The Disappearance

   Where's Katie?
   She had been gone for a day. Katie had not shown up for school this morning. I didn't think much of it, as she could be sick or skipping again. However, she usually texted me back.
   When I arrived home later that afternoon, I asked my parents about Katie and they were confused.
   "Who's Katie? A new friend of yours?" Mom had said, not bothering to look up from her magazine.
   "What're you talking about? Katie, my best friend of 5 years." I replied.
   "Ellie, honey, do you mean Anna?" Dad called from the kitchen. He had begun to wash the dishes from our dinner.
   "No, Katie. Katie Steele," I turned back to Mom. "Remember, you met her mom at the high school football game Friday night."
  "Sorry honey, I don't know who you're talking about." Mom replied. She and Dad exchanged a look and went back to their activities.
   Riding my bike, the events of this evening flooded my mind. The conversation with my parents and the lack of my understanding, Katie not texting me back, and the complete and utter cluelessness of what was happening.
   I was heading to Katie's house in search of her or anything that might lead me to her. When I arrived, something was off. In second grade, the year Katie and I had met, I was spending the night at her house. She had stolen a kitchen knife right out from under her dad's nose while he was cooking. Honestly, to this day I still don't know how she did it. She used that knife to carve our initials into the small oak tree in her front yard, declaring our official friendship. The carving was no longer there.
   I walked to the front door, wincing with every creak of the old wood. An ominous presence filled the air.
   What is going on?
   I knock knock knocked on the door, scaring myself with the vibrations through my knuckles, with the force of my knock, though I didn't understand why I felt such urgency. I stood with clenched fists, my mind churning, erupting with imaginative possibilities, hoping it's my own anxiety, awaiting the unknown. Then the door opened.
   As the door creaked open, my anxiety melted away. A kind face appeared, the wrinkles giving a sort of softness, the smile, comforting, inviting. I could only assume this was Katie's grandmother, though I had never seen her before.
   "Hello darlin'. Whatcha need?" She asked, a soft southern accent seeped through her weary voice.
   "Um, yes. Is, uh, is Katie home?" I replied.
   "Katie? I don't believe I know a Katie."
   "Oh." My heart dropped. I felt my eyes begin to burn. What was I to do? Where was Katie? Why wasn't she home? Who is this woman in her house? The old lady noticed my despair.
   "Why don't you come inside for some fresh baked cookies?" She offered. I appreciated her kindness and accepted.
   "Good. I didn't know who I'd share those cookies with." She turned and walked further inside. "Come on now, ain't no time ta waste."
   I didn't take into account the meaning of that statement. I was so overcome with thoughts and feelings, that I didn't acknowledge the scent of a metallic substance. My emotions became so strong it was almost blinding.
  "Come on now. What're you waiting for?" She called, taking the cookies out of the oven.
   Katie.
   The words did not take me out of this trance. I slowly stepped inside and closed the door behind me. It was almost like my body was on auto-pilot, like I didn't have control.
   "Here darlin', try this." She handed me a fresh, warm chocolate chip cookie. I automatically brought the object to my mouth and took a bite, as I was told. I began to cry.
   "It's ok honey, it's gonna be just fine. Just finish the cookie." She told me.
   I don't want the cookie.
   My hand continued feeding me the cookie until it was reduced to just crumbs. My hands, almost like I had done this thousands of times before, wiped off the crumbs, then my tears, and neatly folded them in my lap.
   "That's a good girl, Ellie." She grinned. I was filled with so much confusion and gloom that I almost didn't notice my name. Almost. I looked up at her, breaking the sort of trance I had.
   "I don't think I ever mentioned my name." I told her.
  "Oh?" Her smile grew ever wider. Something was very, very wrong. My heart was going a mile a minute and my hair stood up on end.
   "I should get going." I stood up, but the lady pushed me back down. I gasped and my face contorted into shock.
   What the-
   "You. Will. Stay." She clenched her jaw, speaking through closed teeth.
   I'm going to die.
   That's when it clicked. I began to squirm under her grasp. I twisted, kicked, screamed, punched, anything to get away from this woman. My fist finally connected with her lower jaw.
   Why am I so tired?
   She let go of me, holding her wounded jaw. I leapt up, dizzying myself, and ran for the door. My arms and legs were trembling and my vision blurred.
   What was in that cookie?
   I collapsed, all motor functions gone. The lady appeared above my blurring eyes. She frowned.
   "You didn't think it would be that easy did you?" She asked. I tried and failed to speak. My muscles felt non-existent.
   The lady changed before my eyes. Her old face melted into a young, beautiful woman. Her height grew, and her body thinned. She smiled a pretty smile.
   "You will die." She whispered calmly. She began to chant what sounded to be Latin or Greek, and I felt my body grow weaker and weaker. A bright form separated from me. The lady began to breathe in the form.
   I'm going to die.