Korey Rodi woke up in a dumpster.
The first traces of daylight burned Korey's eyes. The stench was almost unbearable – though she could have sworn she smelled roses and citrus. Korey groaned as climbed out the metal structure, flicking banana peels and (suspiciously wet) newspaper from her clothes. She stared blurrily down at herself. Those didn't look like her clothes. But, they had to be, right?
Korey stumbled to her apartment. Her body whimpered at the sunlight as if she had never experienced it before. Hangovers were like that sometimes.
She heaved herself up the stairs of her third-story-walkup, took the key from beneath the mat, and let herself in. Everything was exactly as it always was: hectic, but clean. Korey flopped onto her bed. The fabric of her sheets felt unusually rough against her skin. Something beside her buzzed. Korey lifted her head, spotting her phone on the dining/living room/office table. She rose to her feet, reaching over with one hand, knocking over a neatly folded dress. Korey picked it up. Sequins. Hadn't she been wearing that? Korey placed it atop her dresser, returning to her phone. It buzzed again, demanding attention.
Korey turned off Do-Not-Disturb to reveal a lockscreen lit up with messages. 63 Missed Calls.She swore. That wasn't good. But before she could play through them, a familiar caller-ID took to the screen. Korey hit the green button as fast as she could. "Sabrina? What's with all the messages – are you okay?!"
The connection was garbled by static. "Korey," hissed Sabrina, her voice strangely taut. "Listen...me... you need to..."
"What?" Korey scrambled to find a place with better connection. "I can't hear you, Bri."
"Run, Korey," she yelled, her voice exploding from the phone. "Just get in a car and go –"
"I don't understand," Korey cried, alarm trickling down her spine.
"Then freaking listen—" a heavy thud occurred in the background, barely audible over Sabrina's frantic breathing. "They've come for me, they'll come for you next –" Her voice strangled into a yelp.
"Sabrina!" Korey barked, already out the door. "Sabrina, stay on the phone. I'm calling 911. Find somewhere to hide, okay? Everything will be fine—"
"No!" The tremble in her voice was enough to freeze Korey in her tracks. "Promise me, Korey – promise me you'll get as far away from here as possible. I'm sorry," she sobbed, "I'm so sorry."
"Don't cry, Bri, it'll-it'll be okay. Where are you? I'll find you, Sabrina, I swear to God, I'll find you—"
An awful noise like splintering wood stopped her cold. Sabrina took in a sharp breath, as if she was trying hard not to scream. "Don't trust them."
"Sabrina—"
"I love you, Korey."
And then the screen went dead.
YOU ARE READING
Pomegranate Parfait
AdventureKorey has the resolve of someone unafraid to die. She's reckless and naïve, and does not anticipate the consequences of her actions as she follows a stranger into another world. She will have to decide quickly what price is too high when no actions...
