I stood quickly and tried to through out a power bolt. It was useless. I had forgotten I no longer had my powers. Stanton stood by my side protectively.

I quickly became filled with anger. I had trusted Blake. I thought he was a normal person. He lied and deceived me. The whole time he had been working for my father. I actually had feelings for him and he tricked me!

I wondered what kind of prize he received for trading me in. It must have been something great I thought to myself.

"Well, Melantha, I'll tell you." Blake replied evilly answering my thoughts. "I'm now a follower and was placed in the Cincti. Its quiet a boost up from being a lowly initiate," Blake said as he played with a swiss army knife.

"I'm glad you finally got what you wanted." In my head I added, "You lowly jackass." Sure it was harsh, but he got the message. I knew he was in my mind the whole time. I could feel his emotions.

Now, they turned quickly to white hot anger. He stormed quickly towards me and slapped me. I stood my ground and looked at him defiantly.

Lighting fast, however, Stanton grabbed Blake and threw him against the wall, "Don't you ever hit her again."

Stanton held Blake up and had his arm out ready to throw a punch.

"Stanton," I replied quickly, "Don't waste your time on him. He's not worth it." I went to his side and held his arm back. Stanton looked at me questioningly and relaxed.

Blake had a smug look on his face.

Still wanting to know more I asked, "How did you find out about me?"

"That day I saw you walking down the hall. Jimmy reacted strangely, and said he thought you were a follower, maybe even a regulator. That's when I got suspicious," Blake replied.

He paced around the room and started to play with his knife again. I could see his arms were cut, and almost felt sorry for him. He must have been so alone and afraid when he was an initiate.

"Then, that night when I was walking through the park I saw you shadow in and have that little argument with Stanton. That was when I knew," Blake continued maliciously.

"When I had danced with you at Planet Bang I used a pheromone to get you distracted and quickly entered your mind and began controlling it. I thought it would be much more difficult than it turned out to be," Blake said haughtily.

I scoffed, and sat down. I was finally feeling the effects of his slap. My face burned as if salt was poured onto my open wounds.

Stanton noticed my pain and quickly came to me. He put his arm gingerly around me and whispered in my ear, "Do you want me to get rid of him?"

I stood back up and looked at Stanton hopefully, "That would be great." I smiled and took a step back.

Stanton lightly kissed my forehead and I felt his presence in my head, "I'll be back soon."

I wanted so desperately to reply but I couldn't. I could only smile slightly in reply and sat back down.

Stanton quickly walked towards Blake and took hold of him. "You're coming with me." They shadowed away and left me alone in the room.

I closed my eyes and began to daydream. I remembered the Darma Bookstore. It smelled so good, like a real home. Oh, how I wished I was there at the moment.

Suddenly I saw a flash of light come across the room. The cold, hard ground I was sitting on suddenly became soft and comfortable.

I opened my eyes and saw shelves of books and candles around me. The same smell of comfort and warmth filled me as I quickly stood.

It was dark and creepy in the old bookstore. I was a little distraught and confused. How did I get here? I was supposed to be in that prison.

Was this just another illusion? Would my father show suddenly and laugh at my secret wish? I began walking around and examining different things.

I reached the front door and looked outside. It was dark and pieces of trash flew down the street. I saw a few people pass by; they didn't see me standing there looking at them.

I tried to open the door but found it was locked. I looked around desperately. I couldn't waste another moment. If I really were out of my father's imprisonment I didn't have long until he would come looking for me.

I remembered suddenly the phone by the cash register. Hopefully it still worked. I ran to it and picked up the receiver.

I could hear a dial tone. I was about to dial a number when I realized I didn't know anyone's number. If only I had a telephone book somewhere.

I set down the receiver and began searching different drawers. I came up with nothing. I picked back up the receiver and listened to the dial tone again.

If only I were at my apartment, I had a phone book there. I remember I had highlighted the Daughter's numbers and marked the pages where their numbers were listed. That would be so useful at the moment.

Again without warning a white flash appeared. The phone was no longer in my hand, and I wasn't in the bookstore anymore.

I was standing in my apartment. It was just as I had last left it. My clothes were still scattered everywhere. I looked around relieved. It was the closest thing I had to a home.

No longer caring how I had gotten here, I decided I might as well clean up a little. I went to the bathroom and turned on the light. What I saw in the mirror was scary. I looked like a ghost, or maybe a zombie. I guess more of a mix of the two.

My hair was disheveled and completely tangled. It had lost its sheen and sparkle. I had a cut on my forehead and bruises on my cheeks. I had one long cut on my left cheek. I guessed from where Blake had hit me. Dry blood was caked on my eyebrows and dark circles were under my eyes.

I quickly took off the robe from the ceremony and took a nice long shower. When I stepped out the bathroom was all foggy. I went into my bedroom and put on a comfy outfit.

I dried my hair and put it up into a loose ponytail. I applied a lot of make-up. I looked a lot more decent and now my cuts and bruises weren't so noticeable.  

Finally I decided it'd be best if I called someone. I found Catty's number and picked up the phone to dial it.