Angel Lies

Chapter 11: A Shopping Trip to Remember

"You going to sleep til noon? So lame!"
Veronica opened her tired eyes to see Kelly standing at her door. She must be going out since she was all fixed up and had on her winter coat and winter boots.
"Maybe I am, why would you care?" She stated knowing her life had no meaning in Kelly's world.
"Mom sent me up to wake you, so no, I don't care." She laughed walking away.
Veronica rolled her eyes as she closed them, drifting back to sleep. She felt drained from the last few days and barely had any energy to even get up. Next think she knew, she felt someone jumping on her bed.
"Wake up! The day is half way over!" Shouted Lola as she landed in sitting position next to her.
"I'm very tired, I had a bad few days."
"But aren't you going out with Lily today?"
Her eyes suddenly widened at hearing that, "Shoot! I completely forgot!" She jolted outed of bed and started looking for a sweater. But she soon stopped and stared at Lola as she started to walk toward the door.
"How did you know about that?"
She giggled as she slipped away. Weird, she thought. Brushing it off, she started to look for some half way decent clothes. She settled on a brown sweater with blue jeans. Throwing on her jacket and pulling on her winter boots, she headed out of her room and hurried down the stairs. She reached for the knob to head outside.
"Heading out again?" Asked Ann after she looked up from her book.
"Yeah, I'm shopping for a dress and mask for a party, one I'm sure Kelly is also attending.
"After the scare you gave us, not knowing where you were or who you were with?"
"I needed away to breath, to let loose since its very tight here. I got that from my mom and I don't need it from you."
"You didn't even apologize for the fight you started."
"I started? Says the one accusing me of being the reason Lola was hurt. I wasn't there."
"You need to mind your place here. I'm the adult, I took you in when nobody else would from that institute." She stood up after slamming down her book.
"That's on you, as far as I knew when I was in that place, I had nobody else."
"Yet I did, gave you a second chance at life after what happened."
"And I'm thankful, I really am but I don't want treated like I'm a bad girl all the time! I got enough of that from my mother!"
"Huh? Your mother didn't do that."
"How do you know? You weren't there...."
"I was."
"I clearly don't remember you being there or that I even had an aunt or cousins."
"I was and your mother loved you and your sister so much that you guys were smothered in it."
"Sure didn't seem like it when I'm I was locked away, wearing nothing but an old night gown with a stained mattress and nothing but a ragged sheet for a blanket. What mother beats a child when begging she was sorry and not knowing how she hurt her sister. I don't even remember what I did... My head hurts.." She grabbed her head as it started to pound.
"You remember..?"
"I need to go.. I'll be back later... I promise." She quickly opened the door and stepped out before her aunt could say another word. Walking away she started to feel anger and resentment toward Ann. Apparently she knew of the apparent abuse that she was seeing in flash backs and dreams but didn't do anything, she even tried to lie about it just now. She needed to get her mind off things and have a better day.

                             ~~~

Veronica looked through dresses but none seem to catch her eye. Then again she wasn't a dress type girl not the type to dress up and go to parties. She rather curl up on her in a shirt and sweat pants with her favorite book on a Saturday.
"Find anything?" Lily asked from behind.
"Not yet..."
"I think I found my dress."
Turning around she saw Lily holding up a Japanese inspired dress. It was pink and purple kimono but very short.
"Nice, fits you perfectly." Veronica smiled, happy for her friend.
"Thank you!" She twirled with it happily.
Veronica started scanning through dresses again but still nothing, becoming a bit frustrated.
"Find anything?"
"No.."
"How about that dress?" Lily suggested.
Turning in the directing she pointed, on a mannequin long blue and black dress that had no waist. The straps hung off the shoulders in a delicate manner and blue roses decorated the dress beautifully
"If you wear that than you would be the Cinderella of the whole party."
"I can't afford a dress like that."
"I can, that dress would look perfect on you."
"I couldn't let you do that, I'm sure there is another dress less expensive and we still need masks."
"My family has money to spare, we aren't exactly poor in any way." She giggled.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes,  it's time for you to shine."
Nodding, Veronica walked over and took the dress off the mannequin. She loved the dress and was thankful her friend was buying it for her. After purchasing both dresses they walked to the next shop in the mall which was an old style Halloween store. It was a bit deserted except for the man at the register who was looking a magazine and snacking on a bag of chips.
"Surely they sell elegant masquerade masks. We don't need anything cheep or plastic." Lily said looking around.
Veronica nodded while also looking around. She walk down an aisle that was full with old style princess costumes that you would see worn in a play. She continue down the aisle but she didn't see anything. She walked down the next aisle but stopped when spotting a hooded figure. She was a bit freaked noting that she almost had her soul sucked from her body last time. But it didn't exactly move. She walked toward it and poked it. Nothing. Just a mannequin modeling a costume. She started to reach for the hood to unmask it.
"Veronica, I found the masks!" Called Lily from the next aisle. She started to walk away and toward Lily's voice only to be jerked into the figure, her mouth covered by an ice cold hand. It wasn't a mannequin after all. She was unable to move, the figure held onto her tightly.
"You shouldn't be alive, you should be dead. I killed the wrong twin." It said in a dark, demonic voice that raised the hairs on the back of her neck.
She started to struggle, freaking out from what he said.
"You can't be allowed to fulfill your destiny, your birthright. Rather tired of playing by the rules of system. It's time to shift the balance a little don't you think? I can't do that if your alive." It laughed as she pulled out a jagged dagger and held it to her neck, her mouth still covered.
Her eyes started watering but she didn't move being afraid of ending her life by herself alone.
"This blade is no ordinary blade, it was made specifically for your kind. While your experiencing a painful death, each of the points of this blade not only gashes the skin but they can grab on to your soul and basically rip it from your body. Wouldn't have to do this if I had chosen the right twin to begin with because your kind die easier and less painful as a young child but it's much harder at this age, but I gotta do what needs done." It said as he started to roughly slide the blade into her skin. Blood started trickling down her clothes and staining them red as she screamed into his hand in agony and feeling such unbearable pain. She grabbed onto his clothes and squeezed, feeling like she would be sick. But she slumped to her knees as the figure suddenly let go. She threw up violently as she looked up in blurred vision to see two figures stabbing the figure. She collapsed and fell back on the floor.