Witchlight

Three.

I let Jeremy go his own way and I started walking down the street towards my house I knew my parents Christian and Anna Devereux would be at work, and the house would be mine until four the evening. I skipped school very seldom and mostly it was to go shopping with Alex, Elena, Bonnie and Caroline when the sales were really good. I knew I was going to miss Mr. Saltzman’s pop quiz, and knew that he would question why I had to make it up. He insisted that we call him by his given name Alaric. He was Elena and Jeremy’s legal guardian since their Aunt Jenna passed away in a freak accident leaving them with no guardian.

I walked along the sidewalk the wind whispering howls into my ears, I huddled my shirt closer to my body. Alex and I always loved fall it was the time of year when the town held the fair, and our birthdays were around the corner. I fingered my necklace, as I let memories run through my head. Suddenly I got the feeling of ice prickling down my neck and I felt the urge to walk faster. I thought it kind of strange that feeling in our town in my town, where I grew up my entire life and knew everybody.

I started to walk faster once I reached the end of my street and saw my house in my peripheral vision. Nausea built up in the pit of my stomach I felt scared almost as scared as when they found Vicky Donovan’s body in the woods. I picked up my pace panicking, screaming on the inside I felt the need to flee. I was glad I used to run track and had been on the cheerleading squad. My subconscious yelled out for Alex, but I knew that it was just me being paranoid. I could not ignore the wave burning in my stomach I stopped running, leaned over a bush and threw up. Once the bile was out of my stomach and on the ground I reached out and wiped my mouth with the back of my sleeve.

“Fancy seeing you here darling, how’re you feeling?” I heard the same voice from the woods mocking me.

I stood up and looked at the man, “Who are you?”

“None of that matters love, I just need you to come with me.” I pulled away from him and rand down the street to the house. I struggled up the stairs onto the porch, I was mentally kicking myself for wearing heels that day.

“There’s no use in running love, I’m much faster than you.” he smirked beside me.

His hand grabbed my shoulder and I shoved the key in the door cell phone in hand I hit number one on my speed dial Alex. I heard the dial tone and my phone drop to the ground as I shoved the door open. I screamed,” Alex!”

I hovered in the doorway and he stood outside, I slammed the door in his face and paced into the kitchen knowing that my phone with everyone’s names were in there whoever this guy was he was going to go after us all. I could feel it somehow inside my chest, I could hear whispers of different voices urging me to go. I put my hands over my ears and started screaming, I heard a voice outside, “I can tell you how to stop it, I can tell you what it is. Let me in.”

He sounded impatient I did what I could do from my position on the floor and yelled, “I don’t want this! Whatever it is take it back!”

I felt something surging through me, through my veins it made my blood boil and my soul ache. I walked towards the front door and unlocked it.

“Who are you?” I said through the screen.

“That’s not important I can make the voices stop just let me in. LET ME IN.”

I stepped back as the throbbing in my stomach became stronger, I felt relief rush through me. I knew she was close somehow. Some how I felt her as if I was connected to her and I screamed I screamed so loud it shook the walls. I cried right then because I couldn’t warn her. I couldn’t tell her what was waiting out there. What was waiting out there for all of us.

I kneeled my head to the ground the tile cool on my face, I’d been through this many times before the panic attacks. I’d been told I suffered with them even in childhood. My parents took me to doctor after doctor and psychoanalyst after psychiatrist. They all said the same thing that I suffered through a traumatic event, but things didn’t add up. I was Rachelle Delaney Devereux I had two parents, a sister and a dog named Scout. I had a best friend and I’ve had the same friends since I was born.

My hair smoothed over my face one cheek on the tile I continued to cry the nausea continuing sift through my stomach. The voices called out louder for me to run and I stood up shakily and went to the window the blonde haired, blue eyed stranger was gone replaced by Alex running up the steps to the porch.

I yanked open the door and yelled, “Alex hurry please there is some creepy man lurking around claiming that he knows something about me!”

“I saw him! I saw him in the woods with you and Jeremy in class. Where is Jeremy?! Rachelle what is going on?”

I knew right then something wasn’t right. “Alex you saw it? Jeremy went somewhere probably back to school or I dunno to do his own thing. I feel like something is happening. This isn’t right we need to figure out what’s going on.”

“I’ll call the others Matt? Elena? Maybe Stefan.” she sighed.

I nodded hoping that Stefan or any of the others had an idea of what was going on.