The Abandoned Path

Linger Not

After a full week at the mansion, Lilith had indeed been gifted her father's 5-year-old BMW, which he replaced with a new car. She had also decided that Satan was the worst sort of person, which was a conclusion she had come to many times before. Regardless, she was sure it wasn't him who had knocked her out. That only left Copia, who was quickly replacing Satan for the most disliked person. Her mother had managed to get her an appointment with the admission adviser at Oregon Health and Science University, the medical school in Portland. They were impressed with her academic accomplishments and sympathetic to her situation. No answer about her fate though, which honestly surprised her. Why even entertain this crazed idea Lilith thought as she left the University earlier that week. This was a competitive school, as was true with every medical school in the country. Yet they agreed to consider her admission. Sam was also making headway with the law school at Lewis and Clark. Lilith was becoming more efficient at her cleaning duties too, but had quickly founds drawbacks. Being in this old mansion was horrible for her psychometry. She had experienced four different events, all vague and seeming unconnected. Regardless of the visions content, the experience was exhausting.

             Lilith and Sam sat on the cobblestone drive just outside of the side door to the mansion. It was the first weekend of July and they were bickering about a party the ghouls had set up for that evening.

"Sam, I just want to hang out at home." Lilith whined.

"No! We are going and that's it! No more discussion." Sam bellowed, glaring at her friend. Lilith glared back but finally conceded with a sigh of annoyance. They both stood and entered the mansion to get ready. It wasn't cold in the old home, but it was cooler than the hot summer day and offered a break from the heat. Sam skipped to her room, excited to get dressed up and spend the night flirting. Lilith closed her door and froze, her hand still on the knob. The air was buzzing with an unheard electricity. It was stronger than she had felt before. Her stomach turned, the feeling vibrating her whole body, cell by cell. Then, just as quickly as it had come, the electricity dissipated. Slowly, she removed her hand from the brass knob, turning into the room. She continued getting ready but couldn't shake the dread. She didn't care to dress up, throwing on jeans and a black satin blouse that tied at the waist, buttons down the front. They left out the side door that they used more like a front door at this point and took Samantha's Subaru to the house the clergy had bought. It was toward the outskirts of Lake Oswego on a large lot of land considering the location. The house was a newer model with three bedrooms. The girls let themselves in, rock music coming from the sound system by the TV. The first floor was open, the living room, dining room, and kitchen all one large area. Seven men were milling around the kitchen island and the living room area.

"Let the festivities begin." Lilith muttered, her lips turning into a frown. Alpha was the first to see the women, smiling at them.

"Hey ladies." He greeted and waked them over to the others, Lilith following Sam to the island. She quickly noticed the two men that were outside of their normal group. She recognized right away. The first man's thin mustache was curved up with his smile. His white and hazy green eyes were locked on her. The other man was tall, 6'2 or so, neatly cropped black hair and hazel eyes. His brow was strong, and his cheek bones were high, giving his face almost an alien look. His full lips were smirking and again she found herself struck with a subtle unease.

"Good evening Lilith." The Cardinal swept over and took her hand, gently kissing it. She winced, taking her hand back. "Hopefully no hard feelings from last time."

"Of course not." Lilith replied coolly.

"I have talked to the clergy and I am planning on relocating here as well, so we may be closer." He smiled.