Crystal

Chapter 13: Caught

"Mom, just hear me out." I was rubbing my head so hard it was burning. My eyes were sore from rubbing them as well, something I couldn't help when I was frustrated.

My mother called to check on me when I got home from Hornets. I can't tell her what I've been dealing with but needless to say, the conversation wasn't going well.

"I'd take it if I could you know I would!" My mother cried.

"Why does this damn house mean so freaking much to you? Why are you putting me through this you had two daughters you know! One is still here!"

"How can you be so insensitive?"

"I was going to say the same. I'm not gonna continue living Leza's life! I want my own! She's dead and you need to rest with that!" I hung up the phone and threw it across the room.

"Fuck!" I screamed. Why did I come here in the first place? Why did I do this?

I felt stupid. My mother was using me to bring back her dead kid's life. And I fell for it. Leza was always her favorite. She never let it show but I knew and Leza knew. But Leza never rubbed it in or anything. She didn't care. Between both of us I was the wilder one. Not by much. But smoking and drinking, and as my mother put it, "the rock music." Leza was more subtle. But we still were close.

Now here I am in this house that she apparently had put in some work. Painting the walls, the banister for the stairs, redid the kitchen. This house was her. Maybe it was driving me crazy.

I was pacing; trying to decipher everything. I couldn't tell if I was losing it or if this really was a ghost town. As I continued to pace back and forth, I accidentally kicked away the battery to my phone. It must have fallen out when I threw it. Which meant the phone was in two pieces right now. Great.

I picked up the battery and walked over towards my phone in the corner. It looked still intact, just the battery fell out. Before I reached out to pick it up, it was ringing. I looked at the battery that was in my hand, and the phone that was still ringing, vibrating on the floor at the same time.

I knelt down, like a moron and reached out to pick it up. It was still ringing in my hand. The ID was blank. I raised it to my ear and pressed the talk button. I didn't say anything. The voice spoke first.

"Hey Cris."

Shivers ran through my spine. My heart was pounding hard. My eyes closed. I pictured her standing somewhere, in her pajamas, coffee in her hand. I pictured her happy. Alive, and upstairs.

"Hey kiddo." I whispered back. There was a lump in my throat as soon as I said it. Why did I answer?

"I'm sorry. Don't hate me. Don't hate mom." Leza almost sounded like herself. It almost felt like her.

" I ..." I choked up. My eyes were watery; when I blinked the tears came. I was talking to her.

"Cris?"

"Yeah, I'm here."

"So is he." My eyes opened. The line went dead.

I rose up and took the battery and placed it in the phone quickly. I turned to walk towards the door and immediately stopped.

He was in front of the door. I nearly fell backwards when I was backing up. He took a step towards me and I turned to run. I didn't know where I'd run to, but I just wanted to run out of there. There was a window in the laundry room I'll jump out of.

I didn't even get to turn a corner when I felt it grab my leg and trip me. I knocked into the table and fell hard. In seconds it was on me pinning me down like last time only I was on my stomach and he was in my back.

I struggled hard to get him off but it was no use. He was stronger than I was, and he pinned me down with one claw gripping my arm and the other pressed against my head, keeping me still on the floor. I tried to scream I felt dizzy.  I felt him lower his head closer to mine, and heard a deep hissing sound come from his mouth. Cold air immediately hit my face. The room was spinning and getting dark. I tried my hardest to fight it but it did nothing. I felt myself getting weaker, energy being drained from my body within seconds.

I couldn't see him because he was behind me, I can only see the chair on the floor, the kitchen view, and the stairs on my side. I saw my phone by the chair and I tried to reach it. My fingertips touched it for a moment but I couldn't quite get a good grab. I couldn't reach it anymore, I just felt so tired. Everything was getting dark. I dropped my head on the floor and closed my eyes and drifted. There was nothing I can do. No matter how hard I fought it. I was out.