Hello everyone! Sorry for the super long wait! This chapter was going to be really lengthy, but I decided to split it in two.

This chapter is basically the life of Ambriel's vessel, Brianna, and occurs about 5 years ago.

Brianna looked up at the sound of knocking at her bedroom door. Her mother peered in.

"How are you doing, sweetheart?" She asked.

"Pretty good." Brianna smiled. "I just have to finish my English essay." She gestured to her laptop. "But Alice and I still have to do our history project final together. I was hoping I could sleep over her house tonight to work on it?" Brianna asked her mother.

"I don't see why not." Her mother agreed. "Just be home before dinner tomorrow."

"Thanks, Mom!" Brianna went back to her essay, which was on the transforming experiences she has had up to this point as a high school senior.

Around noon time, Brianna had finished her essay, texted her best friend, Alice Greenly, to confirm that she was able to sleepover, and packed her overnight bag.

"Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad." Brianna called out as she headed for the front door.

"Bye, sweetheart! Have fun!" Brianna's mother answered as Brianna got into her hand-me-down car from her father and started the engine.

A few minutes later, Brianna arrived at Alice's house. She grabbed her bag, locked her car, and knocked on the front door. Alice came rushing up, quickly opening the door.

Alice stood tall at 5'3, much shorter than Brianna. She had pale skin and dark red hair, with emerald-green eyes. She pushed her glasses up her nose.

"Well...?" Alice asked, a little jokingly. "Get in here!" She waved Brianna into the house.

Brianna giggled as she entered Alice's front hall.

"Hi, Mrs. Greenly!" Brianna waved to Alice's mother as Alice dragged her up the stairs to her bedroom.

"Hello, Brianna!" Mrs. Greenly smiled and waved back.

Brianna and Alice immediately got to work on their project, so that they could maximize their free time.

As the day turned into night, Alice and Brianna had prepared for something special. Both of them shoved pillows into their beds and snuck downstairs. They disappeared out the back door and began walking towards town. It was only a 5 minute walk, so neither of them thought to bring a coat.

"You ready?" Alice asked Brianna, her hand on the wooden door.

"Are we on time?" Brianna asked.

"Yup."

"Then let's go."

Alice smiled and pushed the door open. The two teenage girls walked into the large church.

The Father who was there at that time was Father Moore. "Alice, Brianna." He gave them a warm smile and hugged each of them.

Since Alice and Brianna were the only ones there for the midnight mass, they instead prayed together with Father Moore.

Brianna said several 'Our Father's,' but stayed quiet for a few minutes while she said a personal prayer to God.

"You ready to go?" Alice asked quietly.

"Yeah." Brianna replied.

"Thank you, Father." Both the girls smiled at Father Moore.

"You are very welcome. God bless you, my dears." He clasped his hand together as the two girls left.

Brianna and Alice quickly walked home in silence. They quietly entered through the back door.

A light turned on and the girls immediately froze.

"ALICE MARIE GREENLY." Mrs. Greenly had her arms crossed and a scowl on her face while she stood in the back hall. "What do you think you're doing, sneaking out at this time of night?" She asked, clearly angry.

"Mrs. Greenly, we were just-" Brianna tried to reason with the angry mother.

"Brianna, I'm leaving your punishment to your mother." Mrs. Greenly cut her off.

"But we were just at midnight mass!" Brianna quickly blurted out, and then immediately covered her mouth.

"BRIANNA ELIZABETH CARSON!" Brianna's mother appeared from out of the darkness.

Brianna backed up a step, horror filling her eyes.

"Brianna, I thought I raised you better!" Mrs. Carson yelled at her daughter. "You know that God does not exist! Such are the teachings of our atheist family. You know that, don't you?"

"Mom, you have no right to force your faith, or lack thereof, on me!" Brianna fought back. "I know there's a God out there, and there's nothing you can do to stop me from believing that!" Tears were starting to stream down Brianna's face.

Mrs. Carson was taken aback. "Brianna, go get your things. I'm taking you home and you're going to tell this to your father." She commanded.

Brianna stormed up the stairs without another word.

Alice stared at both the mothers in the back hall and then quickly followed Brianna up the stairs.

"Bri?" Alice asked. "You alright?"

"No." Brianna sniffed.

Alice grabbed a handful of tissues from the nightstand by her bed and gave them to Brianna.

"Why can't my mother be more accepting?" Brianna asked as she wiped away her tears, smudging some mascara.

"We all have obstacles in life, Bri, and we just gotta have faith to overcome them." Alice replied.

Brianna let out a small smile. "You're right."

Alice hugged Brianna. "I'll be here if you need me."

Brianna stood up, things in hand. "Thank you."

Brianna went downstairs, head held high, and walked out of Alice's house without another word to her mother. Brianna got into her car and drove home, her mother following close behind.

Brianna walked into her house, ready to face her father. Mrs. Carson came rushing in behind Brianna, ready to announce the terrifying news.

"She's-" Mrs. Carson started.

"I believe in God." Brianna stated.

"Brianna, are you serious?" Her father's booming voice rang out.

"Yes." Brianna's voice remained strong.

Just then, the radio in the house went haywire, static filled the dead air in the room.

'What?!' Brianna thought, in response to what she heard from the radio.

"Brianna," Mr. Carson started, "why do you believe in 'God'?"

"I believe God is the higher power in this world. Is that so wrong?" Brianna argued.

"Brianna Elizabeth Carson! Stop this nonsense right now!" Her father yelled.

"Or what?" Brianna yelled back.

"Or what?!" Her father yelled even louder. He grabbed a vase from the table and threw it at Brianna.

As told by the radio, Brianna ducked left as the vase sailed well to the right of her.

"Why you little…" Mr. Carson trailed off as he marched towards his daughter.

Brianna quickly ran to the kitchen, per the instruction of the radio, and grabbed a knife from the countertop. She held the knife in front of her for defense from her father.

Mr. Carson came into the kitchen, and Mrs. Carson was helpless to stop her rampaging husband.

"Brianna, please." Her mother begged.

"Brianna, I will not tolerate this." Her father curled his hands into fists.

"If you want proof, I can give it to you!" Brianna held the knife blade close to her hand.

"PROOF?" Her father boomed with laughter. "The only proof that will give you is that your God doesn't exist."

Brianna didn't even flinch when she pulled the blade straight across her palm. A few drops of blood dripped out of a now non-existent wound. "Proof enough?" She asked.

"Get your ass over here, you little bitch!" Her father yelled, stomping a foot.

Brianna turned and ran, knife still in hand. She exited the kitchen through the other entrance and quickly went up the stairs, taking two at a time. She ran into her room and locked the door behind her. She took the chair from her desk and rammed it under the doorknob, making sure her parents couldn't enter. She sat down in the corner of her room, knife down on the ground in front of her, and wrapped her arms around her knees.

Then, the light in her room began to light up and a piercing noise sounded throughout the room. Brianna opened up from her tight position upon hearing the voice in the sound.

"Yes, I do." She answered to a call.

"Yes!" She replied more forcefully.

"I will!" She tried to get her voice above the heightening noise.

"I do believe!" She screamed.

The windows in her room shattered and Brianna shielded herself from flying glass.

"Brianna!" Mr. Carson banged on the door loudly. "Open this door now!" He tried the door a few more times and then gave up.

Brianna shakily took out her cellphone from her back pocket. She dialed Alice and held the phone to her ear.

Alice picked up on the second ring.

"Bri?" Alice answered. Bri heard a sniffle from Alice.

"Alice? Something just happened to me." Brianna started.

"Me too." Alice replied quietly.

"An angel just talked to me." Brianna blurted out.

"Brianna, you can't be…" Alice paused. "An angel just talked to me, too."

"With the bright light, loud noise, and the windows blowing out?"

"Yeah."

Brianna remained quiet for a moment. "Alice, can I live with you until college?"

"What? Why?" Alice asked, concern swelling into her voice. "I mean, of course, but why?"

Tears slid down Brianna's face. "My dad threw a vase at me. He yelled and screamed. He practically tried to kill me." Brianna took a heaving breath.

"Do you want me to call the police?" Alice asked, about to panic herself.

"I don't think so." Bri replied.

"Do you want me to beat him up for you?" Alice asked.

Bri let out a small giggle. "I don't think so."

Alice paused. "Do you want me to drive over there and pick you up?"

"I... I don't want you to get hurt, too." Bri argued quietly.

"I can call David. His campus is only ten minutes away." Alice offered. David was Alice's twenty-three year old brother, who went to community college a few minutes away.

"Sure." Bri agreed.

"Pack a lot of things." Alice added.

"I will."

"And be ready to jump out of your window if necessary." Alice's voice turned serious.

"Okay."

"You can hang in there for fifteen minutes, right?" Alice doubled-checked.

"Yeah." Brianna nodded, wiping some salty tears off her face.

"Okay."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Brianna hung up.

She quickly packed a month's worth of clothes into a suitcase she had in her closet, throwing in a few pairs of shoes as well. She tossed in a make-up bag and a hairbrush. Brianna then made sure all her school things, and her laptop, were packed away in her book bag.

Then, Brianna saw flashing police lights outside her house and ducked down in the corner again. Did Alice call them to help? Or was it her father trying to get his daughter to comply to his wishes?

After a few moments of talking downstairs, which Brianna couldn't understand, she heard footsteps coming up the stairs. Bri eyed the knife, which was still on her floor.

She heard a knocking at her bedroom door.

"Miss Carson?" An unfamiliar voice called out.

"Who are you?" Brianna asked.

"I'm Sergeant James Lee with the State Police." The man explained.

"Are you lying?" Brianna asked.

"No, miss." He replied.

Brianna didn't know whether to trust him or not.

'Faith, right?' Brianna thought to herself. 'My faith brought help.'

"Okay." Brianna answered.

"Could you open up?" He asked.

"Mhmm." Brianna quietly spoke as she stood up.

She walked over to her door and unwedged the chair from it. She unlocked it and pulled it open.

There was an older man standing at her door, with a warm and kind face, weathered by time. His uniform had 'Lee' stitched on one side. A younger officer stood behind him, holding a med kit and a shock blanket.

Brianna broke down into tears and rushed up to Sergeant Lee, hugging him around the waist. "Thank you." Brianna's words were muffled.

Sergeant Lee was only slightly taken aback, and it only took him a second to wrap his own arms around her.

"You're safe now." He murmured.

Everyone stayed quiet for a moment.

"May I ask you some questions?" Sergeant Lee quietly asked.

Brianna let go and nodded.

Sergeant Lee took the blanket from the younger officer and dismissed him. The sergeant led Brianna back into her room and sat her down on her bed. He wrapped the blanket around her.

"Can I ask what happened tonight?" Sergeant Lee asked.

Brianna glanced at her alarm clock, which read 1:48, and nodded her head. "I went to sleepover my friend's house, and we snuck out for midnight mass." Brianna paused and Sergeant Lee's face remained understanding and calm. "We came back and my friend's mother had called mine. My mom was there at my friend's house. She yelled at me for believing in God. She made me go home and face my father. He yelled at me, threw a vase at my head. I ducked and ran to the kitchen, he chased me and I ran up the stairs. I locked myself in here and put a chair under the doorknob. I was sitting in the corner over there," Brianna pointed to the corner she was in, "when the windows burst out, but I don't know what from."

Sergeant Lee nodded. "What were you packing for?" He had noticed the packed suitcase and book bag.

"I made plans to live with my friend until the end of the school year." Brianna replied, looking at her lap.

Sergeant Lee let out the tiniest of sighs. "Would you come downstairs with me?"

Brianna nodded. She got up off the bed and walked out, followed by Sergeant Lee, who grabbed Brianna's suitcase and book bag. Brianna went down the stairs and found several more officers in her living room.

Sergeant Lee came up behind Brianna and gently nudged her forward.

Then, Brianna saw her father being cuffed by two policemen. Her father looked over at her.

"You little traitor!" He spat.

Brianna flinched, but Sergeant Lee put a hand on her shoulder.

The two officers holding Mr. Carson escorted him out of the house.

"Bitch!" He yelled before the front door was closed.

Sergeant Lee dropped his hand. Brianna had taken a few steps before she stopped.

"But…" Brianna paused. "Who called the police?" She asked.

Mrs. Carson popped up from the couch at the sound of her daughter's voice. "I did." She had tears running down her face. She quickly ran up to Brianna and tried to hug her. Brianna slapped her mother's hands away.

Mrs. Carson's face dropped. "I realize what I did was wrong. It doesn't matter what you believe in. All that matters is you." She tried to reason.

Brianna sighed and nodded.

Mrs. Carson gave Brianna a quick squeeze before Brianna broke away.

"What are you doing?" She asked, directing her question at Sergeant Lee, who had walked over to another policeman.

Sergeant Lee turned around, trying to hide that the other police officer was holding her father's Glock. "Miss Carson," he started, trying to keep the situation calm.

"Why is that here?" Brianna asked.

"Miss Carson, we believe you father was going to use it." Sergeant Lee eventually managed to spill the details.

Brianna suppressed a gasp and turned to her mother, who had even more tears on her face.

"But," Sergeant Lee added, "let's be thankful that nothing terrible happened."

Brianna pulled the blanket closer around her, a slight shiver running down her spine.

"Miss Carson, would you like to leave now?" Sergeant Lee asked.

"Leave?" Brianna's mother sounded concerned.

"Miss Carson has chosen to live at her friend's house for the remainder of the school year." Sergeant Lee explained.

"But…" Mrs. Carson tried to form an argument.

"She is an adult." Sergeant Lee remarked.

Mrs. Carson looked crushed.

"I'll come visit every other day, I promise." Brianna spoke up. "But I just need time away from this place." She explained.

Mrs. Carson nodded in understanding.

After a quick hug, Brianna was escorted out the door by Sergeant Lee.

Brianna walked down the front steps to see Alice and David being held back behind police tape. Brianna quicken her steps and ducked under the tape.

Alice quickly embraced her best friend. "Oh God, I was so worried. Are you okay?" Alice asked.

"Yeah." Brianna nodded.

Sergeant Lee had come up, and David took Brianna's things from him with a little nod.

Brianna turned around to return the blanket to Sergeant Lee, who took it.

"Miss Carson, if you need anything." He handed her his business card with his phone number on it.

Brianna took it. "Thank you."

"And," Sergeant Lee added, "I might be in contact with you soon if you're needed as a witness for the trial against your father."

"Oh… ok." Brianna nodded.

"Goodnight." Sergeant Lee gave her one last smile and a tip of his hat.

"Goodnight." Brianna let out a little smile.

Brianna turned to face Alice, who led her to David's red pickup truck. David put Brianna's suitcase and book bag in the back seat of the cab and started the engine. Brianna sat up front in the middle, and Alice sat on the passenger side.

The ride was silent, except for some old eighties hits that were playing on the radio, which David had listened to on a quiet volume. Alice had an arm around Brianna, who was just staring ahead into the oblivion, unsure of her future.

Just staring.

Well there you go! I hoped you liked it. Please, please, please tell me what you thought about it.

The next one should be up soon. It's in the works already.

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