Carmen's flip phone rang. On the other end, Shelby paced back and forth in her room.

"Come on..! Pick up, pick up..." Shelby muttered.

"Hello?" Carmen finally answered. "Did you get Amber's message too?"

"Yes! She needs our help."

"What are we going to do? Amber's the only one of us with a car and who knows how to drive. How are we supposed to help?"

"I don't know, but we have to think of something NOW," Shelby rubbed her forehead while pacing. It was barely the middle of the day, but the sky outside her rose pink laced curtains had turned grey and cloudy. She opened the window to let in some air, hoping it would help her think, when a cold droplet suddenly landed on her hand. She looked at her hand and watched the droplet drip down into the creases of her palm.

"That's it..." Shelby realized. "We can't drive, but I know someone who can. Meet me at Madame Vadoma's."

"I can't sneak out right now!" Carmen exclaimed. Her memory flashed back to her mother's worried face. She couldn't disappoint her more. This, she didn't say.

"Amber's in danger!" Shelby shouted, with noticeable urgency in her voice as she shuffled into her pink leather jacket with a white hoodie underneath.

"No, I can't, I shouldn't..." Carmen clutched the phone while she debated between disappointing her mother again and the ethics of saving her friend.

Shelby zipped up her jacket in frustration while holding the phone between her shoulder and cheek. "So I guess you're going to keep being a scaredy-cat, even in a moment like this."

Carmen's glossy lips popped open. "What did you just say?"

"Goodbye Carmen. I'll just go by myself!" Shelby flipped her phone shut and pulled on her purse before sprinting out the door.

Her mother peered over the rim of her third glass of wine that day, and rolled her eyes.

Meanwhile, Carmen pulled the phone away and glared at it, as if the very object had insulted her. She screamed into her pillow, relieved it came out muffled. After the anger was out of her system, she held her cross and sat up. She stared at her dads photograph on the bed stand and wondered, "Papa... what would you do?"

***

Shelby sent a quick OMW message as she rushed through the neighborhood of neatly trained lawns and downtown with all the old concrete buildings and cramped brick city apartments.

It began to pour harder. Shelby slowed down her pace, afraid to slip yet determined to reach the shop and Madam Vadoma. The familiar purple curtains with purple neon sign and the hanging gold palm came into view.

Shelby panted and gritted her teeth when she almost lost her footing, "Come on, almost there..."

Finally, she made it to the door. Shelby smiled in relief and pulled on the handle, only to realize it wouldn't budge. Was it jammed? Shelby pulled again and again, her thin eyebrows contorting into dismay.

"No... no..!" Shelby gave up on pulling on the door and started pounding her fists onto the door. "Hey! Hey! Open up, please! I need your help!"

Nobody answered. Shelby saw her desperate reflection in the glass and turned around to lean back on the door. She stared up at the rain splashing down while panting with desperation.

Suddenly, a dark figure appeared from her peripheral vision. A black umbrella emerged from the rain and fog to reveal a tall, blonde woman with straight hair wearing a black leather jacket and denim jeans.

Shelby straightened up with surprised relief, but sunk into herself with guilt when she noticed Carmen under the umbrella next to Sloane.

Carmen glanced at her sheepishly. She knew Shelby was right. Sometimes, she let her fear get the best of her. It wasn't worth letting her fear win this time only to sacrifice her friends safety.

Sloane shook her car keys in her other hand and shrugged. "Well, don't just stand there. Let's go get Amber!"

***

Shelby's pink polished nails clicked on her phone keys as she tapped in a message. Her glossy bunny and icecream cone phone decoration chain jingled with every tap. "There, I just sent a message telling Amber we're almost there."

"Great," Sloane said as she drove her small red car with a strong cherry scent. "Carmen told me Amber's in danger. Do you guys know why?"

"She said the police is behind it," Carmen answered.

Sloane frowned. "What? What would they have to do with Rain's death?"

"Maybe they're covering something up," Shelby realized in disgust.

Although Carmen was alone in the backseat, her focus became drawn to the moon and diamond droplets tattooed on Sloane's wrist. They poked out of her jacket sleeve as she turned the wheel.

Suddenly, the world seemed to zoom in and out in distance and focus. Carmen gripped the edge of the seat and tried to stay still. Her body felt sensitive to the motion of the car, leaning this way and that with any little jump.

Sloane noticed Carmen swaying in the rear view mirror. "Whoa kid, you ok?"

Shelby turned in her seat and stared worriedly. "Carm?"

"I feel like I'm going to pass out," her voice shook.

She tried to focus on her friend until her concentration became interrupted by the the transparent and blurry face of a girl in front of her, staring back at Carmen with dark eyes and dripping mascara. Her lipstick was also smeared. Carmen tried to blink away the double vision, but it seemed to make it worse when more shapes and colors began to appear. A wooden arch manifested around the girl's face. The girl leaned closer and pulled down on her cheek to reveal pink, tearful eyes. It quickly became apparent for Carmen that she was staring at the reflection of someone in a mirror.

"I think I'm having a vision," Carmen panted, this time leaning back into the seat and staring off into space. To Shelby, her eyes appeared distant yet observant.

"Oh shit, you're getting Rain's vision outside of a dream now?" Sloane said in shock.

"You're really mastering your clairvoyance," Shelby said proudly.

Carmen stared in awe at the scene unfolding before her. Shelby and Sloane's voice became jarbled, as if someone had thrown a rock into a puddle sending sound waves away into the distance. The soft whisper of a flickering candle on the sink lit up the room to reveal a dark bathroom. The light around the flame was the only orb of light and warmth. An odd sense of warmth and safety alongside danger suddenly washed over Carmen.