Sacred Truths

Part 2

Violet

Winnie's school was far from our apartment but if we went with car, it took about half an hour. As we approached the school, we could see many students chattering and laughing in groups , all walking towards the gate. Seeing teenagers my age enjoying their life had saddened me a lot before, but now, only indifference remained.

I looked at Winnie. She seemed scared and yet determined to surpass her fears. Aunt Ruth and I offered her to gave us a call if there was anything we could help. Then she went inside the school compound herself. I heard that the teachers here were nice. I hoped they could help with everything she needed.

An hour later, we arrived at my real aunt, Jill Frost's house. It was a two-storeyed house with a garage on the right side and plants lining the front.Noticing our car, aunt Jill came out of the house and greeted us. Her expressions were always so subtle; you couldn't normally tell if she was angry or happy. Aunt Ruth had many appointments that day so she wanted aunt Jill to pick Winnie up from school and take us to our house if possible. The conversation itself was weird, considering most family lived together. But many unusual things were ordinary in our case.

Aunt Jill agreed to take us home. Aunt Ruth then drove to her workplace. Both of us went inside and sitting on a sofa in the living room with my backpack beside me, I looked around the house.

It had been more than three months since I had been here. Her house was neat as always, pictures of her, my parents, my siblings and her Raven coworkers in photo frames on a table. My mom was forty two and aunt Jill was thirty eight. At 5 feet 6 inches tall, both of them had mesmerizing features and slender bodies.The only difference was that while mom's hair was platinum, aunt Jill had straight black hair.

I lingered my gaze at my parents and siblings' photos for a few minutes. They showed a warm, loving family. Ten years had passed since that loving family died. Now, only a broken one remained.

My parents bore four children and I was  a third born. I didn't see dad often when I lived with them but mom would tell me and my siblings that he was a nice man who loved us. Mom took care of meals and chores when she came back from work. And when she couldn't, Evangeline, my eldest sister, helped. Even when she was eight, she could do chores and cook us comfort food. She would tuck her younger siblings into bed and read stories for us at night....

The sound of running water interrupted my thoughts. Moments later, I found aunt Jill come into the room with a glass of water and some snacks. Whenever I came to her house,I would refuse drinks  except water. It felt awkward to drink beverages from my own aunt.

I thanked her as she put them on the table in front of me.Only then did I notice a new vase with flowers at the centre of the table.

"Did you buy the vase?" I asked.

She replied, " No.Ruth gave it to me as a present a while ago, saying my house needs life inside the house."

Wow. A real friend's privilege. 

Yeah, aunt Ruth was considerate at most times but she still somehow managed to be cheerful whenever she could , making everyone happy with her teasings and jokes. But that's what I like about her. She was an idol I strived to be years ago. Never again would I try to be one. It wasn't suitable for me- I hurt myself to the point of suicide attempts.

Aunt Jill, however, had been cold ever since... forever. She was taciturn. Other than family gatherings, she rarely talked to anyone. But I knew why she acted this way later on. When I looked at her eyes, they showed deep emotions that I saw in the people in that lab six years ago - pain, sadness, grief, hopelessness. And her prosthetic arm also told of the cruelty she faced. I mentioned of it and that alone stiffened her nerves. It was not just her; my mom and the Ravens had the same look when  they were among themselves.

The Ravens were agents of a secret organization. They were experts in martial arts and weapons, carrying out dangerous missions and hunting down serial killers. Many people had died in these missions ,both good and bad. Fallen agents were buried in Chicago, where the Ravens' main base located. The Ravens were meticulous with their work,leaving no trace behind and killing bad people as swiftly as the breeze. So, the enemies named them         " The Nighthunters."

For three years, aunt Jill had been teaching me basic academics in her home but the Ravens' missions kept her busy so she could only offer me to learn through online learning websites. Today, she took a day off and asked me to come here. I didn't mind being here at all. This place had always brought me comfort ever since I was a young little girl who often accompanied with my mother to visit aunt Jill and ventured through every corner of the house like I was on an adventure.

I laughed nervously at aunt Ruth's remark , trying not to offend the woman  in front of me.

"Alright, that's enough chit chatting. Show me everything you have learnt for  high school level academics.

I obeyed, taking out my laptop and showed her my progress. She asked me some very difficult questions of how to use this knowledge and why it is essential to know them. I answered as much as I could and she also told me of what she wanted me to learn more. I started reading and learning related fields of the topics she chose. After some hours, she picked up Winnie from school and we ate dinner together. I didn't want to leave so Winnie and I stayed at aunt Jill's till 8 p.m. before she drove us home.

When we reached the driveway, I told Winnie to go ahead inside before me. Only when she was out of earshot than I looked at the woman in the driver seat from the rearview mirror and asked, "So, when would you let me on the team?"

They didn't think I could handle their lifestyle. I had been proving myself otherwise, by helping the Ravens behind the scenes with the serial killers' whereabouts for six months. With the information I gathered through my tech skills, many of the world's mercilous criminals had been detained. Evil still existed but at least some people avoided being the haunted themselves. I wanted to help lessen the bad in this world, even if I had to die in the process.

She looked at me seriously, and uttered ,"Our answer will always be no, and that's final."

I did not like what I heard. I tried to retort but she repeated again, anger evident in her voice, "The answer is no. Do you understand me? Violet Melissa?"

I gulped. She said my middle name. Not wishing to escalate the situation, I weakly nodded. She sighed and said,        "Violet, I know you want to help. But you can help without being involved. It is risky enough that I let you investigate people. If you get hurt, your mom and I won't forgive ourselves. Do you understand?" I didn"t answer but as she if she didn't care, she proceeded to speak, "Violet, I know you think this isn't fair. But after everything you have been through, we just don't want you to face any more hardships." I could hear the sorrow in her words.How much she felt for my past wounds.

I then realized it was useless talking of this matter further. Therefore, I said good night to her and ran to my room. Winnie noticed my mood upon coming inside the home so she didn't question me anything. Once I locked my room, I sat against the wall, shutting my eyes.

Of course, I knew the risks. But I didn't want to live this way anymore. I was tired of living with fear and uncertain about everything. The only thing I was certain of was that I was not afraid to scarifice my life to save others. I had the power to help others so I wished to be a Raven. If not for this purpose, why would I be still alive after all these years? What other purpose lay for this  hollow soul?