“Why not? I don’t want it.”
“It’d be like someone trying to give away their brain.” She tapped her forehead with her fingers. “It just can’t be done. This is a part of you. You can’t separate yourself from it.” Her hand dropped to her lap.
“Grams, I just want my regular life back.”
“You still have your regular life. You’re just learning more about yourself. Everyone has growing pains. Consider this one of yours.”
“Not everyone finds out their father is a flippin’ angel. I think that’s one helluva growing pain.” I stood and walked to the window. It had started to rain, and the drops covered the glass blurring everything outside.
“True.”
“There’s gotta be a way for me to get rid of this. Help me find it, Grams, please?” I turned from the window and knelt in front of her wheelchair. “Grams, how do people like Muriel and I have normal lives? Will we be able to go to college, have the job we want, or go on school functions with our kids?” I laughed, but it was a short, bitter sound. “Or even have kids? Can you imagine having a vision in the middle of labor?”
Grams chuckled. “A woman in labor hunting down a demon? Yes, that’d be quite a sight.” She smiled and patted my cheek. “The way I see it, you have two choices. You can sit around your whole life and pout like a spoiled brat because things aren’t going the way you think they should.” She ran her hand over my hair. “Or you can get on with life and find a way to be happy. It’s your choice, but I know which one I’d make if I were you.”
“I don’t want it, Grams. I’m gonna find a way to get rid of it.” I ground my teeth together and clenched my fists.
“Well, good luck with that. What I’m hearing is a bunch of ‘I, I, I, I.’ When you can talk without your thoughts centering only around yourself and what you want, then we can have a real discussion about what this demi-angel thing really means and what it can do—if you let it.”
I looked at my lap and twisted my fingers together.
I have made it all about me.
“Now,” Grams said, clapping her hands together, “let’s make some brownies. I’ll show you my secret recipe, but if you tell anyone, I’ll have to hunt you down and run over your toes with my wheelchair.” She tapped her finger against my nose and winked.
I grinned. “Okay. I swear I won’t tell anyone.” Standing, I went into the kitchen. I grabbed the measuring cups and a bowl, waiting for instructions from Grams.
“All righty. Grab the boxed brownie mix out of the cupboard—”
“Wait! You said your brownies were homemade.”
Grams cackled and turned her wheelchair, rolling into the kitchen. “They are homemade, child. I make them at home. I never said they were made from scratch.”
“Sneaky old angel, aren’t you?” I said with a laugh and opened the cupboard to get the brownie mix.
***
That night, I had the nightmare again. Demons chased me through nothingness—just a black void that seemed to go on forever. It was hard to move, as if the dark was closing in on me, swallowing me.
Their leader stood watching, waiting. “Milayna,” he called. “Stop running and listen to the truth.”
Stopping, I turned to him. I could see him clearly, but blackness framed him. His eyes were soulless and cold. Terror ran up my spine, digging into my skin and leaving a warm, sticky trail in its wake.
“They lied to you.” He brushed an invisible piece of lint off his shoulder. “You can rid yourself of your awful visions.” Pausing, he rocked on his heels. “I can help you.”
“How?” I asked, trying to keep the tremor out of my voice.
“Give them to me. It’s simple.” He spread his hands wide at his sides. “I take them, and you go back to your pathetic little life.”
“How do I do that?”
“Come with me, and I’ll show you.” He held his hand out to me, a smirk on his face.
I backed away. Evil surrounded him, and I knew I wasn’t meant to go with him. “No,” I said, my voice firm.
A demon grabbed me. Heat radiated from his body, and he smelled of sulfur and burnt flesh. I struggled against his grip, crying and screaming, as he dragged me by the hair to his leader.
“Help me!” But no one came. The blackness surrounding us lifted, and I saw my family and friends watching as other demons grabbed me and pulled me into a glowing, yellow hole.
“You shouldn’t have fought your destiny, Milayna,” someone said as the demon jerked me down, down, down—
I woke up screaming and sat up in bed. My body trembled, and sweat dripped from my hair. Barely breathing, I tried to force myself to hold still and listen. My eyes darted around the room, looking for shadows that were out of place or movement that signaled I needed to get my skinny ass out of there.
Once I was reasonably sure the monsters didn’t follow me out of my dream, I slid out of bed, went into my bathroom, and splashed water on my face. A soft knock sounded on my bedroom door, followed by the handle rattling.