Chapter 32. Ghosts of the Past

[Elise’s POV]

Phantoms swirl around, their eyes glowing red. Their clawed fingers reach out and attempt to grab me while their words echo in the air.

“Freak.”

“Monster.”

“Demon.”

“Bad Omen.”

They echo again and again, tearing at my heart and causing pain to shoot through me.

These were the words I was used to, and these were the phantoms that kept me company. They taunted me, tearing me down bit by bit as I tried so hard to build myself back up. Of course, that was only wishful thinking.

“How dare you gallivant around pretending to be normal?”

The voice pierces through the others as my hair is grabbed and I’m pulled forward toward a much too familiar scene, one that almost turns me feral as I try desperately to flee before I reach. However, just like every other time this familiar dream has come, I'm unable to do anything. All I can do is let myself be dragged back to that shed and wait while the scent of gasoline fill