CHAPTER FIVE

(…a nightmare)

Sherlyn's POV

It was a tranquil night. The hot steam from the golden bathtub in which she sat, soothed her skin and made her nerves relaxed. She closed her eyes to relish the rosy scent of beautifully lit candles arranged around the edges of the tub and the floaty feel that engulfed her essense. She adjusted her depths into the bath, till the lather brushed the base of her chin, allowing  most of her red hair to be submerged in the warmth. Suddenly, an urgent charge dropped in her mind link,

“Wherever you're, leave. Right now”

She flung her eyes open in terror.

“Leave the premise”, the masculine voice urged again.

It was her father. She got up immediately as she unwrapped the white towel around her head to cover her dripping nudity. Her father rarely used mind link to communicate except in times of unavoidable danger. She dashed to the front of the large mirror opposite the tub and dabbed her wet hair hastily with the hem of the towel.

“Who are they? What's going on, Dad?“, She asked.

“There's no time for questions, Sherlyn. Find your brother and leave the premise with…”, there was an abrupt break in his message. 

Sherlyn, whose breathing had gotten heavier, slipped hastily into a loose jean pants and a sleeveless black top hanging on a chair. She ran out of the door, but entered back into the room and put on a black fluffy slide slippers under the bed. She peeped through the steel railings. There was no sight of anyone. She opened the next white door and found a little boy sitting curled up on the floor and holding a stuffed grey wolf in his grip. He ran towards her with a damp face that was weary of tears. She embraced him briefly and held on to his tiny wrist.

“Where's dad?“, he asked with a loud sniff.

“Shhh. I don't know, but  I think he's in trouble”, she whispered.

“Are they going to kill him like they killed mum?“, he winced.

“Just stay quiet and follow me”, she hushed, suppressing the grief of her mother's death, as she scanned the empty hallways.

They approached a small store room and lead towards a tiny window-sized opening on the wall with a metal ladder that led downwards.

“You go first, Mike”, she collected the stuffed wolf from his grip.

He climbed the rusted sill and began a slow paddle downwards. Sherlyn followed after him, holding the stuffed animal under her armpits—he couldn't do without it. They landed into a dark room with a dim reflection from the entrance where a solar light stood. Sherlyn lead the way to the entrance, and moved towards the descending stairs. She noticed a faint shadow lurking by the sharp corner from where they stood. She pushed Mike backwards, shutting his mouth with her palms. There were indistinct voices, like two men arguing in tensed whispers. They both stood still, waiting for a perfect time for an escape. Warm trickles travelled down into her palms before she noticed the fright in her brother's eyes. She released her hands over his mouth and squatted to his level.

“I'm going to protect you. Nothing will happen to you as long as you stay quiet, okay?”, she assured softly as the little boy nodded sheepishly in agreement.

The voices had stopped. They ran swiftly towards an underground garage nearby and stopped by a dark corner, away from the orange light source that revealed fleet of cars. 

“Stay here. I'll be back”, she warned.

“Don't leave me”, Mike trembled again.

“I promise, I'll be back. Sit here. No one will find you”. 

He cowered backwards and squeezed in the stuffed wolf as she tiptoed towards the garage exit that led to the front porch of the mansion, declining her father's warning. 

She tried so hard to use her mind link, but a very strong obstruction bounced back the frequency. The building was strangely scanty. Not even the sight of a guard came to her rescue. She continued towards the corners of the house, looking through the large arched windows in search of her father. 

“Never!, Not in my lifetime”, a voice said. She was certain it was her father. She moved towards the direction of the sound in horror. 

“You leave me with no choice, George. I never take no for an answer.” another dreadful voice replied.

She flattened her back against the wall to get a glimpse of the face without being caught. At her first attempt, the sight of the back view of her father tied strangely to a chair, sent chills into her. He was the only family she knew and had, aside her brother, she wasn't ready for another loss. She wondered what the man wanted and tried to get a view of his face. She made another quick attempt. A tall man, without a visible face, clothed in black, from his mafia hat down to the cloak, stood in front of her helpless father. He had the aura of a ruthless Alpha, judging from his mannerisms. 

“I ask for the last time, George. Sign the papers and live the rest of your life in peace. I always get what I want, either ways. You should find yourself lucky to have me request for it rather than the forceful way.“, he threatened, lighting up a tobacco pipe hanging on the side of his mouth.

“Your days are numbered and your dirty secrets will be revealed. My daughter doesn't deserve a beast like you. The thought of it alone irks the hell of me. You belong in the dungeon ”, her father replied angrily.

“Watch your mouth or you'll join your wife sooner than you expect. How many casualties are you willing to record before you quit your stubbornness, George? After all I did for you. Look how much luxury you have all because of m..“

“I worked hard for everything I have, Pablo!, all by myself!“, her father interrupted with boiling anger.

“Quiet!“, he struck her father with a wind-like force, that made him fall miserably to the ground along with the chair. “You call me, Master! And how stupid of you to think you deserved the promotion. Hadn't it been for me, you would have been demoted a long time ago. No one keeps a half-breed like you in top positions for long!”, he threw continuous sparks at her father's quivering body.

The whizzing breath from her father provoked uncontrollable tears from her as sparks flew from the man's fingertip, causing a ceaseless vibration. She lost control of herself and yelled from the window,

“Stop!“

Immediately, the sparks ceased and two orange-slit eyes gleamed at her.

“Excellent! There she is”, he exclaimed, approaching the window swiftly, as though unaffected by gravity.

“Get away from her!“, her father panicked, wriggling his body fiercely from the magic's grip.

“A beautiful way to celebrate your Eighteenth birthday, darling”, he laughed maniacally.

Before Sherlyn could escape, a wild force lifted her, and slammed her against the window. There were loud shatterings and a shrill cry consumed the air. She felt a sharp pain in her rib cage as she tried to pull herself up. 

“Your father must have said alot about me… Oh! He didn't? Allow me introduce myself. The greatest wizard, sixth order of the Phoenix, Pablo Martinez, but You Call me Master. Your kind is not worthy of my name”, he bragged. 

The strong smoke from his pipe coupled with the effect of the impact made her dizzy as he hovered rotationally around her. She regretted not obeying her father, but she also couldn't watch him die cheaply, in the hands of a power-hungry lunatic.

He swiped his index finger over the trickle of blood flowing from the sides of her head, and placed a drop in his tongue, “Let's talk about your special powers, my dear“

A tight band fastened the sides of her head together, pressing her mind into unconsciousness, when a familiar voice called out to her, pulling her shoulders upwards,

“Sherlyn”