All My Ghosts

THREE

VIVIENNE'S POV

I wake up with a pounding headache. Upon getting up and looking in the mirror, I have yet another bruise on my body.

I sit at my vanity and cover myself in concealer and color corrector, beating it into my skin until the pain was too much.

it's a Sunday morning, a beautiful day outside. The birds are chirping and the trees are blossoming.

No one's home right now, I'm almost 90% sure my mom, dad, and brother went to church. I guess they didn't want to wake me.

I decide it's okay to go downstairs, use the bathroom and get something to eat for breakfast. Id been starving since I didn't really get to have my mom's big dinner last night.

I throw on some sweatpants and a cropped tank top, resting just above my belly button. My hair was messy but who cares, I'm in my own home.

I make my way downstairs and to the bathroom, I grab my toothbrush and paste and start aggressively brushing my teeth, feeling dirty.

I scape my tongue and gargle water before putting my toothbrush away.

I tie my hair back and splash some cold water into my face, trying to bring some sense of reality back to myself.

I can't keep living like this, it's unhealthy. I can't physically live like this, or stay here anymore.

I make my way down the stairs to get something to eat, I think I'll have an apple or banana. Nothing too big since my stomach kinda hurts.

I open the fridge and all of a sudden my face goes blank, pale.

I hear a cry from the basement.

a scream almost, it's a women. She's crying , frantically.

I stop in my tracks, just like I had done when I was a kid.

But I then realized I wasn't going to repeat that mistake. I was going to take control.

I quickly grabbed my car keys off the counter and ran to the basement door. Opening it I whispered

"I'm going to get you help." Before slamming it shut.

as I run out of my house, I see my dad running into the house through the back door. I guess he wasn't at church, and he heard me slam the door.

With my keys and phone in hand, I sprint to my front door and out of my house. I look behind me to see my dad running out of the door with his hands out to grab me.

I quickly unlock the car and hop inside. He has his hand on my leg, trying to rip me from the car.

"I'm gonna find you, and I'm gonna fucking kill you if it's the last thing I do!! You aren't safe."

He screams at me.

For the first time in my life, I stand up to him.

I use my free leg to kick him as hard as I can in the crotch, causing him to let go of me and fall to the ground.

"Burn in hell." I say in a quiet, determined voice

With my breathing heavy and adrenaline running high, I close the door and start the engine. Pulling out of the driveway with no time to waste.

As I pull out of the driveway and start driving down the street I see my dad chasing me in the rear view mirror, but it's no use. I'm already turning the corner as fast as I can.

I pick up my phone and immediately call. 911 to my house to hopefully find my dad and save the woman. I scramble for my phone and after finding it I slide it open to the emergency contact section.

"Hello?" I cry
"Hello this is 911, what can we do for you toda-"

I cut the woman off

"I need police and medicals to my house immediately! My dad.. my dad he's trying to kill someone, a girl and it might be too late for her , please hurry it's 1123 shore drive." I yell into the phone

"Okay ma'am we're sending people over, just stay calm."

"This is Virginia state police?" I cry

"Yes ma'am this is." The woman answers calmly

"My name is vivienne gray, I'm on the way to the station now." I say urgently before hanging up.

I did it. I finally did it.

I don't need directions to get to where I need to go. I drive recklessly, almost crashing into another car as I pull up to the nearest police station. I park my car sloppily and get out, making a b-line for the door.

I frantically pull the door open and step inside, quickly making my way to the woman at the front desk.

She's a young woman, probably not much older than me. She's petite , blonde hair.

"I- I need to report something. Can you help me?" I say trying to catch my breath, my hair messy and in my face from the fight with my dad

"yes miss what is it? I'm going to need you to calm down." She says in a soothing voice , her eyes widening at me knowing something is deeply wrong. I can see her typing something into her keyboard.

"NO. No I don't think you understand I need anyone of importance down here right now , this is fucking serious." I say pointing at her with a stern voice

"I don't have much time." I yell, getting the attention of everyone in the station.

"Ma'am please, tell me what's wrong." She says trying to calm me down

"I think- I'm pretty sure my dad is a serial killer."

The woman's eyes go wide and blank as she picks up her phone and presses it to her ear, her voice stuttering

"A-and your name ma'am?" She dials a number

"Vivienne gray." "V-I-V-I-E-N-N-E G-R-A-Y" I spell out for her

"this is dispatcher 249865 I'm gonna need some assistance on floor one." She says calmly into her phone before putting it away and gesturing for me to sit in the waiting area.