CHAPTER 23: BEYOND BELIEF
(Iva’s narration)
The officers jog to my aid and meet me halfway up the sidewalk. At last, I stop running and try to catch my breath. Although I needed them five-minutes ago, I’m glad to be away from danger and into protective arms. I can barely stand because my legs feel like jelly. One of the officers catches me before I collapse due to exhaustion.
"Are you okay?" One of the worried officers asks.
I try to answer his question but my lungs won’t allow me to speak.
One of the nice policemen escorts me into the main office and hands me a cup of water to drink. I sip on the cup of water as I struggle to explain what happened to me.
"Are you sure it wasn’t a bear? We do have a lot of bears out here," the cop asks me.
"I saw what I saw," I explain for the thousandth time.
This time my voice is a little louder and irritated than before.
"It was a lion and it was black,” I try to explain. “Something else was there. It was tall and skinny. And they were talking…" I stop when I realize that bringing up the talking part may not be such a good idea.
“Who was talking?’ the cop asks.
I exhale and reply…
“Never mind.”
Suddenly, a shorter cop walks into the office.
"We checked the park," the short cop says as he walks in.
He then shakes his head and lets out a whistle.
"Something let loose out there, badly," the short officer says to the taller one.
"Did you see any animals?" the tall cop asks.
"Nope, we didn’t find anything but a mess.”
The tall officer leans to him, turning away from me, and lowers his voice.
"She said two animals were out there. The first one, she has no idea what it was. The second, she said it was some kind of lion. She said a black lion.”
The short cop gazes at me, clears his throat, and approaches.
"Okay, um..,” he scratches his head. "...can you please start from the very beginning?"
"Okay," I take a break to calm myself. "I was being chased by some kind of…tall thing. But something else came. I’m pretty sure it was a black lion. It had fur all around its face like one.”
"Then what happened?" the short officer asks.
"The tall thing was trying to attack me. Then they started fighting.”
The two officers look at one another. The taller officer shrugs his shoulders again. The shorter officer shifts back to me. He takes a moment to rub the stress from his eyes before questioning me again.
“Are you telling me you saw Mane?”
I sigh.
“Yes, I believe so.”
“Miss, are you on any kind of medication?” the short officer asks. “Legal or illegal.”
That question makes my blood boil.
“You think I'm on drugs? Are you freaking kidding me? You saw the park. I'm not making this up. I saw what I saw. What's the purpose of me lying? There is something in those woods. Don’t you think people need to be warned?”
"Whatever the hell it was, it’s gone now,” the shorter cop butts in. “Thank God you’re safe.”
The short police officer looks back at the taller one and says…
"Go alert the dean. Tell him there’s been an animal attack. No students should be allowed in the park until further notice. Better yet, they come to school and they go home, that’s it. I’m going to check the park one more time.”
The taller cop leaves the office.
“It’s getting pretty late. The report has been filed. You’re not hurt. It’s nothing else we can do.” the short cop states.
“Oh my God,” a thought snaps me alert.
I remember that Professor Cruz wanted to meet with me today. How did I become so forgetful?
“What time is it?” I ask the short officer in an urgent voice.
“4 o’clock,” he replies.
“I suppose to meet with a teacher,” I tell him.
“Go see if your teacher is still there then come back to this office. I don’t want you wandering around too much, okay.”
I nod at the officer in agreement.
"You be safe," the short cop says before leaving the room.
I then bury my face into my hands. I take a well-needed break to collect myself before standing and walking into the hallway. As I turn out the door, I almost collide into someone. I look up into a pair of angry blue eyes that belongs to Kendrick Blaire. My heart-rate instantly doubles.
"Sorry,” I say and swallow down hard.
He doesn't respond. He just looks at me with anger burning in his eyes. I quickly decide to walk around him and proceed down the hallway. I’m now near the end of the hallway, yet I still feel like I’m being watched. I turn my head to prove myself correct. Kendrick is watching me walk with a scorching look in his eyes. I make a right down the hall, take in a deep breath, and shake the fear from my head.
When I make it to the end of the hallway, I turn left and double my pace. It feels so strange strolling through an empty hallway with dark classrooms. Everything feels unsettling. The only sound I hear is my own walking feet. I again start to feel a sense of paranoia taking over my mind. I try to get rid of the paranoia but its grip won’t let go of me.
I stop walking when I reach my philosophy classroom door. My hopes of entering dissolves when I realize no lights are on. Still, I try to turn the knob on the door in attempt to enter. Dang, it’s locked. I then hear a clicking sound somewhere around the corner.
It seems the noise is heading in my direction. I stand completely still, watching down the lonely corridor, waiting for someone to appear. Instead of a person, I see a brown wolf walking from around the corner. I become frozen, unaware of what to do, as I watch it sit gently onto the floor. It’s staring right into my eyes and I stare back, awestruck. Seconds later, I decide to breathe again.
I put my right foot back and slowly rotate myself. As I turn around, I see something else standing on the opposite end. This time it’s a large tiger. I remain motionless for a moment, staring into its terrifying yellow eyes.
“Come with me, Iva,” the tiger says in a deep voice.
I swallow down hard. Immediately, my blood begins to rush through my veins.
“No, come with me,” the wolf says behind me in a deep tone.
I look at the wolf and back at the tiger, and then at the wolf again. I don't know who to trust. I open my mouth, but the words are glued to my tongue.
“Come to me. I will protect you,” the wolf says to me, nearly in a whisper.
“Don’t listen to him. He works for Hellhound. He’ll kill you,” the tiger warns me urgently.
“Liar,” the wolf responds back in a hostile tone.
The wolf starts to walk, ever-so-gently, towards me with its ears bent back.
“Come with me and everything will be okay,” the wolf says in a soft voice.
I have a sense that the wolf is being mischievous. I think it’s the low monotone sound of its voice which makes me doubt him.
“Stay away from him Iva,” the tiger says loudly and with concern.
Then the tiger starts to walk slowly towards me as well.
“I said…come here!” the wolf finishes the sentence in a yell before he sprints towards me.
The tiger snarls deeply and takes off gunning in my direction also. Now, I’m caught in the middle of another deathly duel. This time, I have nowhere to run…