright, well hopefully your memory comes back in time.”

  “In time for what?” My heart skipped a beat as I thought of the possibility that everything was real.

  “Oh I meant over time.” Just then I saw a dark pink cloud come out of his head. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I remembered it being the sign that I was being lied to. If I still had that ability, then everything from before was real. There was the possibility it was all in my head, that I was seeing things. “Are you alright? You look like you saw something.”