Chapter 15

Alice looked confused at her surroundings. She could hear the voices of children but could not see them.

“Tag your it.” The Children's voices echoed through the hallway. Alice looked down at her clothes. “This can’t be…” Alice jerked her head up and noticed her surroundings had changed. She looked around and noticed she was in her old room in the orphanage. She looked at the full body-length mirror against the wall and slowly walked up to it. Two big young eyes stared back at her. Her hair hung loosely over her shoulders. Alice reached for her hair and twirled it around her finger. She stared astonished at her younger self in the mirror. Her younger self suddenly smiled back at her. Alice reached for the mirror. Her younger self reflects her action. Alice's fingers pressed against the mirror. She jerked her head to the door as she heard children screaming. She looked terrified back at her younger self. Her younger self stared back with tears running down her cheeks. It was like the pain in her soul was showing through each tear. Alice felt her younger self's pain as if it was her own. The once-clear tears turned into blood. Alice instantly reached for her cheeks as she felt them running on her own face. Alice looked down at her fingertips and saw them coated in blood. She frantically wiped it on her clothes but the more she wiped her fingers the more the blood increased on her hand. “Why won’t it come off?” Alice jerked her head up to her younger self, “Why doesn’t it want to come off?” Alice screamed at her younger self. Her younger self shook her head and pointed at Alice. “What? What are you pointing at.” Alice turned and looked behind her. “There is no one behind me! Who are you pointing at?” Alice screamed historically. Her younger self shook her head again and pointed at Alice again. “Me? You are pointing at me?” Younger self nodded. “Why?” Alice asked with a wail. The screams of the children grew louder outside. Alice glanced at the door and then looked back at the mirror. The anxiousness running through her was unbearable. She banged on the mirror. “Where are you? Come back! You did not answer me! Come back.” Alice slid to the floor, her hand leaving a blood trail on the mirror. She banged her head against the mirror.

 

Bang Bang Bang. Gunshots echoed through the air. Alice looked to the door and then started to stumble as she tried to get to her feet and run out of the door. The hallway she was previously in that was empty, now laid full of children's bodies. Her breathing increased as she looked at the bloodied children lying cold on the floor.

“NO!!!NO!!! NO!!! Alice screamed as she slid to the floor while gripping her hair. She felt a pull on her leg, her eyes shot open as she looked at her leg. Sally her once childhood friend which she befriended when Kevin got adopted, looked at her with sorrowful eyes. Sally mouthed something but Alice could not make out her words. She turned to Sally and picked Sally up and start searching for the bullet wound. But the blood just came pouring out everywhere.

“Alice…” Sally said in a barely hearable voice.

Alice leaned forward and held her ear near Sally’s mouth.

“Please repeat what you said.”

“You killed us.”

Alice looked horrified at Sally.

“What? No… “

Sally nodded with dismay visible in her eyes. It was as if Alice could feel Sally’s pain as her own.

“No, I did not. They did this to you. They did this.”

“But they are your people, Alice.” Sally’s voice suddenly got louder and clearer. “You are one of them! You killed us- you killed us - you killed us…”

Alice looked up and saw all the children who were previously lying lifeless screaming out together, repeating those words over and over. Alice jerked her head around the room. Their eyes. Their haunting eyes bored into Alice’s soul.

“No! No! I will avenge you. I will.”

“You can't even avenge Kevin, Alice. How will you avenge us?” Sally asked in an ugly angered voice.

Alice eyes widened as she looked at Sally’s face that had changed into something horrible. She jerked her hands off Sally and crawled backward.

“NO. That’s not true!” Alice pulled her legs to her chest and pressed her face against her knees. Alice held her hands over her ears to muffle out the screams.

Alice slowly lifted her head when the screaming faded. She was now surrounded by darkness. Her breathing increased as the smell she was so known to as a child, invaded her nostrils.

“No- No. Not this room! Why am I back in this room?” She crawled over to the door and banged on it. “Let me out!” AHHHHH! LET ME OUT!”

The door opened. Her heartbeat increased. Khan crouched down in front of her. She grabbed for his hand, but he dodged it and let it fall to the floor.

“Khan? What …” She looked past him and saw her father standing behind him laughing.

She looked back at Khan confused.

“What is going on Khan?”

Khan stood up. He did not answer but looked down at her with a smirk. He shoved his hands in his pockets. Khan turned around and walked away.

“Khan! Khan! Khan!” Alice kept screaming.

Alice sat upright in bed, covered in sweat. She roughly wiped the tears away and breathed rapidly. Her eyes darted around the hotel room. She released a breath of relief. “It was only a dream Alice, only a dream.” She repeated to herself.

‘It has been a long time since I dreamed about the children being killed in the orphanage. Why do I have this uneasy feeling in my chest that it meant something?’ She thought to herself.

Alice did not dare to close her eyes again and sat awake the rest of the night.