One Year Later
A year had passed since the murders of Eric Draven and Shelly Webster. Both were buried in the local cemetery. Needless to say they were buried next to each other. Raven Derrick, however, was presumed missing. No one had bothered with searching for her. Her body still lay in the freezing water that filled her bathtub. The note she wrote before her suicide was still laying on the counter. The razor and gun were laying in the bottom of the tub. Both were rusted. The only thing that was different was the raven perched on the side of the tub. It tilted its head to the side and looked at her, cawing softly. When Raven gave no response, it worked its way along the side of the tub til it was parallel to her head. It ran its beak across her forehead and pecked at the porcelain lining of the tub. A few moments later, Raven's eyes shot open and she rose out of the water, gasping for breath. She looked around the room, taking in her surroundings, then placed her hands on the edge of the tub, using them to support her as she stood. However, she hadn't had time to stand before images of her suicide flashed through her head. She basically re-enacted the last night she spent alive from the time she entered the door, til the time she pulled that fateful trigger. When the living memory was finally over, Raven collapsed back into the tub, sending water all over the tile floor. She shook her head and got back up, hesitantly placing her hands back on the edge of the tub. When it was found to be "safe," she stepped out of the now below freezing water she died in and onto the cold, white tiles of the bathroom floor. She slowly made her way to her bedroom, wanting to find something warm to put on. Raven rummaged through her closet and found a pair of jeans, and a black T-shirt that was a few sizes too big. Not bothering putting on any eyeliner, she walked out the door and headed toward the cemetery, wanting to pay her final respects to her best friend.
She wandered through the cemetery aimlessly, trying to find Eric's grave. She thought she was alone, until she heard someone walking through the cemetery a few aisles across from her. She ducked behind a large headstone quicker than she could blink, not wanting to be seen. She muffled her breathing and strained her ears, trying to figure out who the late night visitor was. Staying low to the ground, Raven followed the footsteps jumping from headstone to headstone, hoping slightly that it was a friend of Eric's or Shelly's coming to visit the grave. When the footsteps came to a sudden stop, Raven was in between two headstones. She quickly rolled to her front and prayed to God she wasn't seen. Just to be safe, or be an idiot, which one she wasn't sure, Raven leaned over the front of the headstone to see who was there. It was Sarah, a young girl, about 13, whom she used to help Shelly take care of when she wasn't working. Sarah saw her. Raven's eyes widened and she gasped, then clapped her hand over her mouth and ducked back behind the headstone. 'Stupid, STUPID! Good move Raven, get yourself in deep shit. Smart. Genius!' She mentally scolded herself for a few minutes. Then she heard Sarah softly call her name. It was more of a question than anything else, as if she wasn't sure if she had seen Raven or not. Raven took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "Yes Sarah?" as if Sarah had known she was there all along. "Oh my God," Sarah breathed. "Where the hell have you been for the past year huh?" she said seconds afterward, trying not to sound as shocked as she was.
"I, uh . . . I . . . I locked myself in my apartment after Eric died. I was there. I saw it happen. He landed right in front of me. He was my best friend, you know, and it really screwed me up. But, I'm back now, and was actually coming to pay my final respects, but, I guess I'll take you home, if you don't care. It's getting late and you shouldn't be out here. It's dangerous."
"Nah, I'll be fine. Thanks anyway though. Sorry about what happened, and I guess I'll se ya round. Bye!" With that, Sarah threw up her hood and walked off in the rain. It had started pouring a few seconds before. "No. . . . no you won't," Raven muttered to herself before sighing and turning to go. Then she noticed a crow land on the grave in front of her. She leaned over to see who's grave it was, and fell over backward, nearly knocking her head on the headstone behind her. It was Eric's. She then watched as the crow pecked at the concrete slab. The confusion on her face turned to shock, then to horror as the ground in front of the grave split open and Eric rose from his grave, then fell to his knees and cried out, seemingly in pain. Raven ducked behind a headstone to avoid being seen. A minute later, Eric pulled himself up on a tree branch, then was led off into the night by the crow. The raven from Raven's apartment landed on Raven's shoulder and cawed softly. Raven could only guess what Eric had been brought back for. She then turned and ran back to her apartment, hoping her assumption was right and forming a plan, the raven following close behind.
