I leave Vincent, shaking off any doubt I have about him, he's a liar.

"Lana, the cops have questions."

I jump at her voice, my nerves are damn shot, my senses for some reason were really high, I could practically hear my heart pounding in my chest.

"Sorry baby." She pushes my fiery red hair behind my ear.

I shake my head, swallowing some of my saliva to coat my dry mouth. "It's alright, I just feel really out of it."

"I know. If you don't wish to talk with the police it's alright, we can wait until you're ready."

"No, it's okay. I want to help." Even if Penny and I weren't close, she was still apart of my circle she deserved better than this.

My mom walks me to where one of the officers emerges from the dense dark forest. His short strides, take him sometime to reach us, even though he's actually quite tall.

"You must be Lana, I just have a few questions if you don't mind." He's maybe in his thirties, with dusty blonde hair, his glasses slide down his crooked nose, he pushes them back up as he flips open a small black booklet. His sloppy handwriting is all I see as he flips to a fresh page.

"Yes that's me. I'll try to answer as many questions as possible." I will try to tell the truth as close as possible, to hide the fact that magic was involved.

"Were you close with Penny." He takes me off guard, his quick comment is straight forward, I guess there's no need for a icebreaker with a cop.

Just be honest Lana. "No, not really, we went to school together since we were young. Our parents know each other and we get together sometimes but we weren't as close as some of the other girls." That's a good enough answer, better than I thought I could come up with.

He nods his head, writing down on his little notepad. "When and why did Penny leave to go inside the forest?"

I want to sigh, he must already know this, "Around ten, she had to use the bathroom, Clara accompanied her. When we heard the screams we went in looking for her."

He knowingly shakes his head again. "She did not have to use the bathroom, correct."

I don't dare look away from him, "No they didn't, they planned on scaring me the whole time, as me and the others went into the forest to search for them, the others left. Leaving me and Vincent alone."

I finally look away, still hurt by the way the circle would treat me, even now.

"That must have hurt you in some way, knowing childhood friends would play a joke on you like that." I plastered the best look of passive as possible,

I know what he's trying to do, he thinks it might have been me. "It was harmless, they never even found me before I found Penny. I was walking with Vincent when I felt, what I thought was water but...it-it was blood. Her blood and then they come out of the woods trying to scare me but I was already terrified." My vision had already trained out of focus, everything around me blurred. All I could see was Penny, her lifeless body above me.

"Lana..honey."

I snap out of the daze, knowing I have tears on my cheeks I wipe them away.

"Sorry, you can continue Officer."

He's studying me know, seeing if the tears are genuine. "Thank you Lana, you may go but you may need to come to the station to repeat what you've told me."

"Okay." I whisper.

He thanks my mother then leaves, ready to question everyone else but it couldn't have been them. What happened to Penny has happened the same way to three other people. The cops are just covering it up, not wanting to start a panic.

"Lana."

Its Jade.

I turn to her, expecting her to hate me and to believe I had something to do with it.

"I'm sorry." She cries then leaves not finishing the rest of what she had to say.

I know what they did hurt me and I felt anger toward them but I can't hate them. The person that I am, I feel no hatred towards her, what happened could happen at any time it just made whoever did this have an easy target.

My mother talks with Penny's mother, patting her back as she cries onto her shoulder.

I watch as Savanna breaks free of the dark forest, gliding to my mother's side.

They speak in hushed voices, being careful of their use of words around the police officers. I want to hear them but I'm too tired to conjure up a spell of listening.

I run my fingers through my long hair, feeling a headache form at my temples.

I look up in time to see Savanna walk to me, she gestures behind me and soon I can feel Vincent behind me. I don't make eye contact even when he stares directly at me.

"I will send Sha Mia to investigate the small clearing surrounding the oak tree. Vincent your powers are just surfacing, I do trust your instincts but I will feel that it is right for Sha Mia to see what she sees." He nods his head, not seeming offended at all by her words.

"As for you Lana, I am terribly sorry you had to be the one to find her as she was," I thank her, still not feeling any different on what I saw. "Penny will have a proper burial one that connects her to her element and will help her pass over. Where she will be one with Hekate and in peace. These killings I'm afraid are not unnatural, no one will travel alone, is that understood."

I want to ask her why she thinks the person who did this will come after us again, by the pattern of this killer they move on and quickly to kill their next victim. By the sound of her voice it's a message to all of us, she means what she says, its binding and will not be broken. She wants to protect us but seeing as how she's acting she must know something even if it's something small.

"I understand Sister."

Vincent also agrees, I know he sees she's hiding something, his eyes find mine, a silent message that he tries to pass to me is interrupted by my mother.

"Is it time for us to leave, Lana has been through enough today. I would like to take my daughter home."

"Yes you may leave though the police may ask you to the station for further questioning. We will also carry a ceremony for our circle member, tomorrow we will meet in the clearing." Savanna glances at me, then walks away.

My mother takes ahold of my hand, pulling me to where she parked the car.

"Goodbye Vincent." She says politely.

"Night Ms. Childs." He looks to me. "Good night Lana."

"Night.' I whisper.

I walk with my mother, unable to help myself I ask my her the question that's bothering me.

"Who's doing this mom, I know Savanna must have told you."

She sighs. "Your curiosity will one day bite you in the behind Lana."

I ignore her stalling, waiting for her to speak to me, for real this time, no hiding the truth anymore.

"We think and it's really just a guess but we believe it's a blood user."

A blood user, they haven't been heard of since the war, hundreds of years ago. We supposedly wiped them from existents. They stood for everything we believed highly against, they multiplated and played with what made them human. "Wait as in blood magick."

Her voice is so quiet as she speaks, "Yes Lana, blood magick."

"That's insane mom." I mean if it was in fact blood magick there would be traces left behind like what Vincent spoke of, like a footprint.

She shrugs. "Like I said Lana, it's just a guess, Savanna is very hurt with losing someone so young in the circle, she's never had to experience loss of this kind. She's trying to be the best leader she can be and if that means being cautious then so be it."

She has a point. Savanna is a great leader well until very recently that she'd have me not know of what's been going on with me.

I am still very curious about that and my theory on the voice being Hekate, it's never been heard of the one who gifted you powers doesn't just go around talking to anyone.

"Lana are upset with Vincent." She interrupts my ranting, when I'm nervous or scared I rant, deep in thought.

"Um, no. Why would you ask that?"

She smiles, "I think he is a nice boy, you should be more nice to him baby."

Yeah, wouldn't you all like that, "Yeah I guess."

She wraps her arm around my shoulder bringing me to her chest as we finish our walk to the car.

I wipe my face, knowing the not liquid was not from the sky. Blood soaks my clothes, it runs down my face as try wipe it from my hands but it feels endless. I scream for someone to help me, to get me away from the cloud that rains down only my blood. No voice is heard but my own, my cries for hope drown out as the rain of blood intensifies smacking down on the ground loudly. I turn in a circle finding someway to release myself from this torture that's when I see her.

"Penny."

She glides to where I stand her feet not touching the ground as she moves forward, when she stops just a foot away she begins to cry.

"I'm scared Lana." She hiccups, wiling away tears of blood.

"Me too." I whisper.

She peers down to the grassy floor, "I'm sorry for how I treated you, I guess I get what I deserve."

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "Penny don't blame yourself for what happened to you! Whoever did this is-"

"Coming! You have to go, wake up Lana! Wake up!" She rushes me throwing me to the ground, blood pours into my mouth, into my nose and ears. I struggle for breath as she forces me down and into the pool of hot thick blood.

I intake a deep breath forcing air into my lungs, I wipe the sweat that coats my forehead clicking on the bedside lamp to help with my nerves.

It was a dream, nothing but a dream, I wipe away my tears panicking when I see red. I stand running to my bathroom, Lucifer modes in protest as I launch him off my blanket. Turning on the light I stare at my reflection and see no trace of blood, just clear salty tears.

What's happening to me?

Lucifer jumps onto the sink startling me, I smile and pet his soft fur, I turn on the faucet letting water trickle out so he can drink. It's the only way he'll take his water. He meows a thank you, licking my hand with a soft pure before indulging in his small waterfall.

I leave him only to check the time on my phone, five thirty, I won't be able to fall back to sleep so I walk to the kitchen and out the backyard.

The air is calm, no real breeze is up just yet so I sit in comfort on the small swing bench. I watch the tree line, the sun peeking out just enough to bring me some light as it wakes up.

Bringing my knees to my chest I lay my head on my arms allowing the rocking bench to relax my nightmarish dreams.

"Lana."

My eyes snap open finding Vincent at our garden gate. I glare at him not liking him here spying on me.

"What are doing here Vincent?" I stand making my way over to him, careful of my mom's fruits and vegetables.

"I wanted to see if you were alright." His dark eyes follow me then they travel down my chest and legs.

I flush aware that I am in my pajamas, nothing but a skimpy tank top and shorts. I shield my chest from his view, "Well I'm fine, you can leave now."

I storm away from him, not wanting to talk with anyone right now especially in my pajamas.

I hear the sound of the old wooden gate creaking open as he walks inside my backyard, "Just here me out."

"Go away." I couldn't possibly think about anything else but that dream, the voice that enters my head and now he wants to talk about what that he's sorry for lying to me.

His hand grasps my elbow, stopping me from entering the house, "I'm sorry I lied to you Lana."

He's sorry I knew it, sorry won't cut the fact that he let me believe I was stupid and naive enough not to find out about what was happening to me.

"I can't trust you, don't you see that." I glance behind me, watching his eyes sadden. "I thought I could but when she showed me that you all lied, I couldn't believe it. My own mother won't even tell me what happened that day in the clearing."

They can say all they want, that it was to protect me and the circle, I deserve the truth no matter the consequences.

"Savanna made us promise we wouldn't tell, she bounded us to our word Lana. You know something like that couldn't be broken but now that you know I am voided of this binding. I wanted to tell you, I did when you said you wanted to see the bookkeeper I knew you found out and then you confirmed it that night at the bonfire."

His hand squeezes my elbow lightly, his thumb forming a circle on my forearm I don't think he knew he was doing it, "I just want to help you, with your elements and the voice in your head."

That stupid spell of truth is annoyingly telling me he is in fact telling me the truth.

"What about Penny?" I asked, I couldn't help but feel tears run down my cheek.

He sighs, brushing my hair from my face, "Your nightmares too."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Until next time,

-Ash
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