Covering her mouth with her hand, with panic in her eyes, she watches a drastic scene in which people being treated in a bestial manner are pushed out of a military vehicle. The women scream in pain as they are treated as despicably as the men.
Among them are young people — boys and girls, who are certainly not much older than Sarah. Her attention is caught by a petite brunette, who blasphemes the degenerates without caring about the consequences. From the face, she is so beautiful that for a moment, the teenager feels a sting of jealousy.
- This is my best friend, Hanna. Then she stood up for me," the phantom says.
Sara carefully looks at her face to make sure that the girl Hanna was defending is indeed the woman from the memoir. Despite her massacred face, she can confirm this. - We were forcibly taken to this cruel place. Me, Hanna and my younger sister," she adds with sadness in her voice.
- What happened to your friend and sister? - Sara asks, but doesn't get an answer, as the woman clenches her eyelids as Hanna gets slapped in the face by the soldier. He then jerks her so hard that she falls out of the car. She lands on her knees, ripping them to the bone. She is so tough that she doesn't scream despite this, but clamps her lips together to suppress the excruciating pain inside her.
Just behind her, a woman emerges from her car and recreates this memory. Sara opens her eyes wide when she notices her belly. She is pregnant! Shocked, she looks at the apparition, in whom she notices a sad smile.
- It was the fifth month. The baby's father was killed when he tried to protect me. We were each eighteen years old," she whispers, turning her face in the opposite direction. The girl feels tears coming to her eyes as she imagines the suffering this woman must have experienced at such a young age.
The memory changes, and they are in the General's office. She looks at his face with astonishment, as it is clear in person how many features of appearance Alan has inherited from him. Even his facial expressions are not much different. Only that the young General has dark hair and much sharper facial features.
He feels a strange uneasiness as he throws the girls a sharp look. However, at the sight of Hanna, his face softens. He looks at her closely, while she watches him with clear disgust. This girl is so brave that she gives the impression of being a fearless person.
A mysterious smile appears on the General's face. He does not look away from her; he ignores the other girls who are in his office.
He circles the desk and stands by Hanna, violently grabbing her hand. The girl tries to break away from him, but he doesn't let her, squeezing her wrist even harder. The brunette hisses in pain, throwing him a contemptuous look.
- She is mine. Bring those out and lock them up with the others," he orders the soldiers, who without a word of objection grab the terrified sisters and carry them out of the room. They disregard the fact that one of them is pregnant and jerk her around so violently that the younger one begs them not to hurt her.
- Where did they take you? - asks the phantom, shifting his gaze to her.
- They locked us in cells. We stayed there for several days with other people, starving and begging for mercy," she replies with pain in her eyes. Suffering beats all the way from her face, making Sarah's heartache because of it. She can't watch the cruelty, the pain they inflict on them, taking sick satisfaction in it. The vision is nightmarish. - The leftover food they had left over, they threw to us like pigs. Everyone fought for them, but most of all my sister. Not for herself, but for me, because she was afraid that I would eventually miscarry.
- But what happened to Hanna? What did the General want from her?
- He chose her. She was beautiful, and very brave. This appealed to him, because she was able to resist. Hanna resisted at first and did not intend to be at his side, but when he offered to spare us as well, then she agreed. She was afraid that due to the hunger strikes and the bad conditions I was in, I would miscarry. She made a deal with him and has sided with him ever since. Everyone thought she was a nasty traitor. Only my sister and I knew the truth, which is why we did not turn away from her. To live we had to side with the General, which was terrible. Our compatriots hated us so much that when we passed them, they hurled the worst slanders about us," she announces with regret in her voice. Probably, she cannot survive the fact that she let others suffer. - As I remember today, the day when Hanna unexpectedly confessed to us that she had fallen in love with this man. She stated that to her, he was an entirely different person. I remember when, saying this, she burst into tears, apologizing to us and repeating that because of this, she began to hate herself. She never thought that her heart would beat harder at the sight of a monster who murdered innocent people in cold blood. She found that she could not control her heart and was unable to hate him, despite his bestial behavior. She believed that he had a charm from which she could not free herself. And then she understood. The general began to influence Hanna, and she completely lost her head for him. He manipulated her.
Sara thinks about Oliver's words. He, too, claims that Alan has control over her, and she can't see the world outside of him. Why does she feel anxiety? After all, Alan is a good boyfriend. He cares about her, he cares about her. He is the opposite of the General, hates his grandfather and tries to protect her.
So why does she have a gut feeling, as if she is being referred to here as well?
The memory changes, and they find themselves in the room where the two sisters are staying. An infant is lying on the bed.
Sara guesses that this girl managed to give birth to a healthy baby.
- This was the period when we were left alone. Hanna was not as interested in us as before. She was lost in conspiracies with her lover. He began to trust her. Everyone saw that under the mask of a monster there was also an ordinary person. She made him fall in love with her. He didn't have to say it, but everyone saw it. Even though he thought it was just a simple fascination, he lied. He was afraid to admit that someone had managed to break through his iron heart. He really cared about her," confesses the phantom, looking Sarah straight in the eyes.
Why is the teenager again thinking she was talking about it specifically to warn her?
The door to the room opens, and soldiers enter. The sisters rise from their chairs as one of them approaches the bed. He takes the infant, and the terrified girl runs up to him. She tries to snatch the baby out of his hands, but another soldier grabs her and bestially pushes her back. She loses her balance and falls over, her shoulder hitting the edge of the table. The pain is so piercing that she clenches her eyelids while shedding tears.
Despite this, he does not intend to give up.
- What are you doing with my baby! Leave him alone! - she shouts in despair. She picks herself up from the floor and runs up to the soldiers, trying to fight for the baby, but the end is that she gets hit in the face. So hard that she staggers backwards. She is bleeding from the mouth, so her sister runs up to her and hugs her tightly, trying to calm her down. - Give my baby back! Give them back," she whispers tearfully, dropping to her knees.
With tears in her eyes, Sara watches the scene, feeling a piercing pain in the region of her heart. What this girl must feel as a mother — she can't imagine.
- Why did they take your child away from you? - turns to the phantom, who at these words closes her eyelids.
- On the orders of the General. They took the infant from me, and I didn't know what their motive was, since we were on his side. I was afraid that he wanted to kill my son, but he needed him for other purposes. To this day, I don't know what he planned for him.
- Did your son survive? - she asks with panic in her voice.
- He survived. Now he has a beautiful daughter, whom I am trying to protect," she whispers, and Sara freezes. She opens her mouth to say something, but finds herself speechless. She looks at the apparition in amazement, wondering if by chance it is talking about her? - Yes, Sara. You are my granddaughter. It is from me that you inherited this cursed gift.
She's getting dumbfounded. She tries to organize everything in her head. Everything she has learned in the time she has spent at the center.
Why did the phantom only now confess that she was her grandmother? Why didn't she say so earlier? She was the one who appeared before her back in the day when she was pushed into the pond. Each time she appeared to her in the room and talked to her, so why didn't she confess it to her earlier?
- Because I used to be a medium, thanks to that I can communicate with you. Therefore, I am also able to show you memories. This is important to me because I am trying to warn you. From this place, from the General's grandson....
- Why are you trying to protect me from Alan? What do the ghosts want from him? After all, he's a good boy, he doesn't resemble his grandfather at all. Why do they want me to kill him! - she shouts, looking at the phantom with piercing eyes. Everything is boiling inside her. She can't stand the thought that the boy is still slandered by the fact that the General's blood flows in him.
- Sara, I will explain everything to you, but try to calm down," she asks her, so the girl closes her eyelids and tightens her lips, trying to control her anger. - I know you fell in love with this boy. I don't blame you for that. I didn't blame Hanna, either. The general, as well as both his grandsons: they have a strange charm about them that attracts women. But this boy, in addition to his good looks, also inherited his character traits. He's a bastard who hides under a shell. All it takes is for something to make him angry, and then you will see his true face. You are a good girl, but you fell in love with the wrong person. I know that he also loves you, and that's what scares me the most. I remember what it was like with Hanna and the General. He went into a rage when she ran away from him. He started murdering everyone in cold blood, ordered the soldiers to find Hanna and bring her, where he wanted to cruelly murder my friend for breaking his heart," she explains.
Sara squints and shakes her head.
- So what? You want to tell me to be careful, because Alan will also murder me if he doesn't like something?
She would rather not behave arrogantly towards her, but when someone speaks ill of Alan, then she doesn't weigh her words. She wants to defend him, because her blood rushes when someone unjustifiably makes a monster of him. He is the grandson of the General, but this does not prove that as he inherited his looks, he also inherited a cruel character.
- I don't mean to denigrate him. Nor am I saying that you must fear him because he will murder you. That's not what I meant, Sara.... - She interrupts in mid-sentence because the girl does not allow her to finish what she is about to say.
- I don't want to talk about it anymore. I remind you that we are here to show me the most important memories," she says, looking at the crying sisters. The younger one comforts the older one by assuring her that they will definitely get the baby back, and then they will get their revenge.
- He is already a bad influence on you. He has changed you. I know what you were like in the beginning when you came to the center, and I see you now.
She ignores her attention, pretending that she didn't hear the words she said at all. She believes that it was not Alan who changed her, but the situation that prevails in the correctional center.
The woman, seeing that Sara is not going to continue this topic, changes the memory. They are in the underground, but this place looks entirely different. It is more grim and definitely crueler. Behind the bars are beaten people who can hardly catch their breath. Others are tortured as the soldiers try to extract important information they need from them. Some are persistent and don't give up, while others are so exhausted that they die.
The sight is shocking, so it's hard for a girl to simply look at it.
She turns her face in the opposite direction and freezes when she notices her grandmother's sister, who hangs helplessly from ropes by her hands. She is brutally beaten, so Sara can't bear the thought: what kind of monster brought her to such a state?
Her heart breaks when she looks at it.
- Why did they torture her? - she asks, turning to face the phantom. The woman looks at her sister with despair in her eyes, then lowers her head, unable to bear the sight any longer.
- Because we tried to kill the General," she announces. The teenager looks at her with disbelief in her eyes. They really dared to do it? How did they plan it when the General is a ruthless, high-ranking man with so many people on his side? How did they want to get rid of this man? After all, it's impossible. - My sister came up with the idea. I conceded to her, because I knew that in this way I would free Hanna from him. Besides, I wanted to get back the child he had taken from me. I wanted to kill him for the harm he had done to us and the suffering of innocent people who were dying before my eyes. My soul was full of bitterness, so I was no longer thinking rationally. Even though I knew that we had little chance I didn't care at all.
- How did you want to do it? - she asks with curiosity in her voice, as she thinks for a split second about how their yearbook could have benefited from these tips.
- I decided to gain his trust and become the man's right hand. I managed to convince him that I was a medium and that it could be useful to him. At first, he didn't believe me and got angry. He accused me of mockery, but when I confessed his darkest secrets, then he trusted me," she explains.
Sara is full of admiration that her grandmother came up with such a crazy idea that succeeded. She was brave since she wasn't afraid to approach this man.
- So, what went wrong? - She looks closely at her frighteningly pale face, which shows scars from the blows.
- I was just stupid. In addition to the baby, I also wanted to save Hanna, so I told her the whole plan, and she betrayed me. I didn't think she was so influenced by this man that she confessed everything to him. She stabbed me right in the heart. It was too late when she realized what she had done. The general had given the order to kill me and torture my sister until all the life flew out of her.
Sara covers her mouth with her hand in bewilderment, looking into her sad eyes. Hanna betrayed her best friend because she loved the man so much that she didn't think about the later consequences. She completely lost herself in him, thereby condemning a loved one to death. What, then, did she feel when it finally came to her?
- Did you just then ... did you die? - She struggles to utter that last word.
With fear in her eyes, she looks at her as she nods.
- After my death, it came to Hanna that she had become the same monster as her lover. She could no longer do anything to bring me back to life, so she decided to run away from that place to take my child with her and protect her. It was all she could do to correct her mistake.
- How do you know about it? After all, you already ... - interrupts, seeing the gaze of the phantom. The ghost lowers her head and looks at the floor with embarrassment.
- Did you mean that I was already dead? Yes, they shot me," she claims, and the girl lifts her face as the phantom reveals her hair and shows her the gunshot wound in her forehead. She opens her eyes wide, and that one forces a sad smile. - I was murdered, and because I was thirsty for revenge; since my death I have been wandering around the building with other souls who feel the same way I do.
- How did Hanna manage to escape?
- She had been to the General's office many times, so she found a plan of the building with him. She knew which way she could get out.
Sara looks over her shoulder as she hears the sound of the door opening. Downstairs runs Hanna. She guesses that this is the last memory the phantom wants to show her.
With panic written all over her face, the brunette looks around the interior, observing the suffering people; however, she gets the biggest shock when she spots her best friend's sister.
The girl regains consciousness, but it is clear that she is without strength. Hanna puts the photo on the floor, which she has been holding in her hand the whole time, then unties the girl and helps her out. Hanna is petite, so it's hard for her to take care of the beaten girl, yet she doesn't give up.
She looks frightened when she hears the sound of a door opening. Soldiers are descending into the underground.
He leaves the photo and moves toward the tunnels.
Sara looks with panic in her eyes at Hanna, who bravely leads the semiconscious girl, not intending to leave her. She probably feels that it is her duty to take care of her friend's sister, whom she led to death.
The teenager peeks into the cell and guesses why the General's photo has been lying there so far. It was Hanna who put it in the corner, trying to help her friend. Being in danger, she ran away from there, forgetting about the photograph of her beloved man.
She follows her and sees that she enters the first corridor, easily finding the door. Leading his friend, she heads up the concrete stairs and opens the wooden trapdoor. She tries to revive the girl, repeating to this one to get a grip and run away, as she once again has to return to the underworld to save her nephew.
- If Hanna hadn't helped your father and your aunt's grandmother, then you and Julia would never have appeared in the world," the phantom announces, particularly catching Sarah's attention with the name of a girl she doesn't like. From the beginning, she was not particularly fond of her, and the moment she tried to kill her, her dislike of her increased significantly.
- Julia? - she repeats to see if she actually heard correctly.
- She is my sister's granddaughter. You and Julia are family, so it was hard for me to see how despicably she treated you. - The teenager nearly chokes on her saliva. Stunned, she stares at one point, wondering why this particular girl turned out to be her cousin.
- That's why the General is trying to get both her and me," she whispers when she realizes that it's because of their family that they are now in worse danger than the others. - But why? After all, you were the ones who wanted to kill him. Why should we bear the punishment for what you planned? We are only related to you.
- It's not that he wants to kill you just because you are our granddaughters. In addition to trying to assassinate the General, we did something else," she announces, and Sarah's body shakes with chills.
Why does she feel anxiety? What else have they done that makes the General so morbidly vengeful?
- When I approached him, thanks to the hints of the spirits, I managed to find his treasure. The most precious one. Enlisting the help of my sister, we managed to take it at night and hide it in a place where no one has found it until now.
The girl opens her eyes wider, carefully analyzing her words. The grandmother was so cunning that she managed to steal the General's most valuable treasure and hide it in a place where no one has found it until now?
- So he knew that you guys, did it?
- When they tortured us, I took all the blame, that's why they killed me. They cruelly took my life for planning the General's murder and taking away his most precious thing," she explains, and Sara still can't understand what their fault is in this. Why did the General set out to hurt them when they had nothing to do with it. - Do you know why they keep taking Julia and hurting her? This girl is being questioned because the General is sure that she knows perfectly well where his treasure is. He thinks her grandmother has told her everything.
- But why did he pick on me as well? After all, you died before I came into the world, so it's impossible for me to know where the treasure is hidden! - she says with indignation in her voice.
- He knows that you are my granddaughter. He knows about your abilities; he is aware that you are a medium, so you may also know the place where the treasure is hidden. - The girl looks frightened.
She's right. So that's the point. The general doesn't intend to kill them at all until he finds out where the treasure is hidden.
She looks toward the door when she hears Hanna returning to the underground. She is alone and makes her way through the corridor with exacting caution. She disappears behind another wall, and Sara wordlessly follows her and watches as she tries to open the white door, which is locked. She jerks on the handle, hoping that it will miraculously open, but quickly backs away when she hears footsteps.
She hides in the passage and gently tilts her head, carefully watching the soldier, who approaches the door. She pulls out a key and inserts it into the lock, so the girl seizes the moment and removes a sharp hairpin from her hair. She carefully runs up to the man and, without thinking, plunges the sharpest tip into his neck. It hits right in the artery.
The soldier falls to the floor and the girl enters the room.
Through the open door, Sara watches as she disconnects the child from the equipment and takes the boy in her arms. Before leaving, she looks around the hallway, then runs back to the exit.
The brown-haired woman follows her and goes outside, where it is dark. She gets the impression that it is the middle of the night; however, she can see the location of the second exit. The wooden trapdoor is behind a fence, which leads to freedom.
There is a chance to escape from here, Sara thinks. With this memory, she discovers another passage that can save them.
She looks around and sees that there is an old oak tree by the fence and an unfortunate pond in which she almost drowned. She glances at the apparition that appears beside her, a happy smile on her face.
- This may be the only chance to escape," she turns to her, but the phantom shakes her head.
Sara doesn't understand what he means. After all, there is an exit that is outside the fence, so this is their only hope.
- You will not get out of here. This passage was eliminated after Hanna managed to escape," she confesses, and the girl breaks down within a brief moment. Her joy bursts like a soap bubble.
- So they made it safely out of there?
- Although Julia's grandmother was the last of her strength, she was lucky and was found by a woman who gave her help. Hanna managed to hide, but she preferred to leave the child in a safe place where she was well taken care of. Your father grew up in an orphanage, and thanks to this he survived, because before Hanna fled the country, she experienced many dangerous situations along the way.
- She must have been pregnant at the time of the escape. Since Alan's grandfather is Gen. I don't see any other explanation for this," she claims.
The phantom nods.
- It's true. She tried to protect herself and the child, so she also could not take care of your father. But she saved his life, similar to grandmother Julia, for which I am grateful," she announces, and a slight smile appears on the girl's face. Hanna showed extraordinary courage, as did Sarah's grandmother, who risked her life to protect other people. These memories give the teenager even more courage, which makes her also ready to face the General. Her grandmother impresses her incredibly, making her want to take her example. - This concludes my memories. I hope this has made you understand a lot. It's time for you to return to reality.
- Wait. - She stops her. She wants to ask her some questions she needs answers to. - Did the General return to this place only to retrieve the treasure?
The phantom shakes her head, letting her know that this was not the only thing that interested him.
- He returned here because he got a call from the director. His brother informed him that a boy who resembles him had joined the center. This is what intrigued him the most.
- Can you give me one last answer? - she asks, and the phantom looks at her impatiently. - Where did you hide the treasure?
Everything is a blur. The girl opens her eyes wide and looks around anxiously. She sees Laura leaning over her and tries to punch her in the face. However, she refrains when she notices that her roommate has regained consciousness.
Her head is laid on Alan's lap, who tenderly strokes her hair.
- Are you feeling well? - He asks when he sees that Sara has regained consciousness.
Clenching her eyelids, the teenager lifts herself up and glances at Laura, who is looking at her with big eyes.
- What happened? - she asks, reminding herself that only moments ago she witnessed harrowing memories.
- You lost consciousness, and we tried to revive you," replies Alan. He takes her hand and places it on his knee, without taking his eyes off her.
- I'm fine. I was just scared of the ghosts that unexpectedly appeared in front of me.
- What did they want from you? - Alan asks in a sharp voice, and at that moment he resembles the young General so much that for a moment the girl flinches.
- I'll leave you to it. Sara, we'll talk later, okay? - Laura makes sure her roommate finds some time for her, then runs upstairs.
Sara only then sees that they are sitting on the stairs that lead to the girls' bedrooms. Half the rooms are already empty, considering how many people have left the resort.
- Are you sure you're feeling well? - The boy hugs her close, and she lays her head on his shoulder.
She is still thinking about the General's behavior and the disturbing words she heard from her grandmother.
Does she increasingly see the resemblance between Alan and the General? She shakes herself off immediately by rejecting the thoughts that make her anxious. Alan is the boy she loves, so how can she doubt him? She has to stop thinking about it, as she feels her head slowly starting to stir.
- What did the ghosts want from you that you were so scared? - he asks again, and she bites her lip, for the first time forcing herself to lie. Although she trusts Alan and has been telling him the truth all along, she can't do it now. Maybe in the near future she will tell him everything, but not yet. This is not the right time.
- They harass me all the time. They scare me, which makes me start to be more and more afraid of them. I don't have the strength anymore," she whispers, closing her eyelids. She sheds tears as she starts thinking again about her grandmother's warning. The phantom asked her to watch out for Alan. Some part of her fears that this will indeed turn out to be true. Hanna was a good girl, and yet she fell in love with a monster, showing her dark nature. Because of this, she even betrayed her best friend, condemning her to death.
This turns from crying into quiet sobbing as Alan embraces her even more tightly, and she presses her face into his chest, feeling with what tenderness he strokes her back. He tries to calm the girl down, but she can't control her emotions.
She is afraid. Not the ghosts, not the General, but the fact that others are right. If Alan turns out to be someone else, if he shows his true face, she can't stand it.
He is her first boyfriend, and she cares about no one as much as she does about him. She can't imagine that this nice boy could turn out to be a monster. She couldn't bear the thought of losing him.
- I promise to protect you from any danger. Whether it is a human being or an extraterrestrial being, I will do everything to keep you safe. I will not let you suffer any longer. I will mete out punishment to anyone who causes you pain. I won't be in control, now I'm ready for anything," announces Alan, and an unpleasant shudder runs through her body.
Why does this sound so threatening?