Far Away From Home

Part Thirteen

Renia woke up with a start. Someone had screamed, and she wondered what had happened. She got up and looked around for Tony. He wasn't on his side of the bed. She yawned and got out of bed. Opening the door, she heard Caleb scream,
“Renia! Get out of there!”
On instinct, she turned invisible. Her power came in full force, leaving the objects closer to her invisible as she watched the nice, beautiful Indian woman drink Tony's blood through his neck. Tony's wide, lifeless eyes stared at the ceiling, and a large bite on the left side of his neck, accompanied by colourful paw-like marks, resided on his body. Renia didn't know how he came to have paw prints on his body, but she knew that she had to save herself. Caleb was nowhere to be found, and she couldn't see either Jackson or Steph. Maybe one of them has run off and saved themselves. She should do the same, she thought.
Caleb ran outside the courtyard and looked around. He couldn't wipe out Steph's dead body or his brother's dead body from his mind. He had searched everywhere for Jackson, but he couldn't find him. He felt like everyone was dying because of him. If he had listened to Steph or maybe his own instincts, then maybe they would have been at home worrying about trivial things like packing their clothes for university. But he had taken away the future of young aspirants, and they had died meaningless deaths. He could save himself, or Renia could save herself; though, he didn't even know where to find her. She had been there, but in a blink of an eye, she had just disappeared. 
He shook his head and thought, this is not how he's going to die. But before he could run off, an eagle swooped down and carried him with its sharp claws. He struggled with the eagle, but it kept on flying, and his shirt was tearing. For a brief second, he wondered how strong an eagle could be—that it could carry a person as heavy as himself. He looked down and felt fear grip him. They must be twenty or so feet from the ground because he couldn't see anything from the air. He gulped and prayed to any deity that would answer him. If he can survive this fall, he will help everyone. He would never judge anyone or act aloof. He would stay with the sick and raise money to bury the dead. He will do anything if he can survive this fall.
Suddenly, the eagle stopped mid-flight. With a little shake, the eagle released him. He looked above him to find the face of a man with a devilish smile and an eagle's body. He fell from that height, and for a while, it was peaceful. He saw his brother's face within the clouds. He had found their grandparents, and he wanted him to be with them. Steph floated above his head, saying how much she missed him and wanted him to come to her. She had a boyfriend in the physical world, but she's lonely in the spirit world, he thought. He needs to meet her, he thought. With that thought, the immediate pain he felt seemed more like an immediate release from all the other pain he had felt. It didn't take long for him to feel lifeless and gone.
Renia moved very quickly, over things, under things, and through things. Her invisibility came in handy when she thought that she wouldn't need it. She shouldn't have hidden her powers from people. They would have appreciated it if they could see her now. Her left leg caught on something, and she fell down the stairs, losing her grip on her invisibility. She knew that she couldn't have hit anything because she could go through things. She looked around her surroundings. She's outside. All she needs to do is look for the entrance to the castle. She tried to stand up, but she felt something holding her down. She looked up to find the small boy holding her down on his own while giving her a devilish smile. She was scared, but she held it in and said,
“Kid, get up. I need to use the bathroom.”
He didn't say anything. Instead, he threw his head back and cackled evilly. Renia felt withdrawn from the scene. Her body was there, but her mind wasn't paying attention. She felt like she was watching a movie—a really drawn-out horror movie. Eventually, he stopped cackling and stared at her. When he spoke, she didn't expect to hear a deep bellowing voice, but obviously he had it because he kept on talking and his voice never changed.
“My favourite is the intestines, but you are still alive. I want something with more pain. I want my sister to feel how useless you are, like the other girl.”
He looked at her for a while. Then, he exclaimed,
“Oh, I know!”
Renia gulped as he brought out his claws. His damn fingers were claws, she thought as she remembered how Tony had paw prints on his body. He dug his claws into her right eye, and she screamed and struggled to get up. But just as swiftly as he dug his claws into her eyes, he removed her eyeballs. He did the same thing to the other eye, and she couldn't see anything. Soon, she felt his weight leave her, and she scrambled up and started feeling her way out. She cried as she tried to find her way. She could hear the sound of his laughter as she felt around her surroundings. Someone came outside, and they spoke in a low tone. She didn't hear what they said. All she felt was someone pulling her by her shirt. She was dragged until she reached a warm environment. 
All of a sudden, she was tossed into the fire. She could feel and smell her skin burning. For a while, she screamed and shouted, but then she thought, what can she do about this? She's still going to die anyway. She knew when she felt her life slipping away. She remembered what her mother said.

“There's this love that I have for you. It's different from the love I have for others. I'm attached to them, but they are not attached to me. They can't feel the love I feel for them, but you can,” her mum had said.
Renia had rolled her eyes and said,
“Really, mum. I don't feel anything from you.”
Her mum smiled and said,
“There's this thin thread that is in between me and you. If I leave this world, you will feel it snap. Just like your dad will feel it as well.”
“Well, what if I leave? Will it snap and realign in the spirit world?” she said, not really paying attention to her mum.
“You won't. I'm older. I will leave before you, but if you do leave, it will snap, but with a powerful cut. I will feel the force more than you will because something precious is being taken from me,” her mum said.
Renia laughed and said,
“Sometimes I believe that this love power thing is a lie. It seemed like you were telling me a fairy tale.”
“Don't worry, Renia, you wouldn't have to experience it.”

She felt the snap, and it's indeed very forceful, like she's being taken away from a powerful source. In the distance, she heard wailing. Someone was crying in the middle of the night. Someone screamed, 
“My daughter is dead.”
Renia smiled and managed to say,
“I'll be fine, mum.”
Jackson had managed to escape without alerting the owners of the house. He heard Renia's scream and felt a pain in his heart. What had they ever done wrong? They only wanted to go on an exploration, and this is what happened. He couldn't stay, knowing that he would die. He would save himself and everyone by running back to town and telling everybody. He took his bag and shoes and hightailed them out of the castle. 
Rain fell in heavy droplets from the sky, but it didn't bother him. He ran off into the night, but as he stepped on a wooden stick, it snapped, and two long, curved knives out of nowhere appeared on either side of him. They moved very swiftly, and he didn't have time to react. They sliced his body into two. His torso lay on one side, while his appendage lay somewhere. He was still alive when they approached him. They didn't say anything. They just stared at him while he struggled to move.
The next morning, everyone in town combed the forest looking for five promising people, but they didn't find anything. The castle, the family, and everything that happened that night were wiped away like it never happened. But once every full moon, weary travellers would sight the castle from afar and beg for rest, and the quarter family would give them rest.