Even though the tension in the room was suffocating, my parents and I managed to come up with a plausible story for my disappearance. We predicted all of the questions and created the answers. Bethany informed the police that I was discharged and was finally ready to be interrogated. How she got a doctor to play along with the act is beyond me. They came to the house, a man and a woman, and spoke as if not to scare me away. They revised the pictures of my wounds and inquired about every single detail: who they were, their appearance, and what they wanted. I answered as truthfully as I could, except for the purpose of my abduction. I played the role of the devastated victim: fragile, defeated, and heartbroken, to prevent them from confronting me. My parents stood beside me, one on each side, encouraging and aiding the scenario of the destroyed family coming together. It takes us about 2 hours before they're satisfied, though I doubt this will be the last time I hear from them. Onc

Today, I see the graves. Today, I finally say goodbye. And so, I'm all nervous energy, walking around my room aimlessly, just trying to calm down. I barely slept, too afraid of the monsters lying waiting for me with open mouths and sharp teeth.Devin and my parents have tried in vain to calm me down these past couple of days. I can see the worry that oozes off them in waves. Even though being near them is a welcoming distraction, it's not enough. As the hands of the clock get closer to the desired time, my heart escalates to an alarming rhythm, the blood quickly traveling through my veins, rushing, screaming, begging for relief. My mind is so scattered that I've successfully tricked myself into believing that the scars on my back are open. I keep glancing at the mirror to assure myself it's only an illusion. The hallucination is so real that the scent of blood tickles my nose, and my back burns exactly like it did all those days of torture. My brain keeps balancing between past and

"What happened at the station?" My mother asks, abruptly rescuing me from my wandering mind. We walk through the empty streets on our way to the cemetery side by side. The air is filled with tension and dread, mostly mine. "Nothing," I reply quickly. She turns to me and gives me the look. The one that says that I'm not fooling her. "It's a bad day," I justify. I can't see she's not happy, but she doesn't force me to say anything else. And all too soon we reach the black iron gates. My steps falter as my heart gallops straight to my throat. "We don't have to do this now. We can come back another time," my mother says noticing my hesitation.I shake my head vehemently. "Let's go," I say with no determination. We navigate through the cemetery, each step weighing more than the previous, my blood rushing, my eyes burning, my breaths shallow, and then... then I find them. The sight brings me to my knees in front of them. My mother attempts to grab me, but I'm in a distant world, so