Lost In Darkness

Avalana’s POV   The waves crashed loudly on the empty seashore. The wind glided over the sea noisily. The orange and pink hue made the sky look magical. It glowed in different shades over the ocean. The sun had just kissed the horizon as it went down leaving behind an enchanting afterglow. Ocean glittered as if billions of diamonds were floating on the ocean surface. The panoramic and naturally picture-perfect view was magnificent. Birds chirped as they returned to their homes after a busy day of catching worms and feeding their babies. The smell of the ocean was refreshing. It brought peace and serenity.   I wiggled my feet in the warm sand as I stood on the seashore. The waves crashed against my feet and went back. My hair flew in all directions as I enjoyed the ocean. For once, my mind was at peace. I felt like I was away from all the chaos when I visited this secluded beach. A small smile was plastered on my face as I stood there.   Deciding to take a walk, I began to stroll down the aloof beach. No one was in sight as long as the vision went. I appreciated that this part of the sea shore was untouched by any human ways. It was preserved and naturally well kept.   An hour passed by as I strolled. By the time I came back the sky was dark blue. The faint apparition of the moon could be seen behind the clouds. Few stars were scattered around the sky. Taking my sandals in my hands, I returned to the small villa I lived in. I washed my feet from the water hose outside to avoid getting any sand in the house. After my feet were dry, I unlocked the latch and walked into the empty villa. My villa was one of the six houses along the beach. The town was about twenty minutes away from the sea shore. My neighbors lived about three to four minutes away from here. This part was always quiet except the sea waves, wind and the birds.   My cellphone rang from somewhere in the house. I followed the direction of the sound and found it in my laundry room. Must have forgotten there when I did the laundry before leaving for the beach.   “Hello?” I said accepting the call.   “I have been trying to reach you for past thirty minutes.” Ashley’s annoyed voice muttered.   “Sorry. I went for a walk and my phone was in the house. What’s the emergency?” I apologized.   “I am going to visit my brother tomorrow. He had a baby this afternoon. Can you take the charge of the restaurant for couple of days?” she asked. “I will pay you overtime.”   “Oh, congratulations.” I smiled. “of course, I will watch after the restaurant. You have a good trip.”   “Thanks, you are an angel. I would have asked Connor but you know how he is. But I will ask him to help you so you wont have too much pressure.” She said.   “No problem. When do you leave?”   “We have a flight tomorrow night. I will be leaving in the morning to Sydney to pick up my cousin. And then we will fly to Michigan.” She spoke into the phone.   “Ah, okay. I will stop by tomorrow for the keys.” I said.   “Alright.” She said. We hung up.   It was nearing dinner time. I took my before dinner medication and started with dinner. My daily routine was pretty simple; wake up, go to the restaurant, come home in the evening, make dinner, take meds and sleep. It had been like that for the past one year. This silent, peaceful environment really helped me a lot since I had come here.   I ate the fried rice that I made and went to bed after the after-dinner medication.   I hadn’t told anyone my real name here just to be safe and ready. Even my belongings were still in the bag with my fake passports and ids. There could be an emergency at any time of the day so I was always ready. I also disguised myself to keep my real identity hidden. As of now, I had dyed my hair purple ombre with grey contact lenses. I had also cut my hair, from the waist length to the shoulders.   The mornings here were pretty serene and bright. I could hear the waves in the distance when I woke up. I watered the plants in my backyard and got ready to go to Ashley’s house. Ashley lived in the town with her mother. She was a nice old woman. Her husband passed away six months ago. Since then, she had been staying home and taking care of the house while Ashley manages the restaurant.   I drove to the town in the second-hand Toyota I purchased a while back. The road to the town was pretty narrow and surrounded by tall palm trees on both sides and white sand. The tropical vibe was strong.   I parked in front of the pretty white house with a small well kempt lawn in the front and few plants her and there. Ashley’s white beetle was parked in the drive way.   I walked to the front door and knocked.   “Hey Mrs. Perez.” I greeted ash’s mother as she opened the door.   “Sonia! Come in come in.” the old lady welcomed me in. “would you like some coffee?” she asked.   “Uh no. I am good. I just had a breakfast before I came here. thanks for asking though” I smiled, politely declining her.   “Oh hi.” Ashley said coming down the stairs. She had a bunch of keys in her hand.   “Hey. Morning.” I smiled.    “Here.” She handed me the keys. “I have kept the list of items to be ordered in my office. The money for it is kept in an envelope in my drawer. Don’t forget to take the invoice from the delivery person when the stock arrives. And write it down in the purchase register.” She instructed me.   I nodded. “don’t worry. I got it.” I said.   “Do you need help with the bags?” I asked.   “Please.” She smiled gratefully.   We rolled her bags to her beetle. “How are you going to the airport?” I asked.   “Mr. brown is dropping me off.” She told me.   I nodded. “Okay then. The opening time is almost here. I should leave. You have a safe journey and don’t worry about things here.” I said.   “Thanks.” She hugged me. I left as the restaurants opens in next hour. We needed to prepare for the day.   The staff had arrived soon after I opened the shutters. We didn’t have a big staff. Just three waiters, four cooks including myself and two cleaners. The restaurant was fairly big and only multi cuisine restaurant in the town so we were famous for our continental dishes, especially Italian. “Good morning.” Connor greeted entering the kitchen.   “Morning.” I smiled, lifting my head up from the dough I was kneading.   “Morning Katie, and bobo.” He said to our two cooks.   “Morning.” They said unison.   “So, Ashley left?” he asked putting on an apron.   “Yeah. She left in the morning.” I answered.   “Guess I will be helping you for few days then.” He said.   “Ashley asked you to?” I questioned.   “No?” he looked at me.   I gasped dramatically. “YOU! Helping me out of your own will!”   He rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Yeah. Doesn’t hurt to be nice once in a while.” He muttered.   “And here I was thinking you were a complete ass.” I commented.   Bobo laughed and Connor scowled.   “Sonia. Someone’s calling.” Jasmine said holding my phone.   “Oh.” I dusted my hands and took the phone from her.   “Hello?” I said accepting the unknown call.   “Hi. Am I speaking to Ms. Sonia Anderson?” a woman asked.   “Yes, this is Sonia. Who am I talking to?”   “I am Courtney from dr. Moore’s office. I am calling you regarding your next appointment.” She said.   “Oh. Is flora not there?” I asked.   “Ms. Flora is on the leave. Is it okay if we schedule your appointment for the next week?” she asked.   I sighed. I hated going to a shrink but I had no choice. Dr. Moore was bearable so I agreed.   “Yes. No problem. Any day of the week is good. Just inform me two days prior.” I said.   “Alright then. We will inform you about the day and the timing for the appointment via a text message soon.” Courtney informed me.   “Okay. Thank you.”   “Have a wonderful day ma’am.” The lady replied and cut the call.   “Another appointment?” Connor asked from behind. I sighed and nodded.   “I know its not something you exactly like but it has helped you. You were a depressed ball of mess when you came here. Look at you now.” He said.   “I guess.” I shrugged and went back to my work.   I didn’t like to remember past four years. No one here knew what happened and I intended to keep it that way. This was the only place where I didn’t feel tainted with my past or the people around me. they all knew something was very wrong with me when I came here but no one pushed me to reveal the truth. My only problem was dr. Moore. He had urged me to open up slowly. That means reminiscing my past, the old wounds, the torture and the pain. I didn’t want to relive it. every time I try to remember, I get panic attacks and nightmares. I was prescribed anti-depressants and other heavy medication to keep away from the nightmares and self-harming urges. I never wanted to go to that darkness again.   “Sonia!” someone called out snapping me out of my wandering thoughts.   “What?” I asked in daze.   “I asked should I put the dough in the oven? Are you okay?” Connor said looking worried.   “Yeah, I am fine. And please do.” I said. I walked to the washroom and splashed my face with the cold water to get rid of the sweat on my forehead.   For the entire day, I kept myself extra busy to keep my mind reeling into the pits of depression.   “Have a good day.” I waved to Katie as she left.   I was the last one to leave as I had to lock the place down. Everyone had gone already. It was pretty late and the streets were deserted. There were no people in sight. I quickly locked the place and checked the locks twice. Clutching my coat to myself I walked to my car and sat in it.   I drove through the dark, narrow road of Esperance. The sea breeze blew making me feel somewhat at peace.   My cellphone rang on the passenger seat. Slowing the car down, I accepted the call without looking at the caller id.   “Hello?”   No response. I looked at the caller id which showed unknown and my heart rate spiked.   “Hello?” I said again with uncertainty.   “Avalana.” A voice rasped. An all too familiar voice.   I hit the brakes abruptly and almost hit my head on the steering.   “Why the f**k are you calling me?” I growled in the speaker.   He laughed maniacally from the other side.   “Luck is really your lucky aspect.” He commented. “You were supposed to die. You know what beautiful, you are like a cockroach. No matter how many times you are stomped, you will stubbornly get up and crawl away alive. And I am getting quiet fed up of it.” the change in the tone of his voice was frightening. But I didn’t care.   I snorted. “Is that so?” I said mockingly. “Let’s look at it like this. You are so f*****g lame. You tried to play us all and you almost succeeded but, in the end, all you got was failure. I cant believe your dumbass cannot even kill a one woman properly. luck is not a problem here. It’s just that, you are a bloody failure. That’s all.” A mocking laugh escaped my lips.   “You f*****g bitch.” He exploded. “This time, I will make sure you are six feet under.”   “Sure. I don’t care if I live or die anyways. All that is precious to me is safe and well protected. So, I do not have anything to fear. Come at me you piece of s**t; I won’t go down without a fight.” I spat and cut the call.   I sighed. I guess it was time to skip the town again. This was the longest I had been in one place but they always find me. I had maybe one week at the most if I was lucky, but I wasn’t going to test it. my plan was to wrap everything up and skip the country altogether. I only had to restock on my pills before I left.   That night I slept with my one eye open and a gun under my bed. Next day I called dr. Moore’s office as soon as the clock hand hit ten.   “Uh hi this Sonia. I was calling to reschedule my appointment a bit early. I have to leave the town for a family emergency.” I said.   “Oh Ms. Anderson. This is Courtney. Let me check if I can prepone it. I will talk with the doctor and call you back is that okay?” she asked.   “that’s fine.” I replied and she cut the call.   I packed my bags up with all of my belongings in it. for the first time in past three years, I was a bit sad to leave a place behind. I really liked this town and my villa and the beach and the peace here. I honestly thought I would get some more time before I had to leave again, nut I guess fate had other plans for me.   My phone rang again and I picked it up on the first ring. “Hello?”   “This is Courtney again. Is it possible to you to come today?” she asked.   “Yes.” I replied without wasting a breath.   “Alright. Please visit between eleven am and two pm.” She said.   I waited to be called in the cabin. Thankfully there weren’t many patients saving me some time. I had booked a flight to New Zealand. The fact that I would have to start from the scratch was frustrating.   “Ms. Anderson.” Courtney, the receptionist called out. “The doctor will see you now.”   I nodded at her and went to the familiar little cabin. Dr. Moore sat on the sat behind the desk.   “Ms. Anderson.” He smiled as I sat down. I smiled back. “How are you?”   “I am fine doctor. Feeling good.” I replied.   “I’m pleased to hear that. I am guessing you are here for the regular appointment.” He said.   I nodded. “Yes. I also need refills.”   He raised a brow. “I thought we were going slow on the medication?”   “Yes. But I need to fly to America for a family emergency and I don’t want to have a breakdown in front of them since none of them know.” I lied smoothly.   “Very well. I will prescribe medication for a month. But I advise to go slow on it” he said writing the prescription down. “Lets start with the session?” he asked.   My one hour was spent on doctor evaluating my improved mental health. Since it was my last session, I showed some interest in what he was saying. We went over same s**t again; him trying to get me to talk about my past but not pushing it like other doctors. The main reason I liked Dr. Moore was he was not like other doctors who kept everything overly professional. This man actually listened to the problems.   I hurried back to the villa as soon as I brought the medicines. I wrote letters to Ashley and the staff apologizing profusely for leaving without any notice. I was very sad for leaving the people I had come to know behind. But it was all for a reason. I didn’t want to drag anyone else in my problems and I couldn’t deny that I was a threat to those around me.   I left the letters on the table along with the restaurant key and left the restaurant before anyone could notice. The villa was on my fake name so it would most probably be auctioned off once I disappeared.   I had to drive to the Esperance airport to fly to Sydney. I reached the airport in record time. This port was small since it was meant for domestic flights. My flight was in forty minutes so I decided to head to the boarding area.   I was unloading the bags when someone suffocated me with a funny smelling rag. I thrashed and kicked the person in the shin. They groaned and hit my head against the car. My vision swam. The rag was held on my nose again.   “Sleep now.” Was the last thing I heard before I succumbed to darkness.