Crossroads Read online

  “Thank God. I didn’t want to be late on my first day.” I was relieved that I had just made it in time as I hugged her back.

  “Now, let me show you around,” she said enthusiastically.

  As she spoke, I tuned out and observed the high ceiling and the huge size of the store. I guess I hadn’t realized how big it was before. With this newfound interest, I observed where everything was: the bathroom, dressing rooms, storage room, light and music on-and-off switch, and the cash register, before Patty even pointed them out to me. Not only was it bright from all the lights, there was also a sense of comfort…maybe it was because Patty was around. Regardless, I was thrilled to be working and spending time with my best friend at the same time. Patty was right, what more could I ask for?

  As Patty continued to talk, I noticed a few customers rummaging through the clothing racks. I also noticed a teenager in front of a mirror holding one of our shirts in front of her. As we passed her, Patty made a comment.

  “That shirt would look really cute on you. Would you like to try it on? I’ll take you to the dressing room, so you can see for yourself. My name is Patty, what’s your name?”

  “Clara,” she said with spunk, obviously happy to have someone at her beck and call.

  I followed them to the dressing room.

  “Watch this,” Patty whispered. When Clara came out with her new shirt on, Patty practically dropped her jaw with exaggeration, “Oh my gosh! You look sooo cute!”

  “Yeah, I like it,” Clara smiled, as she admired herself in the mirror.

  “Like it?” Patty’s tone begged Clara to say more.

  “Okay, I love it…and…I’ll take it,” Clara said, wanting to please Patty.

  “Great, let’s take a look at some jeans to go with it. And we’re having a sale on some jewelry as well.”

  Clara followed her like a lost puppy, and soon we were at the cash register. She bought two pairs of jeans, because she was undecided, three shirts, and a long chained silver necklace. Patty was such the saleslady. I helped her stuff the items into the Fashion Wear bag, a cheap gray plastic bag with the FW logo on it.

  Patty looked into Clara’s eyes with a big smile and said, “Thank you, Clara. Come again soon, and I’ll help you with anything you need.”

  Clara looked so pleased and by now probably worshipped Patty for her expertise in fashion.

  “Thank you, Patty, for everything. And don’t worry, I’ll come again soon. You were so helpful and very attentive.”

  Clara was gleaming with happiness and held the bag close to her, as if she had diamonds in it. After Clara walked out, Patty turned to me proudly and said, “And that’s how you do it!”

  “You were fabulous!” I said excitedly, thinking I had a lot of learning to do.

  She giggled. “Thank you. With practice you’ll be as good as me…well, almost,” she teased.

  “Maybe better,” I teased back.

  She gave a fake frown, and nudged my shoulder playfully and said, “It’s always busy like this on Saturdays, but it makes the time go faster. Having fun?”

  As I nudged her back, I replied, “I was so excited to actually have a job, and I didn’t know what to expect, but it’s so cool working with you. And you, my friend, are an awesome saleslady. Thank you for getting me this job.” I smiled.

  “Thank you, my friend, for telling me that I’m awesome. But you got the job yourself.” She smiled back and bowed gracefully and walked away to attend to another customer.

  “Regardless, thank you,” I said, but I didn’t even know if she heard me.

  Throughout the day, I watched Patty work her magic. The day went by in a flash. I couldn’t believe it when the clock said it was almost nine o’clock.

  Patty’s cell phone rang, and she answered. “Hi, Mom. You’re what? HHHow? I’m almost done. But, I…now? Okay, bye.” She ran toward me looking very upset and confused. “My mom locked herself out, and she left the stove on. I’ve gotta go, but I’m suppose to lock up, or maybe you can, or…I don’t know. I’ve gotta go. What should I do?”

  “Calm down, Patty.” I placed both of my hands on her shoulders. I caught on to what she was trying to tell me. “Don’t worry. Show me how to lock up and go. I’ll be fine. I just have to be here fifteen minutes and then lock up. No biggy. Just don’t tell my mom I was here by myself, okay?”

  She nodded quickly. “Okay. I’ll make this fast. It’s really easy. Nothing to it,” she said, rushing. She opened the cash register and took out a key. “Use this spare key for tonight. Don’t forget to bring it back with you tomorrow.” Then she pulled me toward the entrance door. “Push this red button to activate the alarm, walk out, and lock the door.”

  “That’s it?” I asked.

  “That’s it,” she repeated. “Thanks, I owe you big time. Just text or call me if you need any help, and text me when you get home, or I’ll worry, Okay?” She sounded frazzled as she looked at me for approval.

  “Don’t worry. Just go,” I said. “What could happen in fifteen minutes?”

  “I’m so sorry. Your first day at work and I have to leave you. Gosh, what was my mom thinking! Ahhh! I’m so mad at her right now.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Don’t be mad at her. She didn’t do it on purpose. I’m a big girl,” I said, smiling. “Now, go!” I said sternly. I practically shoved her out the door. Patty gave me a tight squeeze and left. Off she went pedaling as fast as she could. For her sake, I hoped she didn’t hit all the red lights.

  Fifteen minutes usually passes with a snap of a finger, so I waited for customers to enter while I paced through the rack of clothes, looking for something that might catch my eye. At least the music was keeping me company, but not a single customer walked through the door. Fourteen minutes. Thirteen minutes. I decided not to look at the clock every minute, but the longer I stayed here alone, the more anxious I started to feel.

  Suddenly, I heard a loud BAM! It sounded like one of the dressing room doors had closed itself.

  Stay calm. It’s nothing. It’s just the wind, I told myself.

  I couldn’t recall a customer being in one of the dressing rooms, so I guessed the door must have closed from the breeze that was coming from the air vent. Feeling more frightened than before, I quickly glanced at the clock. I decided to close five minutes early since nobody would notice, and that was when the music stopped.

  I froze. My heart skipped a beat. It was like I was in a scary movie. I ran to switch the music button back on, then remembered that the control panel was located inside the dressing area. I stopped when I got near the door. I didn’t want to go in there, but I had to prove to myself that it was a coincidence, and that the music was probably on a timer set to turn off at a given time.

  As I slowly walked in, I looked around the five dressing rooms and saw that all the doors were closed. I was able to spot the switch quickly, as I remembered Patty pointing to the wall right next to the first dressing room. Just as I reached for the switch, the lights went off; it was pitch-black.

  What was going on? This couldn’t be happening. Maybe Patty forgot to tell me that the lights went off automatically. There had to be a reasonable explanation for this. Although I could see some dim lights from the parking lot glimmering through the windows, it was still dark, and I could barely make anything out. Then I heard a soft eerie voice call my name. “Claudia…”

  I didn’t answer. I thought I was losing my mind. Then I heard my name being called again in the same creepy voice. “Claudia…”

  Hearing my name for the second time was a sure sign that I was not delusional. Immediately I panicked. I knew for a fact that there was no one here except me. I calmed down and decided to answer, thinking that maybe Patty was playing a joke on me. “He…ellooo. Anyone there?” I asked quietly.

  “Claudia, commme.”

  “Who are you? How do you know my name?” I demanded. “Patty, is that you? You can stop now! I’m on to you! It’s not funny anymore! You’re scaring me!” I
was envisioning Patty turning on the lights, laughing, and telling me it was her way of initiating a new employee. Please let it be her, I prayed.

  “Follow the light,” the voice continued, ignoring my request.

  When it spoke again, I knew with certainty that it wasn’t Patty’s voice. The voice was very enticing and for some unknown reason, I wanted to go to it, even though I was scared for my life. Suddenly I was in a hypnotic state; I had no control of where I was going, though I could see and hear everything around me.

  “Claudia, Claudia…come to me.”

  I was walking toward the light, which was glowing around a door. As I placed my hand on the doorknob, the bright light began to fade. I didn’t want to move, but my body and mind were not in sync. I could see my hand twisting the doorknob, even though I was screaming inside telling myself not to open it. I could no longer resist, and I succumbed to the calling that would lead me into the darkness.

  As I obediently walked into the room, the door behind me slammed shut. The loud bang jolted me out of the trance, leaving me to wonder why I was there. Immediately I turned to open the door, but it wouldn’t budge. Twisting, pulling, and turning the knob every way possible was useless. With my back against the door, I searched the pockets of my jeans, only to realize I had left my cell phone next to the register. What could happen in fifteen minutes? I remembered telling Patty. I should’ve kept my mouth shut.

  Feeling hopeless, I suddenly noticed something glowing down low, just adjacent to the door. It was something other than the moonlight beaming through the small window. Something was plugged into the wall, and the tip of it was bright so that you could spot it easily. As I reached to examine it with my hand, I was relieved to find that it was an emergency flashlight. I had never been so happy to see one. I grabbed it and looked around to see where I stood. Several tables were lined in the middle of this huge room with stacked clothes: jeans, T-shirts, dresses, and much more. I would have never guessed the storage room would be this big.

  As I walked closer to the tables, I thought I saw someone or something. A rush of fear swept over me, and every nerve in my body awakened.

  “Who are you? What do you want?” I said out loud, holding the flashlight closer and tighter to my chest as I trembled with fright. But there was no response.

  I couldn’t tell what it was at first, until it whooshed past me, almost knocking me over. My heart started thumping faster. A black cloud of fog was what I thought I saw. My eyes were glued to it as it swooped up to the high ceiling and then disappeared. Was it a ghost? I couldn’t believe what I had just seen, but there was something definitely there, something menacing. As it materialized again and whooshed past me, I used the flashlight to hit it, hoping to knock it out or hurt it. But the flashlight went right through it. At that moment, the courage to fight back vanished.

  Suddenly the room became extremely cold. It was so cold that I could see the mist flow out of my mouth as my breath became heavy with fear. Shivering, I hugged myself as I tried to find something, anything, to keep me warm. Then I thought of running to the window to scream as loudly as I possibly could in hopes that someone would hear me.

  As I turned to run, the clothes on the table came flying toward me. I screamed out loud in panic. Using both arms to cover my face, I tried to reach for the door again. Even though I knew I wouldn’t be able to open it, it was the only way out. I was confused, and I didn’t know which way to go.

  Suddenly the black cloud came at me even faster and harder. I kept backing away, shielding myself with my arm as I tried to escape, but it was relentless. It knocked the wind out of me, and I was gasping for air. Then it stopped. Feeling breathless and disoriented, I rubbed my sore arm and looked around.

  Realizing I was now at the opposite end of the room from the door, I backed away slowly, taking one baby step at a time, afraid that it may sense my movement again. When I thought I had backed far enough away, I dashed for the door. That was when I felt something cold at my feet. It was already freezing in the room, but this coldness was directed solely at my feet, and the pain stung right through to my bones. I tried to run again, but it was no use. It felt like my feet were cemented to the ground. When I looked down, a long black fog that looked like a slithering headless anaconda started circling me.

  The fog took the form of a snake, the thing I feared most. The one thing that would make my skin crawl inside and out was now taunting me, like I was about to be its next meal. The farther it moved upwards, the farther the coldness and the pain spread. As I stood there like a statue, a single nerve jolted through my body like lightning from my head to my toes. I tried to control my panic as my whole body trembled from the cold and fright. Trying to fight back, I looked around to see if there was anything I could use to defend myself against this attack, anything but this useless flashlight and my sore arm, but there was nothing.

  The black smoke finally showed its face, but only for a split second before disappearing. Just a glance at the monstrous black face and demonic yellow eyes was enough to paralyze me. The fog seemed to be getting pleasure out of making my blood race with fear, teasing and taunting, shifting back and forth from a fog-like form to a snake. When it became the snake, it took a solid form with its red tongue slithering in and out, looking for the perfect place on my body to strike.

  It began to squeeze tighter again, and I could no longer feel my legs. Blood rushed to my head, and I was certain death would be next. I wanted to grab the head of the snake, but I couldn’t. The thought of touching it made me cringe, and I knew my hands would simply go right through it just as the flashlight had. Besides, I was a mere human next to this creature of immense power. There was no way I would win.

  Let this be a dream, I prayed. Things like this didn’t happen in real life. I needed to find a way to wake up. Wake up! Wake up! Help! Somebody help me! I screamed inside.

  “No one can help you,” it hissed wickedly.

  I was so astonished to hear it speak that I was speechless. Then it hit me; hearing the snake fog or whatever it was speak to me was a sure sign that I was dreaming. Any minute now, I would wake up from this nightmare.

  “I’ve finally found you,” it spoke again.

  I didn’t wake up, and all I wanted to do was scream at the top of my lungs, but I couldn’t. All I could do was scream inside my head. “I’m dreaming. I’m dreaming. Go away! Please, go away!” I finally managed to say in a hoarse whisper.

  “Hisss. This isn’t a dream, Claudia. I’ve been looking for you.”

  How did it know my name? What was it saying? It didn’t make any sense.

  “I’m going to enjoy you, slowly. I could end this in one strike to your heart, but I was ordered to bring you in alive. So, I am going to savor your moments of suffering. Each strike will deliver just enough poison to make you feel pain so intense, you will be begging me for death; but don’t worry, I won’t kill you. I just want to have a little fun before I bring you in. Let’s play!”

  Who would order her to bring me in? It didn’t matter. I would rather die than be in the hands of who knows what. This was it. This was how I was going to leave this Earth. I was looking death right in the eye, and there was no one here to help me. I could imagine Patty finding me, and the guilt that would consume her for leaving me here alone. And my poor mom and Gamma, I was all they had. I would be another tragic death my mom would have to bear that would break her heart. As I closed my eyes to let fate take over, the creature positioned itself and was ready to strike.

  “Please forgive me for all the wrong I have done,” I prayed, hoping that the life I lived and the person I was would be enough to take my soul to a peaceful place, a Heavenly place.

  “Hisss. How sweet, almost sad. God can’t help you now.” It was mocking me.

  I opened my eyes again, hoping that the snake would be gone and this was just a nightmare, but it was still there. Without warning, it lunged toward me. I expected to feel pain beyond what I have ever felt or could ever imagine,
but—nothing. Suddenly, the snake loosened its hold on my body, and then let go entirely. As I looked around me, I could not believe the sight that I witnessed.

  Michael was wrestling with the fog, now in a beast form that looked like a hideous monster. I couldn’t believe he was here. He wasn’t just a dream; or was I dreaming now? My mind was frazzled. At one point, I had been so sure that he wouldn’t lift a finger to help me, but I was so wrong. He was just as much in danger as I was, and he was here to save me. Every ounce of hope for survival that I had lost was regained.

  Somehow the beast wrapped itself around Michael’s waist. I could see Michael struggle to take control. I wanted to help, but I was unable to move or speak.

  “Michael!” the beast said in surprise. “I thought you were dead.”

  Michael ignored her and started asking questions. “Why are you here? What do you want?” Michael demanded as he positioned his hands around the neck of the beast.

  “I want her!”

  “She is not an alkin! Get that through your head! Can’t you tell the difference?”

  Michael was angry, but he, too, was able to talk with the beast. I knew then that this was not my imagination. He spoke almost with familiarity. This beast was someone he knew, someone he was clearly trying to convince about my existence.

  “Who are you working for? Who gave you the order?” Michael demanded.

  “Hissss. You think I would tell you? Tell me, Michael. How did you get down here? How did you get through my barrier? I blocked anyone from passing through.”

  “You think I would tell you? You think you’re the only one with that kind of power? I have my ways.”

  “Hisss. You used to tell me everything.” Its voice was flirty.

  “That was a mistake!”

  “Hisss! Hisss!” It was livid. “Then you deserve to die!”

  “Remember, Julia, I’m stronger than you! You can’t win! Don’t do this! I’ll let you go!”

  Julia? This beast had a name. This was more than an acquaintance. How did Michael know it? What did he mean by making a mistake? As Michael finished exchanging words with Julia, he grabbed the tail and managed to set himself free. The fog grew bigger, a huge shapeless blob, and swirled around like a tunnel as it slid underneath Michael. It pushed him up and slammed him against the wall. I gasped in horror as if I had been struck too. He got up as fast as he could, but he wasn’t fast enough as the fog grabbed his leg and tossed him up to the ceiling. Michael fell flat on the ground, lying still. Imagining the worst and clearly not thinking about the fog, I ran toward where he lay.