Her Sweet Revenge

Chapter 11

The bathroom was the dirtiest room of all. There was a small sink with a mirror above it, a towel rack, a toilet beside the sink and a bath tub. The tub had a shower head connected to the wall. It wasn't horrible, I would just have to clean. The entire house would need a good cleaning. That wouldn't be a hard task.

Finally, beside the bathroom door was the locked door to the basement. All of the walls were colored white, but slightly discolored from age. "This place is perfect. How soon can I move in? I have no belongings or anything with me, other than a wallet and myself." I was really excited to have my own place and a new life. I would make this perfect. "You can have the keys now. I will go and call the hydro company and turn on the water and electricity for you." I thanked her quickly. "How much is rent?" I braced myself for the price. I would hate to have to find another place for less. "How is $900? Rent will be due at the end of every month, so you won't have to pay until the 31st."

I nodded enthusiastically before shaking her soft, wrinkled hands. After handing me the keys, she smiled and left me to myself. "I live right across the street. Come by if you need anything"

I had my very own place! Maybe things will become normal after all.

. . . .

Well, I had a butt load of cleaning and shopping to do. I would have to take a taxi around town. But I haven't even counted the bills in the wallet yet. I suppose that was the first thing I needed to do. Marching to the kitchen, I took the wallet from my back pocket and opened it. After pulling out all of the bills, I set them on the counter. There was 11 one hundred dollar bills, 5 fifty dollar bills, 7 twenty dollar bills and a handful of smaller bills. In total I had about $1,490 dollars. I would definitely have to take out some money from the bank once this runs out. At least this was an international card.

What I needed to buy was:

1. Clothes

2. Food for the week

3. Cleaning supplies

4. Small furniture

5. Home essentials

I would try to buy everything in one big trip so I could save myself a lot of money. When I shoved 'my' money into 'my' wallet, I noticed the pink wall phone at the end of the counter. Once the electricity was connected, I could use it to make calls.

After putting the wallet and keys back into my pocket, I walked out of the house, making sure the doors were locked. The bright sunlight warmed my face as beams of light shone through the tree leaves. Across the street was a two story yellow house, which is where Maggie lived. The entire street had nice, colorful houses. I now knew that my home address was 6678 May Street.

I descended the concrete steps and onto the side walk. My feet were starting to hurt from the shoes I was wearing. I would have to buy some runners to wear when I was out and about. I was just imagining all of the things I would buy. I had never had so much responsibility, but I loved the feeling of being able to buy whatever I wanted and needed.

I remembered the time Daniel and I went to the grocery store. We couldn't agree on what type of peanut butter to have, so we bought two different kinds. 'Damn it Arianna, stop thinking about that.' When ever I thought of one thing, it lead me to think about the past and I wished I would just forget. I would even give away all of the good memories to stop the pain. It was selfish of me, but I had no one left. I had nothing.

I walked down the steep hill, until I made it to the street below. This street was a bit more busy and a few taxis drove past. I flagged down a taxi. I thought that I read about doing that in a book once or something. But it worked. A yellow and black taxi pulled to the curb and I jumped in the back seat.

"Where to Miss?" A female driver asked. Instantly, I felt the woman's power. It wasn't incredibly strong, but I was always able to feel an aura. It was also a big change from being around humans. "The nearest Walmart please." I replied. The woman drove the taxi away from the curb and into the afternoon traffic. "So, what are you?" Her question threw me off guard. She didn't even look up in the rear view mirror to see me. "Pardon?" She must mean something else.

"Don't play dumb, doll. Your power is one of the strongest I have felt in a long time around here." My back went rigid. Her green eyes studied me in the mirror. I didn't realize that there was others like me in New York. I knew we were all over the world, but I guessed that I was just naive to the fact that we were everywhere. I was hiding my secret from everyone, but could I tell her? "I'm a caster..."

Too late. I hope that wasn't a mistake. "I have the ability to tell if someone is lying." I couldn't see her face, but I could tell she was smiling. Well, thank goodness that I didn't lie. I just saved myself the embarrassment. "So, what brings you to New York?" She asked. She knew that I was new here. She must be able to tell. Keeping it as true as possible, I said "I have always dreamed of coming to New York."

The cab driver weaved through the afternoon traffic. I stared out of the window, amazed by the amazing buildings and places. This was only a very small part of New York, there was so much for me to explore and see. I wouldn't have anyone to share my experiences with though. I sighed and shook away any bad thoughts before they invaded my mind. "Be careful, miss. There's large groups around New York up to no good. They have some pretty crazy powers and they like to cause trouble." Her voice was level and stern.

My eyes widened. I was in a shit load of trouble if I wasn't careful. I was practically a walking sign. I had the markings of an angel and a demon on me. Humans and Mythicals could feel my power. I didn't ask for this life, but I wasn't going to throw it away either. If I could deal with Union, I could deal with them. But something told me Union was far from done with me. I was going to be careful, I couldn't risk being caught. I was going to run away from the past and I wasn't going to be trapped.

Soon later the car pulled over to the entrance of Walmart, the superstore with everything I would need for now. "That will be $10.50 miss." I handed her the money but before leaving, I turned back to her. "Thank you for the ride. Do you think you could come back in two hours?" I sounded very sheepish. She smiled and nodded. I saw her whole face now. She had short, blond hair and a smooth, young face.

I left the cab quickly and strode towards the entrance of the building. The electronic doors opened as I came closer to the large building. I took a plastic cart near the entrance and pushed it along with me.

This was going to be a long time.

. . . .

Three hours later, I was at my new home with two carts worth of bags. I had spent $455 dollars on everything. For the amount of stuff that I bought, it was a steal. The nice taxi lady helped me bring all of the things inside with me.

Looking at the receipt for Walmart, I saw the many things that I bought. It took me awhile to find everything that I would need for now, but I managed. For clothing, I had bought: one pack of bras, socks and panties, multiple pairs of jeans and shorts, a few skirts, lots of different shirts and sweaters, pj's and finally shoes. I also bought: towels and face cloths, a futon for a make-shift bed, pillows and blankets, plates and cups, utensils, soap and shampoo, odds and ends for around the house, food to last me weeks and finally a set of chairs and a small wood table. It would definitely do for now. I would be able to last awhile with this until I found a job or got money from the bank.

I was so proud of what I accomplished all on my own. Many people couldn't even find an apartment for this price or do the things I've done in a day at my age. I didn't need proud parents to take a picture of my first house, or say encouraging things to me. I didn't need the nuns to see how far I've gotten. I was independent.

But as I sat with my back on the wall, my knees in my arms and my new things surrounding me in their plastic bags, I still felt that nagging doubt and emptiness.