Topic: Breadcrumbs

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-07-23 22:06 EST
May 1st, 2016

?...I?ve been waiting for you.?

Antonia awoke with a start, eyes snapping open and dry lips parting to draw in a ragged breath. It filled her aching lungs and caused her hollow chest to rise, fighting against the imaginary weight she felt crushing down on her ribs like a bag of bricks. Despite being surrounded by so much darkness, in the bedroom of her apartment in the middle of the night absent of light and sound, it felt like her senses were being overwhelmed in her sleepy confusion.

Her flesh felt clammy, wet, covered in a cold sweat that soaked her sheets and made the dark skin of the nearby drow stick to her. It was only a matter of mere moments, but it felt like those seconds dragged on forever as she tried to grasp uselessly at the dream that was already stubbornly escaping her. The cause of all her distress.

Or was it a nightmare? It would explain why she felt sick to her stomach. Lost and longing. The pieces were quickly falling away despite her best efforts, as dreams so often do. Tree branches scratching her skin, dirt beneath her fingernails, so much uncertainty. So much fear. Wood and fire and smoke and the haunting voice of a woman. Then it all went black.

The heels of her palms were roughly rubbed into the sunken sockets of her eyes. Antonia felt Cianan stirring beside her, positive he had been privy to the entirety of her sudden wake up call since the drow rarely slept. Her hand lowered, seeking out his to meet it palm to palm, to lace her fingers with his.

?You okay??

?I?m fine. Just a bad dream.? The puzzlement in Antonia?s tone at having to admit such a silly thing was mirrored in Cianan?s expression, now that her eyes had adjusted to the dark and she could make out his scarred and inked features. Antonia couldn?t remember the last time she had been the victim of a bad dream. It was practically something to brag about, the fact that she slept so peacefully night after night. Considering all she had faced in her short life, she wouldn?t have been shocked if she were haunted in her dreams the same way she was haunted while awake, but that had never been the case. This? This was out of the ordinary and going by the way Cianan was looking at her, he was just as aware.

?Honestly, I?m fine.? She said it again, aiming to assure him as well as herself. The Drow didn?t push. It wasn?t his style and she was always grateful for it, same as she was now. She slid herself closer to him, tugging his hand to coax him into draping his body halfway across her and he obliged. A shield from the night, the weight of the drow a much needed comfort. Antonia tried desperately to clear her mind, to shake off the lingering sense of discomfort that clung to her.

Little did she know, across town in his own bed, Jacob was recovering from the same bad dream.

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-07-24 20:18 EST
July 10th, 2016

Knock, Knock, Knock.

Three solid pounds at the front door interrupt the peace and quiet of Jacob?s apartment. Seriously? He was just about to doze off for a much needed Sunday nap, but whoever it was got his blue nose pitbull, Buster, all sorts of riled up and running laps around the living room floor.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK.

He lifts his voice, loud enough for the person on the other side of the door to hear. ?You knock like a cop!? It?s an insult in his eyes. With a groan Jacob rolls his sleep deprived body off the couch and heads for the door. He lowers his gaze to the peephole and he?s greeted with a fisheye view of his sister looking even more off kilter than usual, if that?s possible.

?Jacob, open the goddamn door or I?m going to kick it in!?

Jacob hesitates. He really doesn?t want dents in his door from Antonia?s steel toed boots, but the prospect of listening to her struggle with the solid apartment door does sound like at least ten or fifteen minutes of entertainment.

THUMP.

The front door rattles from her impatient kick and Jacob is tearing open the lock, deadbolt, and door chain. ?Alright, alright! Calm the hell down!? He barely gets the door open and Antonia is shoving her way inside, pushing past him like she owns the place and beginning to pace along a path similar to Buster in the living room.

?I?m leaving,? She states matter of factly.

Jacob quietly observes as Hurricane Antonia blows into his apartment, the way her presence makes Buster growl, whimper, then flee into the bedroom in a matter of seconds. It?s the same reaction Buster always has to the younger Tucci Twin, so Jacob doesn?t bother worrying about it. He knows Buster is hiding beneath the comforter on his bed, waiting for Antonia to leave. That?s going to be soon, from the sound of it. Jacob calmly closes the door, but doesn?t bother to put the locks back in place if his sister is already planning her departure.

?What do you mean you?re leaving? You just got here. Did we have plans I forgot about?? First rule with Antonia. Always assume that you messed up and made her mad somehow.

?I?m leaving town, Jacob!?

His expression is still calm as ever while he absorbs Antonia?s statement. This is going to take longer than he thought. The locks on the door are all clicked back into place, then Jacob is strolling into the living room to sink himself onto the couch. He shifts around, gets comfortable, and readies himself for the floodgates he?s about to unleash. ?What happened??

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-07-24 20:22 EST
Antonia is still pacing, burning a small circle into the wooden floorboards. He asks his question, an obvious question, but her features are twitching and she?s pawing at the shaved side of her head like he caught her off guard. ?I was working at the club. Thursday night. Some guy. Some guy, he gives me a hard time, and? and I snapped.?

Jacob?s expression barely changes. He?s seen Antonia on edge like this, seen her all sorts of worked up. Sometimes it?s best to let it run its course until she tires herself out and decides she needs a nap rather than making a monumental life changing decision. ?A guy made you mad? and you snapped. No offense, but this sounds like a standard night for you.?

Her pacing comes to a sudden stop, her head turning so sharply to look at him that her neck cracks. ?I was working. It was at Cianan?s club. I know better than that. I know what I?m supposed to do in a situation like that. I know how to control myself. But? I couldn?t. I could. not. control. myself.?

Her impassioned speech about control unintentionally raises another question for Jacob. If the fact she lost control is the thing that had Antonia so upset, does that mean she?s actually in control every other time she?s smearing someone?s face into the ground or goes out of her way to get her ass kicked? It?s an interesting thought, what Antonia does even when she?s completely in control. Hesitation from Jacob follows, really not wanting to hear the answer, but he asks anyway. ?What happened to the guy??

?He didn?t die.? She knows that?s what he?s worried about most of all. ?But he?s not in the greatest shape. I?? She?s toying with the cuts and bruises on her swollen knuckles, peering down at them. It?s in that moment that she reminds Jacob of Juliet, his kid sister. Like a child admitting she ate the last bit of ice cream he had been saving for himself. ?I caved his face in real bad. They had to pull me off him and escort me out of the building by force because I couldn?t calm down. Cianan is already in talks with the guy to pay him off, to pay for all of his medical bills, and facial reconstruction.?

Despite himself, Jacob?s trying to imagine how many times and how hard Antonia would have to beat a man?s face in with her bare fists for him to need facial reconstruction. ?You seem to be feeling guilty about it all, which is good. It?s normal. Can?t you give it some time, maybe send the guy a letter apologizing or something? Considering Cianan worships the ground you walk on and he?s already willing to shell out the cash to cover up your incident, I doubt he?s going to hold it against you. Maybe a slap on the wrist or you work in the back for a while until things cool down. Why do you have to leave??

Again, she?s wincing over the question despite it being a pretty obvious one. This is her decision, her choice coming here, and yet she?s acting like the whole thing is catching her off guard rather than Jacob. But how can she even begin to explain it without him writing her off as even more unhinged than she normally is? How do you sound like a perfectly sane human being and explain that there was a voice in your head, not your voice, rooting on the bloodshed while you pummeled a man?s face into pieces. That voice had been there previously as a whisper. A small desire for blood that she chalked up to one of her many less than savory kinks. But this is different. This is bad. This is dangerous. This is scaring the hell out of Antonia and her automatic solution is to run. Run far away until she can get a handle on everything.

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-07-24 20:26 EST
The silence drags on between them while she rolls all of these thoughts over in her head and Jacob doesn?t rush her. He?s used to their conversations having lots of lulls while Antonia articulates an answer. She eventually replies, but it?s not as satisfying as the long bout of quiet might have made Jacob think. ?It doesn?t matter why I?m leaving, it?s happening. I didn?t come here for your permission, I came here to let you know. So you can tell Cianan. So you can watch the cats.?

Jacob would like to say he?s surprised by her non-answer, but he?s not. He should have known he wouldn?t get anything straight from her. It?s the additional list of his chores to handle while she?s gone that has him frowning and shaking his head. ?You?re going to make me tell him that you?re gone? You can?t let him know yourself? The cats? those three little monsters hate my guts.?

?There?s four of them now. Four cats. Cat, Other, Uno, and Alley.?

?... did you find him in an alley??

?Sometimes the best names are the most obvious.?

There?s no way Jacob?s going to get his sister to stay in town against her will, so now it?s down to planning a strategy for when she?s MIA. ?Okay, four cats who want to eat my flesh I can handle. But do I honestly have to break the news to Cianan? It?s bad enough I can?t stand him, but now I have to look at his face when he learns you?re out of town? Can?t you just call him after you hit the city limits??

?I don?t have a cellphone. I accidentally broke it when I threw it against a wall.?

?Hang on,? Jacob?s rising to his feet, unable to simply sit by any longer for her less than desirable plan. ?You expect me to let you leave the city with no way of staying in contact with you? You really have lost it is you think that?s an option! How many years did we go with no way of contacting each other? You think I?m going to sign up for that again??

?You think you can stop me??

?Don?t tempt me, Juliet!?

Her nose wrinkles when he tosses that name her way, but she doesn?t hold it against him. He had a tendency of dropping it without thinking when they?re in the middle of an argument. Just like old times. ?I don?t want a phone. I don?t want to be accessible.?

?It?s not so much about you being accessible. It?s about me knowing you?re not dead. Can you take one second from your warpath out of the city to think about that? To hell with Cianan, to hell with the job, to hell with the guy you beat within an inch of his life. The cats can go to hell, too! But I?m not letting you walk out that door without some sort of way for me to know you?re safe! I won?t allow it!?

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-07-24 20:28 EST
He was right earlier. Her steam is fading and she looks so tired, but he?s not lucky enough that she?ll give up her plan. ?What do you want from me, Jacob? What will you allow?? She meant to ask it with a sneer, but she doesn?t even have that in her.

Jacob can feel his blood boiling just beneath the surface of his skin and it?s taking everything he has to not lash out at her. Maybe if he hits her in the head just right with a nearby lamp it?ll knock this ridiculous idea out of her already damaged brain. Thankfully for them both, he refrains. Instead, with his fists opening and closing in an angry squeeze, he?s stalking off into the bedroom where Buster is hiding.

Antonia knows well enough that this isn?t over. That?s not the end of it. So she?s left standing there and waiting for him to make his return. Jacob does eventually come back, roughly shoving something into her hand when he?s close enough. She looks so confused at first, lifting the little black box with an openly puzzled expression. She exhales, a sound of surprise that shifts into an outright dry laugh. The black pager in hand is lifted in his direction and she?s wearing an incredulous look. ?You still have these??

?It?s not like we have baby books to look back on. I kept what I could.? He lifts his palm, showing off a similar pager in his palm. ?You still remember all the codes??

?I remember how to tell you to go to hell on it.? Antonia?s rolling the blast from the past over in her palm, snorting at the name Juliet scratched into the plastic on the back. She still remembers the stupidly small and dull pocket knife she used to do that even if it feels like a lifetime ago.

?That?s all I need. Give me an hour and they?ll be functioning. Every morning you drop me a line, any sort of line, letting me know you?re still alive. You agree to that and you?re free to do whatever it is you gotta do. You can leave. I won?t even bother you unless it?s an absolute emergency.? Black brows rise up his forehead, waiting for her word that she can agree to these terms.

Antonia isn?t speaking yet. She?s still studying the dated piece of technology in hand. ?You promise me that,? Jacob continues. ?And I?ll watch your cats. And I?ll let Cianan know you?re gone. Otherwise, I?m not doing it. And I know you?re not going to leave without the assurance your cat army will be tended to.? Antonia might have a way with games, but she learned majority of her tactics from watching her big brother.

The moments tick on between them, then Antonia?s finally wrapping her fingers around the pager and shoving it into her pocket. ?We?ve got a deal.?

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 00:55 EST
September 13th, 2016

The midday sun was shining brightly overhead, the scorching heat dispersing through the thick tree tops of the forest until it comfortably warmed the lush greenery below with mere strips of light. The air smelled sweet like wildflowers, the sap of freshly cracked tree branches, and pure. So very pure. The musical clicking of bugs, echoing calls of wild things, and a nearby bubbling stream combine to create a peaceful soundtrack for Jacob and Mae to hike to far outside the RhyDin city limits. It?s the perfect sort of day that leaves you dropping into your bed in the early evening, completely spent yet satisfied with all you had accomplished while communing with nature.

Despite these heavenly surroundings, Jacob?s insides are still twisting with a lingering cold anxiety he?s been unable to get rid of. It?s been months since he first woke in the middle of the night, sweating bullets and breathing heavily. That night had been so bad that the constantly cool and collected Mae was pushed towards fretting over him, fetching him water and trying to console him. Even when he assured her repeatedly he was fine, that it was only a bad dream, she still worried. He wasn?t one for nightmares but, despite his promises to Mae, this one managed to shake him.

Even worse, it?s still sticking with him. Every couple of nights since then, he?d be stirred awake to varying degrees. Tossing and turning and unable to breathe. Hollow. It made him feel so empty, like he lost something he cared for deeply and he was so close to getting it back yet it slipped through his fingers. Even with Mae curled at his side and his dog, Buster, snoozing peacefully at the foot of their bed. Lost. He lost something.

He lost Antonia, in a sense. Is that it? Weeks have been turning into passing months since the last time he saw his sister or even spoke to her. Every morning, true to her word, he?d get a short string of numbers to the ancient pager on his bedside table. It tells him nothing about the state of Antonia, how she is mentally or physically, but it at least assures him that she?s still alive. He thought that would be enough, but it really isn?t. The more the distance between him and Antonia grows, the worse his dreams get. More frequent and intrusive. Is that what the dreams are about? Some sort of omen, a warning about his sister?s departure? He isn?t sure, no matter how many hours he?s spent pouring over the possibility.

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 00:56 EST
?So, if I?m reading this right,? Mae?s bubbly voice just barely lifts so Jacob can hear her talking out her plans for their hike. Jacob?s wandering thoughts are sharply pulled back to the present with a shake of his head. His gaze shifts to the tattooed blonde standing a couple yards ahead of him, trying her hand at navigating the trails they were becoming so familiar with using a map and compass. ?We should be coming up to a fork in the trail. If we go right, it?ll bring us around to?? Her aqua blue fingernail drags along their markings on the map. ?To the second fork we came across earlier, in one big loop. Which will put us on the path to head back to the car. We should be able to make good timing on it, too.? She smiled brightly, ever so pleased with herself and looking up to Jacob to get his take on the plan.

Jacob smiles back at her, trying his best to not look tired. ?I know exactly which trail you?re talking about, and that?s going to be perfect. The stream breaks right, too, so we?ll get to follow that for majority of the hike. It?ll take us over that little wooden bridge, remember??

Mae brightens, even more delighted with her own planned course. ?I love that bridge!? Despite his best efforts, the closer Jacob gets, the more Mae?s cheery features fall to mirror his downcast expression. ?Are you sure it won?t be too much? We could always turn back now, call it an early day and get pizza instead.?

While he?s appreciative of her worry, Jacob waves off the offer as he comes up alongside Mae. ?It?ll be fine. Don?t worry about it, okay? Except I think pizza will still be a good idea even after we take on this trail.? He gives her a reassuring grin, leaning in to kiss her cheek. ?I?m alright, Mae.? He repeats himself, one last time, to drive home the point. He moves along the trail laid out ahead of them, showing her that he?s determined to complete the hike she had plotted for them.

Mae gives a worrisome sigh, even if her mood lifts with the kiss. ?I believe you, but if you start to feel different, say the word and we?ll turn around.? She knows Jacob is always more than honest with her, but she isn?t so sure if he?ll be as forthcoming with information when it means having to admit he?s having a weak moment. It?s not his style.

Jacob and Mae continue along the trail, pointing out anything notable hiding just past the treeline surrounding them. Deers, bunnies, ravens, and the like. They?ve hiked together so often in the time they?ve been together that they had it down to a science by now, perfectly in tune in their shared hobby. Or at least they had been until they reached the fork in the road While Mae confidently continues right, it?s Jacob who?s straying left.

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 00:59 EST
?Right, remember?? It?s an easy mistake to make, but Mae still sounds thrown off. It?s not like Jacob to get the path wrong on such a simple course.

He hears Mae easily considering she?s not far off at all, turns back to look at her, but his footsteps are still pulling him along the path on the left side of the fork. ?I know.? His hiking boots aren?t cooperating with him, another random step here and there carrying him further down the fork. ?I know we decided on taking the right path, but? something?s telling me we should go this way.?

Armed with the patience of a saint Mae?s trailing after Jacob, probing. ?What do you mean something is telling you?? She?s spent far too many years in RhyDin to not question a statement like that. ?We?ve never taken that path before. We don?t know where it could go and we?re cutting it too close to dusk to try something new today. What if we tried-?

?Mae,? His tone?s clipped, foreign to each of them considering he?s never spoken to the bubbly blonde that way before. The look of shock on each of their faces says as much. ?Mae,? He tries it again, forcing himself to be calm. Why is this so important? He?s not certain. ?Mae. I need to go this way.? Tipping his chin towards the winding path behind him. ?I can?t explain it. I?m sorry, but? you have to trust me.? It makes no sense, Jacob?s fully aware. How is she supposed to trust him about this hiking trail when he doesn?t even know anything about it aside from a random gut feeling? ?Let?s follow it for a mile or so. If nothing happens, we?ll turn around.?

Mae?s skeptical expression persists, still confused yet trying desperately to understand. ?What do you mean, if nothing happens? What would happen??

His head drops backwards, exhaling a heavy sigh. It felt like a tease, being on this path that?s so comfortable to him but not being able to follow it. All of this stalling is making him ache and he can?t explain why. ?I don?t know.? Admitting honestly. ?Something in my stomach? in my heart is telling me to go this way.? He lowers his head, too pale blue eyes staring intently at the blonde. ?Please, Mae. I promise that nothing bad is going to happen, I won?t let anything happen. But I gotta go this way.?

She?s rarely heard him plead like this. He?s so relaxed, effortlessly laid back, so she?s not used to him pushing to get his way like this. What else could she do? ?Okay.? Hands lift in surrender. ?We?ll hike that way for a mile and see where it goes.?

The relief pouring off Jacob is palpable and he?s reaching out to take Mae by the hand. ?Thank you.? He feels like a man possessed, being urged on by some unknown force, but he meant everything he said. It wasn?t merely a ploy to get her to follow him. There were no lies. He felt safe going this way. Like he?s one step closer to home.

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 01:54 EST
They?re well past the one mile mark. Mae knows it. She?s positive that Jacob is fully aware, yet neither of them say anything about it. He?s still clutching her hand, a protective gesture that's also helping him drag her along towards the unknown force rooting him on. What?s he looking for? Is there even anything to find? The details are unclear, but deep down he knows he?s going the right way. Which is even more astonishing considering how many twists, turns, and stray paths he?s taken off the beaten trail.

?We?re going to get lost.? A soft sigh engulfs Mae?s worry, but she doesn?t have the heart to dig her heels into the dirt and stop him.

?I know exactly where we?re going.?

?How??

?If I knew that, babe, I promise I would let you in on it, but I don?t. You?re going to have to trust me.?

?I trust you. I don?t trust whatever is reeling you in. Hasn?t anyone ever told you to not trust mystical forces??

?Plenty of times.? He flashes a reassuring smile down at her. ?Honestly, if I thought there?s any sort of danger I wouldn?t be bringing you along with me. The last thing I want to do is put you in harm?s way.?

?I know, but- ? there?s a clearing ahead.? Mae doesn?t even bother hiding her astonishment. His wild gut instinct had actually led them somewhere. But where?

Jacob?s gaze jerks straight ahead and just as Mae had said, there?s a clearing a few yards away in the middle of the forest. The dying daylight of the setting sun overhead fills the area with a warm glow. If he?s looking for a sign, a bullseye telling him he?s in the right place, that should be it.

And yet, Jacob?s suddenly diverting their steps off the tried and true trail into the thicket of trees nearby. Branches claw at his shirt and skin, but he doesn?t care. He?s flattening his back to the wide trunk of the tree standing between them and the clearing, guiding Mae to stand beside him. His chest is heaving with deep breaths he can't quite catch despite his best efforts.

?Jacob, what?s going on? Did you see something? Did someone see you? What?s out there??

?This isn?t right. It doesn?t feel right.? He?s shaking his head, eyes shut tightly.

?What do you mean it?s not right?? Mae is trying so hard to be understanding, but the sudden one-eighty is making her head spin. ?You came all the way out here because you said it was right. What do you mean it doesn?t feel right?? Eyes widen. ?Should we run??

?We?re not in danger, but? it?s not right.? He manages to open his eyes, his breathing a touch calmer. ?I know none of it makes sense.? He sounds uncharacteristically desperate, needing another leap of faith from Mae in addition to all that she's given him already. When Jacob has his head on straight once more, as straight as it can be while playing hide and seek with some some unseen being silently beckoning him into its web, he?s sliding aside to angle his gaze around the tree and out into the nearby clearing. It doesn't take long for his eyes to adjust to the impending darkness of dusk and that's when he sees it.

?Holy shi...?

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 02:25 EST
?Jacob, what is it? You?re freaking me out.? Mae isn?t the sort of be easily spooked, but considering the events of the day she felt she had a right to be.

?It?s a house??

?What!??

?Keep your voice down.? Jacob couldn?t quite believe it himself. After how far they had come, how difficult it had been to travel by foot. Yet here it is, someone who calls this secluded neck of the woods home. ?Who the hell would build a house out here?? He could make it out through the overlapping splay of branches and leaves. Tall, narrow, made of aged wooden logs and a skilled hand.The smoke billowing from the crooked chimney says someone is home, but Jacob isn?t looking to make a new friend just yet.

?Vampires, werewolves, witches, faeries, elves? Plenty of people live in the woods, but why are we here?? Mae grips his hand tighter and Jacob gives it a reassuring squeeze in return.

?I'm not sure. Don't worry about it, okay? I told you, we?re not in danger. We can go, but?? He?s groping around at the pockets of his shorts with his free hand and pulling out his phone.

?This is no time for a selfie??

?I need a picture of the house, babe.? He gives her a dry smile and lifts his phone, but after a few button presses his brows are knitting with a tight frown. ?My phone?s dead. You got any juice in yours??

?Yeah, I charged it before we left.? The pristine white phone is tugged from her pocket and she?s pressing the home screen button. ? pressing the home screen button? ? presspresspressing the home screen button. ?...my phone?s dead, too.?

Jacob notes Mae?s distraught tone over the horror movie style turn of events, but he?s not going to do anything to alarm her further. He just needs one more thing from today?s trip, that?s it. ?Alright, c?mere.? He?s leading her closer, urging her to look around the wide expanse of the tree trunk shielding them from view so she can view the entire clearing. ?Do you see the house??

?Yeah, I see the house.? By the sound of it, she wishes she didn?t. It felt like bugs were crawling on her skin and she had the distinct idea she wasn?t as welcome here as Jacob might be.

?Can you draw the house when we get home??

Mae?s eyes narrow, taking in the small details of the rather stately looking shack. After some drawn out silence she gives a confident nod. ?I can do it.?

?You need to look at it more??

?No, thank you. I?ve seen enough.?

?Great, then let?s get the hell out of here.?

Mae Anne Moseley

Date: 2016-09-15 02:49 EST
http://i.imgur.com/AHQ58mO.jpg

Jacob Moseley

Date: 2016-09-17 01:56 EST
Page to Antonia from Jacob : 121 911

Of course, it?s during one of the rare evenings that Jacob manages to catch some shut eye that his cellphone is going off in the middle of the night. Unfocused eyes turn on his bedside alarm clock, which tells him it?s nearly four in the morning, as he?s sleepily grasping for his cellphone to answer it.

?Hello??

?You said you needed to talk. So talk.?

?Antonia?? Jacob?s shoving himself out of bed, suddenly feeling more alert with his MIA sister on the other line.

?Who the hell else are you paging these days? Talk, Jacob. I got stuff to do.?

?It?s four in the morning.?

?Yeah, where?s your midnight shift at the garage? Pot, kettle, black. Get on with it or I?m hanging up.?

?Don?t hang up!? Mae stirs in bed next to the spot Jacob had just vacated. The question in her expression is easily answered when he mouths Antonia at her before wandering off into the living room. Hurricane Antonia is back at it. ?You need to come home.?

?That?s it? That?s why I found a payphone? Some pathetic attempt to drag me back to the city??

?They still have payphones? Where the hell did you go, nineteen eighty-seven??

?Are we done??

?No! Okay, listen. Mae and I were out hiking earlier??

?Hell no, this isn?t storytime. I need the condensed version. Get to the point.?

Jacob grit his teeth, resisting the urge to hang up the phone then and there. Why is he so interested in getting Antonia back into RhyDin? Ah, that?s right. Nightmares.

?... ? are you having the nightmares, too?? His question is met with complete silence aside from Antonia?s raspy breathing. He sinks himself onto the edge of the couch, smearing his palm across his face. ?Something happened in the woods and I think it has to do with the nightmares.? He goes on to explain, Antonia?s lack of scathing replies telling him he?s on the right track. ?I don?t want to do this over the phone. Come back. Hear me out face to face. I?m going out of my mind and if this is our chance to fix it, we?ve got to try it. Come back, Antonia.?

The silence is suddenly interrupted by distracted muttering on Antonia?s part. ?Shut up. Just shut up. Shut up! I?m not listening to you right now!? There?s a succession of cracking sounds, which Jacob believes is the phone handset being slammed repeatedly against the nearest solid surface.

?Tonia? Juliet! What?s going on?? He felt like he had been so close, but here she is telling him to shut up. ?Hello? Hello??

More silence then Antonia?s strained voice hisses into the receiver. ?I wasn?t talking to you.? Explaining away his unspoken worry. ?I?ll be there eventually.? That?s it. A few pieces of a broken agreement and the line went dead with a solid click from Antonia?s end.

Jacob stares at cellphone until a dial tone begins crackling from the earpiece, then he?s finally pressing the end button. This is the outcome he had been hoping for, isn?t it? Antonia returning to town.

But now he?s uncertain about what sort of state she?s going to be in when she arrives.

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-22 00:11 EST
September 18th, 2016

So this is what sleeping feels like?

It?s been so long that Antonia nearly forgot.

The couch beneath her feels unfamiliar, same with the loosely knit throw blanket tossed over her aching body. The night before had been such a blur that she can barely piece together where she is or what time it is, but she also can?t bring herself to care much. She hasn?t had a decent night of sleep in what feels like forever.

Her thoughts are fuzzy and she?s ready to roll over to go back to sleep when the nearby rattle of a pill bottle makes her eyes pop open. Sitting across the living room is Jacob, nursing a cup of coffee in one hand and an orange bottle of pills in the other.

?You don?t look like a Mildred Carter.? His voice is quiet, but it holds that tone of high and mighty judgement that Antonia hates.

She wants to groan and drag the blanket over her head, beg him for five more minutes and some of that coffee; but she knows it isn?t going to get her anywhere. Jacob got his stubborn streak from her. Or was it the other way around? ?It?s the new me. Juliet Tucci becomes Antonia Salvato becomes Mildred Carter. You like? Weird though, could have sworn that bottle was in my coat.?

?I went through your coat.? He doesn?t miss a beat and there?s no shame in the confession. ?When I pulled you out of the car to bring you inside you started rattling like a maraca. I found it odd.? He?s rolling the bottle between his fingers, studying the label. ?Oxycontin. Do not drink alcoholic beverages when taking this medication.? His pale blue eyes flicker to Antonia over the bottle. ?I assume you forgot to read that part during your small soiree into drug abuse.?

?Must have been too drunk to make out the words.? Antonia hisses a reply and follows it with an annoyed exhale. She rolls over onto her back with a groan and peers up at the ceiling. ?It?s so quiet.? A long pause. ?Too quiet. Where the hell are you?? Eyes narrow, listening carefully..

?I?m here. Buster is in the room, waiting for you to leave. Mae is at work.?

?I don?t need an update on any of you, no one cares, but thanks.?

?Oh, right, the demons. Do you know what it?s like to get text messages from both a witch and a drow and have them inform you that they?re not the weirdest things lurking around the market? You had a full on meltdown in front of a diner from what I hear, ranting about demons in your head. You lost it last night. Hell, by the look of you, I think you?ve been losing it for a while.? He sets the pill bottle onto the nearby side table and sips his coffee. ?What?s going on with you, Tonia??

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-22 00:16 EST
Antonia?s listening to him, honestly she is, but she?s also rather focused on the silence that?s hanging between each of his words. Amongst the pauses and chasing after his exasperated sighs. ?The nightmares. The voices.? She angles her head to peer over at him, brows rising hopefully. ?You said you hear them, too??

Jacob?s expression doesn?t change, even though his insides twist with sympathy for his sister. ?I have nightmares, but?? His voice lowers and he shakes his head. ?I don?t hear voices.? Part of him wishes he did, so he could share the burden of what Antonia was going through. ?What do they say??

?They want me to hurt people, mostly. Or to hurt myself if I refuse to give them blood.? How casually she says it is as disturbing as the words themselves. ?They won?t let me sleep. They won?t let me eat. They say I either need to pay them or I need to die, since I?m on borrowed time. Always on borrowed time. The pills were the only way to make them be quiet.?

There?s a pang of regret for coming down on her so hard when she explains herself, but it?s trumped by the flurry of questions that he wants answered. ?How long??

?They started a while after the nightmares. Around our birthday. They were quiet at first. Easily ignored or if I got drunk enough, maybe distracted enough, I wouldn?t hear them. They got really loud that one night when I hit that guy. I only meant to hit him once. That was all me. But then the voices were rooting me on, telling me to keep going, telling me to cave his nose into his brain and drink the blood.? She presses her palm over her face, sighing heavily. ?I was worried about how much control I had lost. I didn?t want that to happen around someone else, someone I... ? She fades off, abandoning that train of thought.

?So what happened when you were gone? Did they get better??

Antonia is motionless, quiet, and it would almost seem as if she didn?t hear him. It takes a while for her to reply. ?They got worse. A lot worse. The further I got from RhyDin, the angrier they got. I would be in hotel rooms in a screaming match all by myself.?

?What about now? What are they saying now??

That?s when she draws her hand from her face, aiming a look of disbelief in Jacob?s direction. ?They?re silent. Not a sound from them all night. No nightmares either. You??

?No nightmares.? He confirms with a nod. ?You told me last night they said if you came with me, they would leave you alone for the rest of the evening.?

She stares at him, possibly rolling that odd tidbit around in her head. Why was it so important to the demons that she went with Jacob? Instead she simply knits her brows and shakes her head. ?Honest demons that keep their word, who would have guessed??

?You always manage to find the upstanding monsters. It?s the humans you hang out with that tend to be questionable.? Jacob shines a dry smile at Antonia that she mirrors.

Her smile slowly fades, pale features crumbling with a wince. The next words come out in a low grumble. ?They want you to talk about the house.?

Jacob?s lips thin, eyes instinctively flashing around the room even if he knows that no one will be hanging around for him to see. It?s all there, trapped in Antonia?s head. Torturing her from within. ?They know about the house??

?I guess.? She shrugs her shoulder lazily then finally drags herself into the upright position, gathering the blanket around her shoulders. She settles in and nods. ?Tell me about the house.?

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-22 00:20 EST
There?s a long pause from Jacob. Why are these demons so interested in a house in the woods? He knows if Shae was here, or Cianan, they would both be clucking their tongues in disapproval and telling him to be careful. Well, Cianan would probably just call him an idiot, but Shae would at least attempt to be helpful. Jacob wonders if he should withhold the information instead, wait for a second opinion on what should and should not be said in front of Antonia and her demons

?They?re starting to get restless. They also said Shae isn?t even the most impressive witch they?ve ever met, so quit trying to go to her for help.? Eyes dart aside, nose wrinkling. ?Frickin? rude, man.?

Jacob stares at Antonia in obvious disbelief. It?s above and beyond creepy. ?Your demons have my brain tapped??

Antonia shrugs, apparently too bored to care. ?I dunno how it works, Jacob.? The heel of her palm is pressed into the pale purple socket of her eye and ticked side to side roughly. ?Can you start talkin? before he starts freaking out??

?Who is he??

?Hell if I know. He?s the loudest of the bunch. Sometimes it?s only him. Sometimes it?s all his buddies. Sometimes he?s got business to take care of and it?s only the underlings.?

?What?s his na-...??

?JACOB.? Antonia?s eyes squeeze together tightly, her knuckles helplessly pawing at her ear. ?ShuttupShuttupShuttupShuttup?? She?s pleading with whoever or whatever it is in her head, her features twisting in pain.

?Alright! Alright!? Jacob?s hands lift and he has the sinking feeling he?s in the middle of a hostage situation. ?Mae and I went out of town earlier this week. We stopped in Helheim to get in some hiking since we?ve been on those trails before.?

Initially, Jacob had been forced to talk over Antonia and all of her begging. As his explanation continues, his sister?s muttering subsides until it?s only a flutter of heaving breaths. Antonia manages to get those under control as well and not wanting to have a repeat of the incident, Jacob carries on. ?We took a different trail. Something in my gut told me to take a different trail. We ended up at? well?? He picks up a piece of paper off the side table and unfolds it. Rising to his feet he steps across the living room and leans over to flatten the drawing on the coffee table in front of Antonia.

She leans forward, washed out blue eyes scanning the pencil sketch Mae had drawn up right when she got home that evening. Antonia?s brows knit and she aims a confused look up at Jacob. ?I know that house??

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-22 00:29 EST
?It?s from the nightmares.? He taps his temple. ?I?ve seen it in my head and I knew it the moment I laid eyes on it in real life.?

?So, who lives there?? She?s urging him on to finish as she?s sliding to the edge of the couch so she can get a better look at the drawing.

?I don?t know. We didn?t check it out.?

?Why not!? You could have figured out who the hell lives there and told them to get their crap out of our heads, Jacob!?

?I couldn?t! Don?t you think I would have if I could, but I couldn?t!? He forces his hand through his buzzed hair, calming himself so he could make her understand. ?Whatever it was that dragged me to the house wanted me to see it, but it was made abundantly clear that I couldn?t investigate it further with Mae there. It has to be you.?

Antonia stares between Jacob and the drawing. ?What do you mean it was made abundantly clear? Did you hear voices? Did someone come out and tell you that??

Jacob merely shrugs. ?Gut instinct. It wasn?t the right way to approach the house. It has to be you and I knocking on that door.? He follows it up with an eyeroll. ?I haven?t questioned your demons once, but you can?t believe I have gut instinct??

?Whatever. Gut instinct. Boring in comparison to demons, but you?ve always been the lackluster twin.? She taps her black fingernail against the drawing. ?So let?s go do this. Let?s knock down some doors and light that hell hole on fire.?

?Calm down, killer. We?ve got two problems.? Jacob lifts his hand, displaying his index finger and middle finger.

?Only two between us? Holy hell, we really are doing better for ourselves.?

?One, I?m weaning you off the oxy. You?ll be given enough to function in timed doses that I?ll eventually lower then stop entirely. You?re already under too much stress to cut you off cold turkey.?

?You think that?s going to work??

?I know it?s going to work. You?re not the first person I?ve helped kick a habit. Thankfully, yours is relatively new and shouldn?t be that difficult. But knowing you, you probably managed to stuff three years of being an addict into two months through high doses taken far too often.?

?You can just call me an overachiever. It?s okay to be impressed.?

?Second, those demons in your head. They?re calm now, but we need to make sure they?re under control before we head off into another situation we have even less control over.? His hand drops to his side and he shrugs.

Antonia grunts impatiently and smears her hand across her face. ?So that means suffering through more nightmares, more voices, and the added bonus of withdrawal before we can go rushing into the woods towards uncertain doom??

Jacob scoffs, an ear to ear grin cutting across his face. ?You?re looking at it all wrong, Tonia. That means sibling bonding. ?

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-30 01:35 EST
September 28th, 2016

?Jacob? Jake? Hey, man, you gotta slow down. I need a breather.?

Once again, Jacob?s determined steps slow and finally come to a halt so he can turn on his heels to look back at his sister. It?s habit by now considering she?s been lagging behind him throughout the entirety of their hike. ?But you just took a break. Don?t you do any sort of cardio? Running or something??

Antonia?s nearly skeletal frame was clad in ill fitting black clothing from the base of her neck all the way down to her leather biker boots not suitable for hiking. Her body was folded in half, hunched over with her palms planted firmly on her knees and panting heavily for air. ?I feel like I?m dying... on a daily basis... why would I torture myself further... by running for fun??

Jacob?s expression twists with remorse over his comment. He wants so badly to be able to ignore what?s right in front of him, the sad state of his sister, but it?s impossible. He can?t call it stubbornness or an tantrum, there really is something wrong with her. But he swears, going by that gut instinct that Antonia keeps mocking, that if they can just get to the shack in the woods they?ll find what they?re looking for. Something to help both of them, to help her. ?You need a hand?

She waves off the offer, too proud to accept. There?s that stubborn streak. ?Nah, I?m fine. I?m fine. I just? Christ, how much longer we got??

?Not much.?

?You said that last time... And the time before that...?

?Because I was lying before.? Jacob states plainly, a slight curl of amusement at the corner of his lips. ?I figured if you thought we were close you would get some pep in your damn step.?

?It doesn?t help much if you?re lying!?

?But I?m not lying this time!?

Antonia leans herself against a nearby tree trunk. She?s going for something dramatic, but it?s more like the lazy slump of someone who?s ready to give up. ?Who the hell goes hiking this early??

?Everyone. Everyone goes hiking this early. It?s the best time to hit the trails.?

?Hit the trails. What kind of monster are you!??

Jacob sighs heavily and backtracks towards his sister, easing his arm through hers to gently hoist her to her feet. ?I mean it this time, the house is close. Can?t you feel it??

Antonia reluctantly allows Jacob to pull her up to her feet, the lean of her rail thin body shifting to rest against him for support. ?I told you? overwhelming feeling that I?m dying? sort of trumps all.?

?Well, I just need you to trust me. We?re almost there.?

?If you?re lying again? I?m gonna kick your ass.?

Jacob chuckles, using the distracting conversation as the chance to shuffle his sister onward. ?If I?m lying, I won?t even put up a fight.?

Antonia Skinner

Date: 2016-09-30 01:38 EST
?I told you it was close.?

?Huh?? Antonia?s unfocused gaze lifts from her feet to the path ahead of them. She had poured so much effort into putting one foot in front of the other that the remainder of the hike had slipped away into a quiet blur of trudging along through the dirt, tree branches plucking at their skin and clothes on the narrow trail. True to Jacob?s word, straight ahead through the brush Antonia could make out a clearing with the familiar black shack set in the middle of it. Like the forest had grown around the home over time, because the shack had been there first. ?My God, It?s real.? A soft wheezing exhale of astonishment manages to escape Antonia. Her clumsy footsteps pick up the pace, determined now that their destination is so close.

This time around, it?s Jacob who?s holding them up. ?Hey, wait. Wait a second.?

?Wait?? Antonia breathed the question in disbelief. ?After all that you want to wait??

His feet are dragging, a gentle downward slope to the corners of his mouth. ?I just... ? He glances over to his sister. ?I don?t know what we?re going to find. Gut instinct aside, neither of us know what?s in there. Obviously, this is where we?re supposed to be. All signs pointed here, but? this could be the end, Jules.?

Antonia?s gaze lifts to her brother, a thoughtful crease in her brows. It looks like she?s pouring a lot of thought into her response, but eventually she?s merely giving a roll of a single boney shoulder in indifference. ?If it?s my time to go, Jacob, I?ve had a good run.? She nods her head towards the path they had just traveled down. ?There?s still time for you though. Maybe the nightmares will stop after this? You can propose to Mae, settle down, have a family. I can see you having a long, happy life, Jacob.?

Everything Antonia?s saying, it?s what Jacob wants. She?s reciting his own plans right back to him and with nearly every fiber of his being he wishes he could be back home with Mae and Buster, curled up in bed without a care in the world. But where he wants to be is currently being overshadowed by where he needs to be. Where he belongs. Here with his sister. They came into the world together. It?s poetic for them to leave it together, if that?s how this should end. ?I?m not leaving you, Juliet. This is something we?ve both got to take on. I?m not abandoning you.?

Antonia?s body inflates and deflates with a heavy sigh. ?I knew you wouldn?t. You idiot.? The words are brimming with affection. ?Come on, let?s hurry up and get this doom stuff over with. I got a date in the afterlife.?

Jacob could only chuckle dryly in reply to Antonia. She?s trying to make light of a very serious situation and he can?t fault her for it. It feels good to laugh, even if he knows it?s out of place. The pair move onward, practically leaning on each other for support by time they cross into the clearing of the forest. Sanity weighs at their ankles, telling them to stop walking and to turn back. But there?s something else, a fishing line hooked into their bellies, that keeps steadily reeling them in.

Heavy footsteps thump up to the front door of the shack. Antonia peers up at Jacob who?s merely waiting for the word. She gives a nod and his hand lifts, knuckles banging three times on the door before them. They?re met with silence. It?s drawn out and just when they?re about to regroup for a Plan B, the door swings open with a creak.

They come face to face with a beautiful woman. Flawless pale skin, black hair interrupted by a shock of platinum blonde, and dark eyes.

?Children, I?ve been waiting for you.?

Antonia?s body suddenly feels like stone. She?s pawing at Jacob, trying to keep herself upright, but her vision clouds at the edges. Before she can do anything about it, her body drops heavily to the ground, collapsing into a lifeless pile. In the back of his mind, Jacob knows he should have caught his sister, made some sort of effort to stop her fall, but his attention is entirely on the woman standing in the doorway before them.

?... Mom??