Now that I think about it, there had been many red flags. How did I not notice it before? The hushed talks between my parents and them stopping as soon as they spotted me. The unexplained disappearances. The weird incantations.
The mysterious man sighed and ran his hands through his hair. His colleague seemed uncomfortable as well.
“A phone call...is here! A phone call... is here!”
Everyone jumped at the sudden noise. It was the mysterious man’s phone.
I was flabbergasted. He had… All Might’s voice as his… ringtone? What the-? I opened my mouth to say something but it was almost as if I had forgotten how to form words. How the heck did I end up here with demon-kidnapper- parents and two well dressed All Might fans?
The mysterious man might have been embarrassed because he answered the phone as fast as he could. His colleague just shook his head, almost as if nothing unusual had happened.
“Yes, this is M3 speaking. We have found the targets.” answered the mysterious man.
“Yes, she seems to be unharmed. Yes, I’m sure that it’s her. She matches the description.”
Was he talking about me?
“Okay, I understand. Bye.”
“Well, playtime’s over. Bind them we need to leave now.” the mysterious man said to his colleague while placing his phone on silent and then back into his pocket.
The colleague nodded and headed towards my parents.
Mom and dad had become quiet as soon as the man had called them demons. They stared at the floor and didn’t attempt to back away from the approaching man. Dad had given up his fighting stance and stood with his shoulders slumped.
Anger welled up inside me. Why were they acting this way? Why were they acting so guilty? Why were they acting as if everything the men said in the last seven minutes was true? I didn’t want it to be true. It couldn’t be true. Those people there were my parents Irine and Dan right?
The man pulled out a vial of clear blue liquid and poured it around my parents.
“Is this some ritual?” I wondered. I would never forget what had happened next. My eyes widened with shock as the blue liquid began to form a clear wall around my parents.
The next thing I knew I was on my knees and my head was on fire. It felt as if someone was slamming my head against the wall. My mind was splitting into two. My heart was pounding and I had trouble breathing. Just as my vision began to dim I caught a look of my parent’s face. They looked concerned and were trying to reach me but an invisible wall separated us. Was this because of the blue liquid? No, it couldn't be because the mysterious man was shocked and his colleague was scared. They were saying something in urgent tones but I couldn’t hear them. Instead, I heard someone humming. A woman.
“Oh! Look at you. You like magic don’t you?” said a beautiful, calm but distant voice that made me feel warm... almost nostalgic inside.
Who was this woman? And why did she feel so familiar? Nevermind that. I’ll figure that out later I have enough to worry about right now. “One question at a time, Zella,” I told myself.
I barely managed to crawl up through the pain and tried to forget the comforting voice of the unknown woman in my head.
The men looked relieved as they saw me get up.
“Miss Zella, thank god you’re okay!” said the man.
Okay? Did this seem okay to him? I was barely able to keep myself conscious. I had to stay conscious to get answers. "You can do this, Zella!" I told myself.
“Well then, we are leaving now.” the man continued. “One of our members will be coming to help you-“
“You’re not leaving,” I said covering the door. “I won’t let you leave.”
“Zella…” my father started.
“What makes you think that… we use doors?” said the mysterious man with a hint of a smile as he snapped his fingers.
I watched in horror as the four of them started disappearing. Without thinking I rushed towards them. Memories of the times I had with my parents played in my mind on replay. The birthday parties. Mom screaming at me. Dad trying to help me. Mom scolding me and dad both.
“Well, we can’t have you do that Miss Zella. I’m sorry about this it’s for your own safety.” the man said giving me an apologetic look as he waved his hand.
With a wave of his hand, he had created immense pressure. Before I knew it my knees gave out and I couldn’t move. I watched in horror as I realised that all of them had partially disappeared.
The man’s expression softened as he said in an almost gentle tone “Zella, look under the third tile under the demon's bed you will find the answers you’re looking for. Someone will be coming to help you soon.”
“Goodbye till we meet again, Zella,” he said under his breath.
“Zella, we are sorry my dear.” dad said as his face vanished.
“Zella it’s okay. Whatever happens, remember that we love you.” said my mom as she disappeared as well. A single tear dropping onto the dark wooden floor.
I was all alone.
I stared at the teardrop for what seemed like a long time, trying to process what had happened. Suddenly I remembered what the man had said right before disappearing.
“Look under the third tile under the demon's bed you will find the answers you’re looking for.”
I jumped to my feet so fast that I could see lights. My head was still hurting, but all of that didn’t matter. I ran up the stairs as fast as I could. I reached the top of the stairs and rushed towards my parent’s bedroom door like a madman.
I slipped and fell. It hurts, but that doesn't matter. I didn’t know why I was rushing like this. I just remember feeling that if I didn’t hurry the answers would disappear… just like my family.
I bit my lip hard hoping that the pain would distract me from the emptiness I felt inside.
I pushed the door open and lay flat on my stomach with my arm stretched under the bed, desperately flailing my hand trying to find the third tile.
There it is. I found it! My eyes widened and my heart beat in anticipation as I pulled up the loose tile. There was a hole in the ground under the tile. I lay still. "What happened Zella? Didn’t you want to find out the truth?" I asked myself. I realised that… I was scared. What if the truth hurt? I smacked myself with my free hand and tried to talk some sense into myself. After all, knowing the truth was better than not knowing anything, right?
Wrong.
I braced myself and reached into the hole. There was something smooth and glossy inside. Paper? No, papers. Plural. I grabbed onto the top paper and pulled it out slowly.
With trembling fingers, I turned over the paper to read the words written on the other side.
As the paper fell from my hands I realised how wrong I had been.
Sometimes, not knowing anything was better than knowing the truth.
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