Chapter 8

It was the power.

It was all about the power.

Jen had never intended to really hurt Brynn, but she liked the feeling of power it gave her to put those horrible images in her head, to scare her. The sensation was exhilarating, she felt big, important, powerful. She had scared Brynn and she had scared Alex, for no other reason but to feel like that, the way she felt when she was asleep.

She visualized Alex, holding Brynn's hand as he drove her over to her apartment. She saw Brynn, crying in terror. She put images of pillows that pressed against her face with no hands holding them, she made her think of high voltage cables ripping from their poles and sneaking into her bed.

Enough, she heard a part of her mind say. That's enough, you are wasting time.

True, she was wasting precious time; Alex had been thinking about going to her apartment after returning from Brynn's- If he got there in time, he might stop her. So she had to hold him back, along with anybody else who might try to stop her.

She went to her bed and lay there. The plastic bottle of sleeping pills she had gotten from Dopey was on the night table. She smiled at it and grabbed it. "Alex," she whispered. That mean anger she had had moments earlier had been replaced by the perpetual misery. She felt a tear run down her cheek.

She opened the bottle.

She was going where she belonged. *******

Alex didn't like it. He couldn't figure out what was wrong with Jen, but he was going to find out. He took his cell phone, and dialed Katie's number.

"Hello," she said on the other end.

"I don't mean to worry you, Katie, but you, Lucas and Trip have to get to Jen's place quickly," he said.

"Why? What happened?"

"Nothing's happened, and nothing will, if you hurry. If you don't.Well, I think she's going back to her dreams, forever," he said.

"I'm on it," she said, and hung up.

Alex turned to Brynn; she was looking out the window. "Still scared?" he asked her softly.

"No, not anymore," she said, looking at him. "They stopped, the horrible images of things, inanimate objects, plotting to kill me in horrible ways. I couldn't think about anything else, I couldn't keep them out of my mind, but now they are gone, just gone."

"Good," he said. He didn't think it was good. If Jen had stopped putting those images in Brynn's head, it was because she might have other plans, or because she couldn't anymore. He shuddered at the last thought. *******

Katie called Lucas; Trip was at her house, installing some new house software.

"Lucas, we have to get to Jen's place quickly, Alex thinks she might be about to hurt herself," she said, her voice loud, showing her worry and fear.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'll meet you there, please, hurry," Katie said, and hung up.

She and Trip ran downstairs and got in her car. She tried to turn it on, but it didn't respond.

"Come on!" she yelled.

"She can't let you do that," Trip said.

"What?" she turned to him, he was looking straight at her, his forehead sweaty, he was licking his lips rapidly, the way he did when he was nervous.

"She's sending me that thought. She's telling me that even if our intentions are good, she can't let us get there in time," he explained.

"I'll walk then," she said and moved to open the car door. It didn't give. "Jen, come on!" she yelled, tears of fear forming in her eyes. "What is it you want to do?"

"She wants to sleep," Trip whispered, tears forming in his eyes as well. "She just wants to sleep," His voice sounded as if he was begging.

"Why are you crying?" Katie asked a bit angrily. His tears were bringing more tears to her eyes.

"She's taking me over. Her pain is so big, it's overwhelming," he said, Katie broke into tears herself. "She says she loves us, and she says goodbye."

"No!" Katie yelled through her tears, shaking Trip. "Don't let her, please Trip, don't let her!!" ********

Alex took Brynn home and made her some tea. "Here," he said.

She was sitting on her couch, looking at him with deer eyes. "Thanks," she said.

"Brynn, I have to go, I think Jen--"

"Jen, Jen, Jen!" she said bitterly. "She's the only one that matters, right? She's the only one you care about, isn't she?"

"Yes," he admitted. Brynn looked at him, tears running down her cheeks. "We'll talk later, ok? I promise," he said and left.

Jen. It was Jen. It was all about Jen.

He ran towards his car and got in. He tried to turn it on, and, for the first time in the five years he had owned it, it didn't turn on.

"What the--?"

Jennifer. The thought came to him swiftly. It was Jen stopping the car. His cell phone rang. It was Jen calling. He knew it, and he also knew he didn't want to pick up; he didn't want to hear what she had to say.

The phone rang again. Alex felt his hand moving towards it and taking it from the seat. He didn't want to pick up, so she was forcing him to pick up the damn phone. Jen was. He opened the phone and pressed it against his ear.

"Why do you offer such resistance?" she asked; her voice was sad. "Why do you resist me, my touch, my words, my love?"

"I don't want to hear it, Jennifer, I don't want to hear your reasons, because I'm not letting you do this,"

"You are, because now you don't have a choice. How are you going to get out of that car?" she asked.

He tried the door, but he was locked in. he took a deep breath. "Why me, Jennifer? Why didn't you call Katie, or Lucas or Trip? Why me?"

"Because it was your voice I wanted to hear last," she answered softly, her voice was sticky, as if she was drowsy. "Tell me that you love me, Alex," she pleaded.

"Let me start the car, and I will."

"This is not a petition, Alex, you are not allowed to make deals, and you don't have much time. Tell me that you love me."

"Start the car."

"Alex, please, I don't have much time, it's all I want, I want to hear you say that you love me!"

"And I want you to start the car."

Say that you love me, now! He heard her say in his mind.

"I love you, Jennifer" he heard himself say.

"I love you too."

"How did you do that?" he asked, trying to keep her thinking, to keep her awake.

"Do what?"

"Forcing me to tell you that I love you."

"My powers," she said simply. He took another deep breath; he had expected a longer answer. He tried another way.

"Why are you doing this, Jennifer? Why do you want to die?"

"Die?!" she repeated surprised. "I don't want to die, Alex, I just want to sleep."

"For how long?"

"For as long as it pleases me," she answered.

"You are going to die."

"At least I'm going to die happy," she commented, her tone of voice was lowering, she was losing consciousness. "Don't you see that it's perfect like this? I'll be with you, and you can be with Brynn, or with anyone you want."

"I want to be with you."

"It's too late for those lies; they don't make a difference now."

"Jennifer, please stay with me."

"I'm going to. Please don't wake me up, I just want to sleep, I just want to be with you."

"I can't promise that."

"I knew you wouldn't," she said with broken voice. She hung up.

"Jennifer," Alex whispered sadly. How had a strong-willed, brave, intelligent woman like Jennifer ended up being a rag like that? She had powers she could use in so many different ways, why did she have to use them to sleep? The car started. A tear ran down his cheek, she was gone. *******

Jen lay on her side, in a fetal position. She was holding Alex's shirt, and a teddy bear he had once given her. Her covers were pulled up and for all the world she looked like a four-year-old sleeping and dreaming about being a princess in a pink palace with her charming prince and winged pony.

Alex got there before the others. He used his authorized voice print to enter the apartment and ran to Jen's bedroom. "Jennifer," he called her, picking her up, one arm under her neck, the other around her body, with his hand on her back. "Wake up," he pleaded. He shook her, her body shook as if she was a rag doll.

He picked her up, as if he was a father picking his little girl up. He sat down on the windowsill with Jen's body falling limply over his arms. He cried, lulling her, rocking her softly, and kissing her forehead. The teddy bear had fallen to the floor and he looked at it while he rocked her. He had lost her. He was too late and now she was gone.

He heard footsteps in the corridor and looked up. "No!" Katie's scream wasn't loud, but it was true, charged with emotion and pain. She ran to her friend and caressed her hair. "Jen!" she called.

"Is she dead?" Lucas asked.

"No, even worse," Alex said. "She's asleep,"

To be continued.