Chapter 5
"Freedom," she murmured as she closed her eyes. Her lips curved when she heard the New Yorkers below gasped, pointing her with wide eyes. The soundwaves of their rapid heartbeat were music to her ears. She could feel the flow of blood in their veins, and it made her mouth watered.
Thick blood crawled from her nose. Her thin brows draw together while she wipes it. "Don't tell me-" she paused, "This body is still weak for my strength?" She stomped and the metal bent. It made her lost her balance and she fell. The New Yorkers yelled. It annoyed the s.h.i.+t out of her. Their voices were way too loud for her sensitive ears.
The air howled as the gravity pulled her down. Its pressure was even more painful as it pressed to her skin. She choked when the tension started building in her muscles, and s.p.a.ce was a blur while she fell. It seemed like she's falling fast, yet, time must have fooled her because it took an eternity before her back hit something hard. The impact knocked the wind out of her and she wheezed, struggling to breathe again.
There was silence for a teensy moment before heavy footsteps ran towards where she was. Turns out, she landed on the hood of a car. Her back bent on the winds.h.i.+eld. She heard cracks crawled to the gla.s.s before in a blink, it shattered.
A sharp gla.s.s pierced her back. Blood squirted from the slit it created, giving off a pain that made Zheira bit her lips. She was even more embarra.s.sed when unknown faces started peering down at her. Some of them pointed her golden eyes, and some were horrified with her s.h.i.+ning skin. No one seemed to notice that her blood kept flowing on her back. It would certainly kill her mortal body.
"You're lucky, Zheira. I'm the one in control of your body," she whispered, barely moving her lips. She's shutting her senses so as to stop the pain from urging her to be unconscious. If she could just move, she could run from these judgmental people. Earlier, they were afraid she might die but right now, no one's trying to help her just because of her unique eyes. All she could do now was to keep herself conscious and wait for her parents to fetch her up.
The siren of the ambulance rang. Its soundwaves were growing louder as it approached. That's where Zheira's heart started hammering. She must do something before those idiots arrive or else she'll be a subject of an experiment. Humans were always like that. Especially to unexplained things.
'I'm sorry, Zheira. But, I couldn't leave your body now. Once I'm gone, you'll die. I'm still a part of you and that's the last thing I want,' she thought before closing her eyes, resting for a while. She'll let them have her for now. That's if her parents would agree.
The moment the ambulance stopped, the people moved
"What are you doing? The patient is dying. Come on!" one of the nurses said after a while. Without another word, they gently put Zheira on the stretcher. They gasped when they noticed a sharp gla.s.s pierced on her back.
One of them was brave enough to remove it. Zheira's blood squirted to his face, a deep wound was causing the continuous bleeding. The nurse pressed a cloth to it. Hurriedly, they drove the ambulance towards the nearest hospital.
Inside the hotel, only the guards and the front desks found out about the accident. Some even tried going out to have a clearer view. However, the number of people looking through made it hard for them to see the unfortunate scenario. All they know was that one guest of their hotel fell on their veranda. They were beyond shock. How could such thing happen? This would be the first time that the hotel had been a.s.sociated with an accident. It bothered them too much.
They go back inside the hotel with a heavy heart. It's a bad year for them, and they fear what the manager would say with this. The manager and Celestine were still fixing the problem with regards to a VIP who got pierced by a mirror, and they didn't know how they could solve this.
Melinda and Robert were at the security department. They were trying to find out what happened to their daughter but it turns out, the hotel's cameras didn't work in Zheira's room.
"I'm really sorry, madame! We're going to fix this. We promise!" the manager begged at the sight of disappointment drawing Melinda's face.
"I just can't understand, Mr. Sales. My daughter's room is the only room without a proper CCTV. Why is that?" Melinda crossed her arms and raised her brows. Robert rubbed her shoulders.
"We don't know that too. The CCTV was working fine before your daughter comes in—" He stopped when Melinda glared at him.
"Are you saying that it's my daughter's fault? How can she ruin your camera? Tell me!" She couldn't stop herself from shouting. What proper manager would blame its guest from the hotel's malfunction?
The manager shook her hands. "No, madame! I don't mean it that way. I mean, the cameras were working before she comes in." When Melinda was still not convinced, he patted the back of a guard. "Show us the clips before she came."
The guard started clicking the keyboard until the monitor aired the time before Zheira checked in her room. "That's the VIP room, right? You see, before your daughter came. The camera was working fine. Take a look at what will happen."
They sighed before focusing on the CCTV. Like what the manager had said, it was fine. The room was a beauty. It didn't take long before the door opened and then all of a sudden, the screen was covered by a dark thing. Melinda looked at Robert with wide eyes. Both of them shared the same thought. This might have been one of their daughter's ability.
"See? After that, we concluded something might have happened that's why we called you immediately."
Melinda breathed heavily. "Then who knows what happened?"
Celestine looked up. She has been standing in the corner, waiting for the time she'd narrate what she knew. "She said that her mirror broke. It's shattered pieces..h.i.t her in the face." She looked down once more, unable to bear their piercing stares.
"And how, may I ask, her mirror broke?" Melinda asked.
"I don't know. She didn't say a thing. But there's something odd about her eyes—"
"You can stop there, young miss! We now understand." Melinda beckoned Robert to go outside but before she closed the door, she warned, "Whatever you saw in the room must be kept a secret." She looked straight in her eyes. "Do you understand?"
"Y-yes, Mrs. Martin!" Celestine whispered while nodding rapidly.
Melinda closed the door, but she saw the look of disgust in the manager's eyes as he stared down at Celestine.
"Do you think she'll talk about what she saw?" Robert whispered.
"Do you think they'll believe her?" Melinda smiled while linking her arms to his wrist.
"You're right. I'm still worried about Zheira, though? How do you think did that mirror broke? Did she cause it? And that text as well. Why was she thinking that someone texted her when she's the one who type it? It's not making any sense, hon!"
Melinda couldn't give any answer. She's confused as well. From the moment they found Zheira, she knew that there's something odd about her. From her eyes down to the core. It's very inhuman. They arrived at their room, burdened by the questions about Zheira. Robert gave Melinda a soft kiss on the lips before going to the bathroom. Meanwhile, Melinda sat beside Zheira, staring at the bulk of her body covered by the blanket.
"Are you still angry?" she asked. "We're really sorry, Zhe! We didn't mean for you to be disappointed." A sad smile crossed her lips when her daughter did not answer. "I guess you're still angry. But please! Don't ever forget that we love you too much. We're just a bit protective of you since you're our only child." She gently patted her shoulder. Her brow furrowed when she felt her shaking. Without thinking, she grabbed the blanket. Zheira was covered with blood. What made Melinda moved back was the deep cut on Zheira's back. It was causing the continuous bleeding.
"Robert," she called, "your daughter." Then her tears started falling.