Father Preston entered through the door that was held open by a guard. He took a seat in a hard, metal chair and placed his bible on the table. In the next moment, a deep toned bell sounded and a red light sparked into life at the top of the adjacent door. Miguel was escorted into the room by another guard who led him to his seat and pushed down hard on his shoulder, signaling to Miguel that he must sit.

 

It wasn't until Miguel was seated and the chains that bound his hands and feet stopped rattling, that Father Preston looked at him. He grimaced slightly at the state of Miguel. He had a black eye on the left side of his face and the right side of his mouth looked like he had stuck acorns into his cheeks.

“I see you're getting along with your inmates quite nicely, Alvin,” Father Preston stated mockingly.

“They'll be taken care of,” Miguel answered simply in his deep Spanish accent. “Let's get to business.”

Father Preston nodded but didn't offer anything.

“I hear that b**** has been taken care of?” Miguel asked scathingly.

Father Preston nodded again,” Ms. Flores shouldn't be bothering you anymore.” Now he smiled. “And our contract?”

Miguel smiled back...well tried to anyways. The state of his face made any expression he made look like a grimace,“Will all be hatched out as soon as something else is cleared up.”

Father Preston raised his eyebrows slightly and waited for Miguel to finish. They sat in silence for awhile before Father Preston began to lose his patience. “Well?”

“It has come to my attention that not every part of our 'contract' was fulfilled, on your part, Father Preston,” Father Preston began to fiddle with his fingers under the table. He shifted in his chair but kept a straight face. “How so?”

Miguel slammed his hands onto the table creating a loud thunder-like boom. Father Preston closed his eyes but opened them again after his initial shock. The guard who had been standing outside the door ran in quickly ready to diffuse the situation. Before he could speak, Father Preston raised his hand and shooed the guard away. The guard looked uncertain as he stepped from the room and closed the door again.

“If you would like to cut this visit short with your behavior then you are doing a fine job of it,” Father Preston scolded lightly.

Miguel relaxed in his chair and his features went back to as normal as he could get them. “I don't take lightly to liars.”

Father Preston's face was set in stone.

“I know you didn't 'take care' of what you said you took care of. I have sources that say someone else killed the b****. Publicly too,” Miguel leaned forward in his seat and searched for any clues on Father Preston's face.

Father Preston began to perspire. He wiped his forehead absentmindedly and his fingers began to twirl at a faster pace under the table. “All the same. She's six feet under now.”

“No, not all the same. We had an agreement and you failed. Do you know what happens to people who fail me?” Miguel's face looked like he was ready to hop over the table and strangle Father Preston to death.

Father shook his head.

Miguel laughed and took his finger and slid the side of it across his neck.

Father Preston grimaced, “I'm sure we can work something else out?” He asked almost pleadingly. It wasn't everyday that someone got under Father Preston's thick, very thick, skin.

Miguel sat back in his chair and pondered the thought for a moment.

Father Preston's fingers began to twirl slower than they had before. He could see on Miguel's face that the conversation would have come to this no matter what was said.

“You have one more chance...”

Father Preston nodded slowly. He would accept whatever task was thrown to him.

“I have word, that someone you know, will stick their nose where their nose does not belong. I want them 'taken care' of. No excuses. Do it or reap the consequences,” Miguel's face turned serious as he explained the job.

Father Preston nodded again. “Who?”

“Paige Davis.”

**************

“Mom,” I called to my mother. “Mooooommmm! You're passing it!” I exclaimed wildly. I tapped my fingers on the dashboard hoping to get her attention.

“Huh?” She asked finally realizing she had just tuned out on the twenty minutes I had been talking and had passed the store for my Midol.

“The Midol. You know, the little tiny white pills you take when you have cramps,” I said rolling my eyes. Why was she so out of it after talking to Father Preston?

“Oh sorry, honey. I'll drop you off at home then I'll go pick them up for you,” She said rubbing the bridge of her nose. She made a left turn into their neighborhood.

“Yeah, because that makes a lot of sense,” I said sarcastically,” You could have just turned around. Now I have to wait for you to go back out to get them.” I crossed my arms and sat back in my seat with a thud.

When the car pulled into the driveway, I jumped from the car and walked quickly into the house. I bypassed Franco who was cooking something in the kitchen and went straight to my room. I closed the door behind me and quickly pulled the cord on the blinds. The room plunged into semi-darkness. Grabbing a Tylenol from my dresser I threw one into my mouth, followed by water, and slipped into my bed. Not only were my cramps killing me but I had a headache that was becoming a nuisance. I heard the front door slam followed by another, softer thud, as my mother got into the car. It rumbled into life, then the sound faded. I snuggled down into my covers and waited for sleep to take me away.

I didn't know where I was. It was pitch black everywhere I looked and when I reached out my hands I couldn't feel anything. I took a couple of slow, cautious steps forward. I reached in front of me and this time I felt something. I ran my palm over whatever it was but I couldn't identify the object. I dragged my hand lower but this time I felt something. The object was moving back and forth very slightly...almost like it was breathing!

Before I could rip my hand away something grabbed a hold of me and held tight. I struggled to get away but the person's hand just gripped tighter. I wanted to scream but the sound caught in my throat. I began to lash out with my other hand and feet but I punched and kicked nothing but air.

In one swift movement the hand swung me forward with tremendous power. I didn't have a chance. I half stumbled, half fell forward. Before I knew it, I had fallen into some kind of hole.

In one moment I was tumbling through the air, the next I had slammed into something. There wasn't any pain and I didn't hit anything solid. It just felt like I fell into something soft, yet firm.

I was screaming. No, it wasn't me who was screaming, but someone else. I couldn't see them but I could hear them. Fear gripped me like a toddler having to go to their first day at school. This fear felt foreign like it wasn't my own. Pain exploded from my abdomen. It throbbed and pulsed as if it had its own life. I couldn't move either. I was bound by something all along my body.

What was going on?!

Something was ripped from my forehead and light hit my eyes. It went dark for a second then the light began to seep in slowly. The screams continued but now I was able to look around. I looked side to side but I couldn't identify where I was. Then I looked up and my screams instantly went up in pitch.

A woman was nailed to a cross. A sign hung from her neck “Honor Thy Mother and Father!”. Her blood ran in long lines down her naked body and the wood that kept her pinned there. The blood had collected at the base of the cross but I couldn't follow the path from where I was lying. My eyes went back up to her body, then to her face. The screams choked out into an angry sob and my body began to shudder like I was having a seizure.

“Gab-by!” The name was choked out as if it hurt me to say it. I felt something so terrible that I just wanted to die at that moment. I felt ultimate sorrow, like my heart was breaking.

I knew what was happening now. It seemed like a doorway had opened and all the questions I had been asking finally found their answers.

I was experiencing the kidnapping of this poor girl and the murder of her sister.

I didn't have time to feel sorry for the girl or to even think. Before I knew it, a man was standing over my body with a cold look in his face.

“You're next, sister.” His voice was so deep and it held so much hatred. It didn't feel like it was all for me though. It was like he had hatred for the whole world.

Dark blinded me again and I felt myself being dragged across the ground. It wasn't long before he picked me up and dropped me. I landed with a thud on a hard metal bed. Pain erupted from my arm but that was the least of my, well her problems. Something heavy was draped over me. An engine roared to life and I realized I was in a truck. There was nothing I could do but wait and hope for the best.

It felt like hours before he finally stopped the truck. I could hear music in the distance and bell sounds. There was someone talking somewhere close to me. I strained to hear what he was saying.

“'74 Chevy Muscle....nice, dude. How does she run?” Said a kid. A soft tapping noise made me think he was right next to the truck.

I couldn't hear a reply.

“Okay, man! Put it away! I didn't mean no harm! I just like your truck, dude!” His voice began to fade as if he was retreating quickly. Did the killer threaten him with something?

“Paige!”

I felt myself being dragged from her body. I wanted to fight. I wanted to stay with her. For some reason, it comforted me to know that she wasn't alone. I kept drifting upward. I took one more look down and I saw where he had stopped. A gas station. Speedway.

“Paige! Wake up!” Called my mother frantically.

I slapped into my own body and I instantly felt like someone was shaking me. My eyes opened slowly and my mother's face came into view.

“You were screaming, honey,” My mother said trying to sound calm. I could tell that she was really shaken up.

“I was wh-” Everything that I had seen and experienced hit me like a shovel. Tears began to well up in my eyes and I was having a lot of trouble breathing.

My mom wrapped me up in her arms and tried to shush the persistent tears and whimpering.

“Mom!...girl....t-t-the man...dragged...” I tried to tell her everything but it all came out as incoherent babble.

“What? I don't understand, honey. You aren't making sense,” She let go of me and sat arms length away so she could see my face. I could see the worry in her face along with despair. She already knew that I had had one of her 'dreams'.

“What did you...see?” She she tried to ask calmly but her voice broke and a tear ran down her face.

“T-the ki-ki-killer,” I stuttered out, “We...have...to...help...her...” I said the words slowly so I could get the whole sentence out.

“We'll go to the police first thing...They'll find her. I promise,” She said soothingly.

I shook my head violently. If the police hadn't been able to find him, they never would. It was up to me to find the woman. I felt like I owed it to her. I was apart of her and I had to find her. Had to. The police would take to long.

“Paige we have to. Did you see what he looked like? Where he was?” My mother asked with hope in her voice.

I shook my head. Lying hadn't been the way I was going to handle this, but it didn't seem like my mother was on board or even realized the connection I had to this woman.

“I have to do something,” I said my voice growing with strength.

Now it was her turn to shake her head violently, “No. It's too dangerous. The police will handle it,” She said sternly.

I knew this was the end to the conversation but it wasn't the end for me. I'd just have to do it alone. I could do this. I already knew where to start.