Not What You Expected

Chapter Twenty Two

Sophia's P.O.V

"How can you be me!? How is that even possible? Am I you, are you me?"

Yes, I figured out that Riley Jane Snow wasn't actually my real name, but she's acting like I took, or rather, stolen, her entire identity.

Is this even my body?

"Anything is possible in the paranormal world..." Octavia mumbles out as she stares intensely at the mountain. If looks held any power, that mountain would be nothing but a pile of rubble by now.

"Ten years ago, when I was thirteen, I was kidnapped by a group of male rouges...they were all of different species, and the only thing they had in common was hatred in their hearts towards my-our father."

I listen quietly as she speaks, and when she pauses to take a deep breath I can't help but place a caring and supporting hand on her shoulder. With a small reassuring squeeze, she continues on.

"I was walking home from school one day. Our private chauffeur had gotten sick and was out for the day. I refused to ride home with one of my friends or ride the bus, as I thought it was beneath me...at the time my-our family lived in New York, and so I was walking down one of the many busy streets, playing on my new phone as I was so naîve to think that there weren't monsters waiting in the shadows just waiting to reach out and grab their next victim...a group of men around eighteen and thirty, all good-looking, were hanging around one of the candy shops that was on my way home..."

She pauses once more to clear her throat, but I know it's to clear her mind and hold back tears as she looks everywhere but me.

I know that action better then most...

"There were a total of five. At the time I was human, so I didn't know they were paranormal creatures; because I wasn't even aware of paranormal creatures existing at the time. As soon as I came near, all of their eyes seemed to be glued to me. They started cat calling, and being the stupid, naîve little girl I was, I blushed and thanked them quietly, while giggling like an idiot. They approached and started hitting on me all at once. Being the typical boy crazy pre-teen, I was loving all of the male attention. Eventually, they somehow convinced me to go back to their house with them. Once in their SUV, they took my phone and backpack from me, as they said that the guy in charge of the house was old fashioned and didn't think girls should go to school, and he didn't like or believe in electronics.

So I allowed them to take my things as the men continued to flirt with me and tell me how much fun we were going to have at their house. But as we pulled into an old abandoned warehouse, I knew things weren't right. Before I could even question them, a cloth bag was thrown over my head, and I passed out from lack of oxygen.

I soon awoke in a jail cell-like cage, with my hands and feet bound with rope. My school uniform was no longer on me, nor was my underwear..."

She closes her eyes as a single tear escapes. She shakes off my hand and moves further away from me on the stone wall. My heart pangs with hurt, not only for her shaking off my hand, but also for her. It doesn't take a genius to understand where this story is going, and to even imagine a thirteen year old girl going through what she must have had to endure is heartbreaking.

I can practically feel the pain she is emitting from within her...

"I was naked. When I first awoke, my head was dizzy and my eyesight was blurry, but I remember seeing the figures of at least ten men outside of my cage. They were laughing and staring at me as if I was the new exhibit at the zoo..."