Blood Rose (Completed)

Chapter 22

Trigger warning : language! (Seriously, racist language here! If that triggers you, please skip the last paragraphs. I hated using to write it, but it is the character!)

Waking up wasn't a slow process. Katherine needed to splash cold water in her face, take her meds with hands that shook terribly and found out she had several missed calls. All of Mike.

She jumped in a clean pair of jeans and black long sleeve while she ran down the stairs. The house was still dark, the curtains drawn closed and Katherine immediately switched on all the lights that she passed. Making the house bathe in light, trying to fight the darkness that seemed to loom over it.

Her fingers trembled, dialed Mike's number and waited for his voice.

"Katherine, finally," his voice came with a relieved sigh. "I have been trying to reach you for hours."

"I fell asleep," she quickly told him, grabbing her purse and searched for her keys. "I had a dream. I think."

"You think?"

"It seemed too real," she said irritated, not by him but because Katherine couldn't exactly remember where she put her keys when coming home last night. "I'll explain later. Where are you?"

"The library. Stan is dead," he suddenly said, his voice distant. Almost sounded cold to her ears. "He killed himself after I called him."

"I'm sorry," she managed to say, not holding still and saw her keys hanging on the door.

She snatched them off, her gaze being pulled by something moving in the corner of the living room. The red balloon. Still there, still floating. A shiver went up and down her spine, but Katherine yanked open the door to stride outside.

"I'm coming your way," she said. "Be there in ten minutes."

"Be careful," was all the librarian told her and Katherine heard the loud click in her phone, meaning he hung up on her. Katherine picked a coffee up on the way from the tavern she used to work. Her former coworker asked how she was with concern, but Katherine didn't even hear it.

On the way to the library, a new emotion took a hold on her. Not only fear raged inside Katherine, but anger. Pure rage filled her core when she pushed open the doors of the library and walked into the dark, large room.

She saw Mike before he noticed her.

"Where the others," she asked, making Mike jump up towards her.

"Didn't see you coming. They're either sleeping or busy to find their tokens to get their memories fully back. For the ritual."

Katherine frowned, threw her purse on one of the reading tables and let herself fall in a chair.

"You make no sense," she bluntly spoke and sipped of her coffee. "What ritual?"

"To kill IT," Mike spoke, eyes wide and Katherine thought he looked a bit crazy.

"Can you kill IT?"

"We can," he spoke, voice steady and Katherine sat a bit up.

"We?"

"Yes, Stanley isn't with us anymore. We need you for the ritual, you're one of us now even though you didn't grow up with us. There's a reason you're here."

"I'm here because that shithead decided I was a lovely toy to play with," she spat angrily. "He wants me to leave Derry."

"Will you?"

Silence. The question got her of guard and Katherine sat back again.

"I don't know, Mike," she replied honestly. "It might be the best thing to do. I don't belong here."