Comatose

Unfinished Business part 1

Chapter 23

Angelica wasn't sure when the scene had changed exactly. Nor was she positive when she had stopped screaming. The sound of it seemed to still echo within her ears. She had long since lost control of anything.

She would like to think that the sight of the wet parking lot across from the theater no longer scared her. She would be lying though. Terror ran through her veins like ice water as the body she was imprisoned in kept moving forward. Failing to find a way out Angelica pleaded with her subconscious to find her and help her. She couldn't relive the memory again. Not after the shock her mind had just gone through already. It appeared that she was destined too whether she was ready or not. The noxious odor of the lilies still clung in the air around her as well. It was so thick at that point she could swear she was choking on it. She knew that it was not a part of this memory already which only meant one thing. Her attacker was back for a visit and not just inside the world she was trapped in either. If the events she was about to experience didn't kill her this time it's likely he would in reality. She had run out of time. Full on panic joined the fear coursing through her system as the possibility of never waking again became very real. If she were going to die before ever seeing anyone again she wished she could be locked inside a better time and place then this.

The closer she was moved to the car the harder it became to breath. Panic ran through her mind like a dozen mice racing through a maze. She began gasping for air internally as her unforeseen ghostly hands clawed to be free and assist her.

Once more her past stopped beside the car preparing to unlock it when the dark silhouette of her would be murder appeared from behind. Angelica was certain her survival depended on the nightmarish vision coming to an end. No sooner had the idea filter through her brain than the world around her froze in place. Her hand with the keys hung in midair and the drops of rain solidified in place like crystalized beads on invisible strands of thread. Angelica was certain that her assailant was stopped to her rear just as he was reaching out to take possession of her.

She was relieved that the memory had stopped before it had gotten too far. Yet, Angelica was still finding it hard to pass enough fresh air into her starved lungs. The cloying scent of the lilies saturated with sickly sweetness. Her concentration fractured between the past and reality. It was all too much at once. Her throat was burning and constricting as she fought the tears that stung the eyes of her ghostly form. Gaining control of herself was of the upmost importance at this juncture. She had little chance of getting anywhere without being able to grasp a singular thought. Much less the avalanche of her panic induced ideas that slipped through her intangible fingers.

Pushing hard against the unsolicited chaos that clouded her mind Angelica reached for peace in the raging storm. Centering her concentration on her wildly beating heart she worked furiously to slow the pace of the stampeding rhythm. Taking drawn out shallow breaths, she turned her attention to calming herself. Placing the danger that surrounded her on all fronts to the corner of the darkness inside her. She worked towards finding a balance within. All the obstacles could be tackled but not if she remains a simpering mess of emotions. There is a time and a place for licking wounds. This wasn't it. This was a time to harden her newfound resolve. What would the point have been in finding herself again if she did nothing but turn back into the pathetic shell she swore to cast off. If she was meant to die then let it be on her own terms. Although she had no intention of giving in to what fate seemingly had planned for her. She would take her stand here and now. Fighting with everything she had left for her survival. She refused to give up on a life she hadn't even truly begun to live yet. There was too much left undone. Bonds that had become shackles to be rid of. Words that should have been said but never were. Like a butterfly from a chrysalis Angelica had finally broken beyond her cocooning comfortable persona and found her wings. Clipping them was not an option she would ever entertain again.

If she still died this day then at least she would go with the knowledge that she had not bowed down to the inevitable. That she had gone out not like a star winking from existence but like a raging inferno spitting fire the whole way. Besides, if she was to be left with a memory as her last let it be one of a clear spring day in the woods with the boy she had ultimately left behind. To be present in the daydream before regrets had built a wall around her heart instead of left for dead in a nightmarish landscape.

A voice began to fill the stillness in the air around her as she listened feverishly to the sound like a hound having caught the scent of prey. He was muffled at first like a bad connection. She strained her ears stalling her efforts as she tried to pick out the words. Her concentration stuttered momentarily as it became clear the narration was coming from outside of her body. The villain had made an appearance so to speak. His voice fortifying her resolve as she redoubled her efforts. If she were to die today then she would take him with her as he screamed all the way to the fiery pits below. Of that she promised to not only herself but every victim who had come before her as well.