People were shocked when morning came around as the priest screamed in agony. Many more were furious about who or what had broken into the church and trashed the place. When the priest walked in, he sobbed for over an hour as the cross was torn to shreds and the statue of the Virgin Mary was smashed into pieces, with its head missing. The women comforted him during the moment of extreme grief while the men bickered and argued about who could be responsible.

  No stone was left unturned. From the floorboards to the brick roof, from the pews and steps, it was decimated. All of them had something similar to them. Three large cashes. Something big got in there and had its way during the dead of night. It wasn’t some sort of act caused by a wild animal, for no one heard the commotion. It was clear that whoever had done it had done it with passion and surgical precision.

  However, no one dared touch the scene of the crime. A sacred place had been desecrated, and no one knew why or who had done it. They called for law enforcement to investigate, but it would be a matter of time before they arrived. In the meantime, the best anyone could do was look in horror at the mess within their town’s church.

  David sat next to his sister outside the church while they waited for their mother, talking with the distraught priest. Even with his sister, he couldn’t help but feel uneasy around the church. That feeling he had the day before, and now the church was torn up. David could tell something was wrong, but he couldn’t tell what it was.

  ‘Do you know who did it?’ Miranda whispered to David. ‘Was it Pedro?’

  He shook his head. ‘Nah, Pedro wouldn’t do it. It isn’t in his nature. A bully, sure, but not someone to do that.’

  Miranda glanced around, noticing some people staring at her. She could feel their thoughts about her, jumping to conclusions and wanting to place the blame on her. A side-effect of her mutation, the power to feel the emotions and intent of others near her. Even though she was completely innocent.

  ‘Am I going to be in trouble?’ Miranda reluctantly asked.

  David made a false smile, trying his best to reassure her. Though he knew she could see right through him. It was the thought that counts. ‘No, I don’t believe people will blame you.’

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  ‘Can you be sure?’

  ‘Certainly!’ David confidently responded. ‘Once the cops turn up, they’ll find out who did it.’

  ‘But what if they don’t?’

  ‘They will, I promise you that.’

  Behind the cloth that covered her face, she smiled. Though Miranda was unconvinced that she wouldn’t be blamed, she loved the idea that she would be safe near her brother. But before she could say anything else to David, her heart contracted. Her mind raised the alarm as something looked at her from afar. A monster hid in the darkness in the alleyway, looking directly at her with dark intentions. A desire that made her sick to her core.

  Miranda turned to look at the dark alleyway, directly at the figure hiding in the shadows. Its scales, skin, and feathers blended in with the background to obscure its figure. The creature was plotting something indescribable, seeing her and her family as nothing more than toys for its twisted desires. She could scream, but she feared that would make the monster come out and slaughter everyone in town for blowing its cover. Miranda wanted to alert people of its presence. However, she had a feeling that the monster wouldn’t take kindly to that, nor would it delay the inevitable slaughter. For some reason, she felt the monster would be aware if she warned people.

  It was hopeless. Every option she could take would only end in disaster. The monster was going to go after them, and she didn’t know what to do. There was nothing that could stop its will to dominate and destroy. The only thing she could do was pray that the monster wouldn’t act on its dark desires.

  ‘Hey,’ David nudged her. ‘Is everything okay?’

  She shivered, unsure if she should tell the truth about the creature she had seen and what it intended to do to them. Fighting was not possible, alerting people of the danger was not a good idea, and warning David of the impending crisis would only cause unwanted harm and worry for him. Miranda believed the best option was to pretend that everything was going to be okay. But besides showing fear, she shook her head. ‘Everything is alright.’