The Other Side: The Awakening.

Chapter Nineteen: Memories.

CHAPTER NINETEEN. 

Evangeline Winters was awakened in the middle of the night by a primal instinct. She hadn't heard any weird sound, but she just had a weird intuition that something wasn't right. It was as if a cold, evil aura had filled the room.

She knew that feeling too well. She had experienced it before. 

Evangeline knew it would be of no use to call out for her nurse, since the poor dear would definitely be dead by now. The Demon showed no mercy. It gained pleasure by taking innocent souls. 

She quickly climbed off her bed and into her comfortable slippers. She pulled a robe over herself. Evangeline quickly shuffled across her room and slid open her closet doors. She walked into the closet, her clothes ruffling softly. Mrs Winters swiftly closed the closet doors. 

Now that everything was quiet, Evangeline could make out soft footsteps creaking on the floorboards. 

The door to her room opened slowly. In stepped a young girl. 

She was short, but looked mature. Probably around fourteen. She wore all over black and her blonde hair was pulled up in a bun. 

The girl looked around the room, but then her head snapped to the right, looking straight at the closet. 

Because of this, Evangeline could see clearly into the girl's eyes. They were dark red. The closet doors were swung open by an invisible force. 

Knowing what would happen next, Evangeline boldly stepped out of hiding and faced the Demon. 

She heard it speak, but the girl's mouth did not move. The girl was possessed, Evangeline knew. 

'Evangeline,' It said in Its coarse, throaty growl. 

'Long time no see,' she said sarcastically.

'You've escaped me all these years,' It said. 'I was planning to kill you after I took care of Theodore Jensen, but he managed to banish me in the Mirror Realm again.'

The girl ran her hands over her body. 'But this girl freed me once more.'

'Suzanne told me the story. She also managed to re-banish you,' Evangeline said. 'How did you get free again?' 

'I'm afraid you don't have enough time left to find out, Evangeline,' It said. 'The time is approaching, soon the Ritual will begin.'

The girl suddenly ran up to Evangeline and wrapped her hands around Evangeline's neck.

***

Vague memories were returning. 

The girl was lost in the blackness, and she couldn't remember anything. However, she was now starting to remember some things. 

Her name was Kathrine, she knew. Her sister was Suzanne. But she wasn't her only sibling. Kathrine tried hard to remember the names of her other family members, but her mind was blank. 

She tried to remember if she had known the boy with his head split open. She didn't recognize him. After she had been pulled away by the invisible force, she didn't see the boy anymore. 

What did he mean? she wondered. He said that only half of me was trapped here. 

Suddenly, Kathrine heard a faint sound of someone weeping. She stared hard into the darkness, but it extended as far as she could see. Finally, she could make out a person crouched about fifty feet to her left. The person had their back towards Kathrine.

Kathrine became excited as she walked towards the woman. After a while, she started running. The woman seemed father than Kathrine had expected. It was impossible to tell how long she was running for. 

Finally, she was close enough, and Kathrine grabbed the woman's shoulder. The woman let our an ear-shattering scream. 

'Please, no more,' the woman whispered. 'I can't take it anymore.'

'H-Hello?' Kathrine said to the woman. 'I'm sorry, but I can hardly remember anything. Do you know where we are?'

The woman stiffened, as if she had recognized Kathrine's voice. She started breathing heavily. The woman slowly stood, and turned around to face Kathrine.

Tears of blood were running down the woman's cheeks, but Kathrine could recognize that face anywhere.

'Mom?' she whispered. 

No, not Mom, she thought to herself. Step-mom- Melissa.

A vague memory returned to Kathrine. She was in the hospital. It was the same night her biological parents had died in the car crash. She remembered Melissa and Terry were standing over her hospital bed. Terry was her real dad's brother, Melissa was her aunt. They had adopted her, but were then murdered by a Demon.

The image of the Demon suddenly popped into her head. Kathrine's body went cold immediately. 

'K-Kathrine?' Melissa asked, not believing her eyes. 

Melissa grabbed onto Kathrine and hugged her, but Kathrine literally passed through Melissa. Both of them gasped. 

Suzanne, Tanya, Max, John, Jenna.  Everything flowed into Kathrine's mind. Her siblings. Actually they were her cousins, but they treated her like a sister. I live with Aunt Lisa and Uncle Larry now...

'W-What?' Melissa said, shocked. 'Only half of you is in this world.'

'That's what the boy said, too,' Kathrine said. 'What does that mean?' 

'You're still alive. You have a chance to escape this place. You have to find your body, which is still in the real world,' explained Melissa. 

'How do I do that?' 

Melissa shook her head sadly. 'I don't know. I never had the chance to try. I'm dead. My soul is trapped here.'

'What about Terry? Is that his name?'

'You don't remember his name?'

'I barely remember anything,' Kathrine explained. 'It's all coming back in bits and pieces.'

Melissa nodded in understanding. 'The One who has trapped us here makes sure that we're all alone. Terry is somewhere in this world, but he's too far away. I can never find him and he can never find me. We're forever separated.' 

Kathrine realized that that was why she had been pulled away from the boy. But how come the Demon had brought her next to Melissa? Wasn't It supposed to keep them apart?

Melissa answered her thoughts. 'I think the Demon's become distracted. I keep hearing the words "The time is near" in my head. It's excited about something.'

Kathrine became serious. 'We need to find a way to get out of here.'