Innocence Betrayed

Chapter 3

Recap:  Clea settled in for the night once Ryan left. She looked clam and serene from outside but she dreaded the night that was to come. She left her bedside lamp on as she slowly slipped under her covers. She hesitated to close her eyes but the days’ work finally wore down on her. Her eyes closed of their own accord and she fell into a dark sleep.

Chapter 3:

Clea knew she had fallen deep into the dark abyss of her mind, a place which she had carefully avoided for the past three years and the one which she had recently taken up to visit recently. No matter how much she tried, her mind would slip into that dangerous territory and act on its own accord, bringing all the hazardous and upset thoughts back. Sometimes she really wondered if it was just her or if every other human, her age or not, faced with the same problem of mind control.

But not Veronica, no, she seemed normal every day. The last five days, since Clea had started her visits into the secluded part of her mind, she had been a disaster. Her hair was always messy and she forgot things quite quickly. She became clumsier and her heart rate would pick up whenever someone would ask her anything, even if it was just for a glass of water. It was not healthy; she knew but couldn't help herself from panicking.

Sometimes we simply have no control over ourselves, she thought, and that's the moment when you are completely vulnerable, exposed to the world in your weakest position, as if inviting, seducing the world to come and destroy you for once and for all, she told herself.

Suddenly, something flashed in front of her eyes and before she could make sense of it, it disappeared. She tried to find the source but couldn't discover anything as the darkness engulfed her once more. She wracked her brain for anything it might have registered on seeing the flash, but it was blank, like a notebook waiting to be filled with pages of one's thoughts.

She sighed as she started looking for an escape once again. Her efforts were futile; she was still unable to have any control over her mind. This was her weakest point, she was the most vulnerable when in her sleep and that was the reason why she was scared of the night. It brought back memories which she had buried long ago and which were now slowly coming to life.

It flashed again and this time she managed to capture wisps of colours as it disappeared once again into the darkness. The bright colours clouded her sight as she attempted to make sense of it. Try as hard as she may, she couldn't get past the vivid colours and form any image.

She sighed as she let it go, positive enough that it would flash again, she waited with baited breath as she readied herself to capture those colours right, so as to fit them perfectly to make a sensible image. Her heart pounded faster as the small ball of light zoomed towards her with ultimate speed. She kept her eyes open as it slammed hard against her chest and she felt herself being thrown back from the force of the light. She landed hard on her back, breathing slightly elevated and eyes closed as she tried to calm herself; she slowly opened her eyes. Bright colours emitted from all around her and once again she couldn't make sense of it. She closed her eyes again in an attempt to calm herself and sort out her jumbled mind. She reopened them and this time she could make sense of what she saw. 

She was lying in the middle of an old-fashioned kitchen. The tables and chairs were huddled to one side of the small area. They were scraped and small pieces of wood stuck out from them. The cutlery and other steel utensils were neatly arranged; it was an old but spotless kitchen. She knew the person had worked very hard to keep it the way it was. 

She heard footsteps coming in her direction but before she could pick herself up, two people entered the room. The man who walked in first had a large moustache and small beady eyes. The woman who followed after him was short and plump with almost no visible neck. They sat heavily on the chairs, opposite from each other. The man lifted his legs on the table while the women poured herself a glass of water.