THE EMPATH

A STEP INTO THE BADLANDS (Connections)

All the guys I had rained my judgment on, went out begging or cursing, and then there was Eddy who tried to advise me. "You have no idea what you just messed with. I know that telling you this will not change my fate but I almost feel sorry for you. You are strong and everything, but I would advise you to take a step back, and think before you decide to jump into the fire head first. I was once like you, doing everything in the name of justice, but then I met them and my whole life turned upside down. They will get to you, believe me..." those were Eddy's last words and two weeks later, they still haunted me. A part of me knew that all he wanted to do was help me, but another part wanted me to believe that those were just but the words of a desperate man about to die. Whatever they were though, they had given me two sleepless weeks. Maybe Eddy was right, after all, my guardian kept reminding me that it was not my duty to save the humans from their stupid actions. I was having a hard time determining which course was the right one and I wished I could find an answer. My guardian had been quiet for a long time and I didn't want to disturb him so I never went to him for an answer, instead, I asked for a sign. So far, I had seen nothing that looked like one. I was starting to think that maybe the universe didn't care what I did or didn't do and I was thinking of making the pros and cons list. I even had the paper and the pen ready when my dad called me from the seating room and there was a sense of urgency to his voice.

I rushed to the main house and I found my dad standing there holding his phone. "It is for you," he said before handing it over to me. "Hello, this is Vicky speaking..." I started as I had no idea what to say and the worried vibe from my dad was disturbing. "It's Anne'd dad, I need to talk to you as soon as possible. Can I pick you up in about twenty minutes?" he asked and I could tell from his voice that whatever it was he wanted to say was urgent and serious. "Yes...Is there a problem?" I asked but by then he had already hung up the phone. "I think something bad happened to Anne and..." dad started but then stopped midway. There was something in his voice that told me that he feared for the worse. "What is the problem dad?" I held his arm and showed him to the couch where he sat uneasily for a while before getting up and asking me to follow him. "Your mother is around and she can't hear this," he said as he walked into my cubicle. There he sat on my bed and asked me to join him which I did without hesitation. "Okay, son. I am sorry I didn't tell you this earlier and I hope you will understand why..." he made a long pause and for a moment it felt like he was never going to talk again. Then he got up and left the room promising to be back in a moment. He asked me to stay put and even if he had not asked, I would still have been seated there wondering what had gotten into him. I looked at my watch and counted that I only had twelve minutes before Anne's dad would show up and I hoped that was enough time for dad to tell me what he had to.

A minute later, he came back with a brown envelope that still looked new and he handed it to me. He then sat beside me and went on with his narrative. "About a month ago, Anne sent these papers to me and asked me to give them to you. She also asked me where she could find you but I denied her that information given the complicated history between you and her parents. She asked me not to open it and I planned to keep her promise so I kept them away. However, I could not find the courage to send them to you as I thought they may have contained secrets about you and I don't trust the mail company at all. I decided to keep them until you came home for the holidays, but then you delayed and I forgot all about them. Yesterday, however, Anne called me on my phone and asked me if I was sure you got the envelope. It was at night and it felt like she was running from something or someone. I was about to explain to her that I never gave you the envelope, but then she said she had to go. Before she could hang up, I heard her scream and there was someone saying something to her but I could not make out what. I am sorry Vicky, I knew I should have told you but I was scared for you," he concluded and gave me the go-ahead to open the envelope. "I will be in the house if you need me, right now I can tell you are a bit angry and I shouldn't be here. Please don't, I need you to understand where I am coming from," he added and left.

I was of course angry, but looking at my watch, I only had about four minutes to go through the envelope's content so I decided to concentrate on that first. I ripped the damn thing open and the first thing I came across was a letter. It was Anne's handwriting okay, but it looked like it had been written in a hurry and in a dark place. It read, " I know we are not to be communicating right now, but I have something that you need to see. You told me earlier that it is your duty to protect the humans from creepy crap, well I have a load of that for you. Lately, people have been disappearing from the school and the surrounding areas. At first, I thought it was just the normal school dropping our crap, but then last week two professors disappeared. My friend and I started investing and so far, I don't like the direction this crap is heading. Take a look at the pictures and if this is the kind of case you deal with, get back to me as soon as possible" It was never like Anne to write mixed-up stuff. For all I could remember, his essays were the best and the teachers kept on telling us to organize our ideas as she did. The fact that the letter was neither organized nor clear got me a little concerned so I picked up the picture. I went through all of them and with every picture, my mouth widened up a little to a point it was all open by the time I finished looking at them. Looked like the universe was giving me the sign I was looking for and I didn't like it.

Analyzing what I had just seen was going to take some time and that was the one luxury I didn't have as Anne's dad was already at the gate waiting for me. As I made my way past dad, I could pick up a vibe that he was scared of me. "Talk later dad," I said just to feel his blood pressure pumped. In the car, I was met by even much-scared faces. Anne's mother was seated in the front tapping on the dashboard eagerly while her dad was holding onto the steering wheel as if his life depended on it. He showed me to the back seat with a gesture and I just hopped in without hesitation. "Just so we are clear, I haven't talked to your daughter ever since you asked me not to," I said. I had just found out that that was the one thing Anne's mum didn't want brought up so I made sure to talk about it. I hoped it would break the awkward silence. "I know, and I wish you had because maybe then all this wouldn't have happened," she said and a wave of guilt-filled the car. "Why? what happened?" I couldn't help but ask. "We are not quite sure yet. All we know is that our daughter is in the hospital fighting for her life and she asked us to take you to her," her father said. "She has also has been sending to us these envelopes with a request that we send them to your father so that he can get them to you but we never sent you any. I think they are important," her mother added and handed me three envelopes. The day was just beginning to get bad and I was also a little scared.

I feared what I would find the moment I opened the envelopes so I just placed them on my lap. In my head, a battle was just beginning, a battle of whether or not it was wise to open the envelopes. "You know Vicky, you finally found your job. I think you should open those envelopes and go through the contents slowly. It is time you started thinking and acting like a guardian. It is about time you took a step into the badlands, where you belong." It was my guardian. After two months of silence, my guardian had finally spoken. "What do you mean where I belong?" I asked, not even sure I was ready for the answer. "Remember when I told you that I was going to test you? Well, the last three months have been more of a test. I wanted to see if you understood what being a protector was all about. You passed son, but that was just but the beginning. The group you have been dealing with so far was just but a strand of hair from a huge giant that you need to slay. This is the toughest challenge any protector has ever been faced with. However, I know now that you are not just any protector, you are Vicky the Empath. The guy who will do anything to heal other people's pains because he knows that in healing them, he also healing himself. You are about to walk into a very dangerous world and I should say that you were right to be scared by Eddy's last words. Open your eyes, Vicky, because then you will see the connection." my guardian concluded and we went back to being silent again. "What are you talking about?" Anne's mum asked and I realized for the first time that I was talking out loud. I explained that I was just trying to remember something and she believed me. In the meantime, the dad was driving almost dangerously along the wavy road and the two got into some sort of an argument.

I opened the first envelope. The first thing I came across was a note just like in the earlier envelope. This one was however short and to the point. It read "Hey Vicky, I hope you got the first envelope. We have been following the trail and it is all connected to this huge d**g company by the name Healthy World d**g Company (HWDC). We don't know much so far but we have been trying to get into the facility. I wish you could reply or at least let me know that you are receiving my letters". There was then a smaller envelope that as I expected, had photos in it. They we photos of people who Anne believed walked into the hospital but never walked out. Behind every photo, was the names and age of the people which she believed would help me with the research. I reached for the second envelope which also had a note and pictures. The note was however different that time around and my fears started surfacing the moment I started reading the note. "Hello, Vicky. By now, I am not even sure you have received any of my letters. We are still investigating and guess what, we just found a way to get inside the facility. We learned that the company has been recruiting people for d**g tests and I wanted to join but Milley, the friend I have been telling you about, want to be the hero so she registered yesterday without even telling me. I will have to keep you posted but in the meantime, I am about to do something stupid and I wish you could at least tell me what you think about it". The very mention of her friend's name, and her joining the d**g trials got me shivering a bit. I could now see clearly and it was true what my guardian has told me. So far, I could already see the connection and I feared I already knew what was in the next envelope. I reached for it with shaky fingers and said a hail mary before opening it. I felt my stomach twitch a little and a sweat formed on my face. Anne's mother looked at me and I forced a smile but I could tell she saw right through me. "Don't worry Vicky, everything is going to be alright. We just need to get to the hospital. All we need is my husband here to drive a little bit slower," she turned towards her husband and the two went on with the arguing and for a moment I smiled as it reminded me of my parents. I guess it was like that all around the world.

Listening to the two would have been a good thing, but I had something bothering me that wouldn't let me concentrate. At last, I made up my mind to check the envelope and I opened it with my eyes closed. I reached for the note which confirmed my fears. "Hello Vicky, this is my last attempt to get through to you as I fear I have to go into hiding. My friend Milley had been missing for the last two weeks. Like all the others, she walked into the company and never walked out. I fear there is more going on in there than we know. Anyway, I tried to follow up but her family told me that she died. However, on the day of her burial, only the family went to view the body, I thought that was suspicious so I sneaked in and I can tell you certainly that they buried an empty casket. I still believe that Milley is somewhere inside the facility and I could use some help right about now. Also, I have had this strong feeling lately that someone is watching and following me so I have to lay low for a while. If you decide to look for me, at the back of the note is my address" the last note read. I then remembered the female body I had found a month earlier. The name on the file was Milley.