I'll Fight For You

I gripped Vic's hand. He squeezed mine back but I held his tighter. "Han'." Vic muttered.
"Sorry." I sighed and released his hand.
"You okay?" he asked cautiously.
"Is this a good idea?" I asked.
"Yeah, it is. Don't you want to know?"
"What if it doesn't matter? What if I die anyway?"
"You are not going to die," he snapped. "Lauren wanted you to find his number."
"I know." I nodded.
"Come on." Vic urged. I got out of his car and Vic walked around to me. He took my hand again and we started to approach the house.
It was a large, Victorian place an hour outside of San Diego. There was ivy climbing the wall. Behind the building I could see overgrown trees and bushes, almost resembling a jungle. There was a porch at the front of the building.
I knocked the door and stepped closer to Vic. He squeezed my hand in comfort. The door opened and I looked up. There was a man in his fifties with greying hair standing in front of us. I looked into his eyes and just saw tiredness. I don't know what else it was. Maybe sadness too.
"Are you Rich?" I asked.
"I am," he nodded. "Are you Hannah?" he asked, with a thick Southern accent.
"We phoned you." Vic said. Rich looked down at our joined hands before he answered.
"Come in, please," Rich urged. I stepped through first with Vic behind me. Rich led us through a large hallway and past a sitting room. "We'll need to go to the office." he explained. He took us up some stairs and we stopped in front of a door. When he opened the door I saw a large room. Bookcases lined the walls and there were filing cabinets on one side of the room. We went to the desk in the middle of the room and I sat down opposite Rich, with Vic standing behind me, gripping the chair.
"This is insane." I told him, looking around.
"Thank you. It's what you get from three generations having the same obsession." he explained.
"What's that obsession?" Vic asked.
"You," Rich said simply, looking at me. I frowned back at him. "Not you really. People like you."
"You mean-"
"The Haunted." Rich confirmed.
"Is that what I am?" I asked.
"Yes, and I'm probably the only person in the world who can give you the information you need."
"Did you give the same information to Aidan?" I asked.
"I did," Rich nodded solemnly. "That was a shame. I was sure he was stronger."
"What do you have to tell her?" Vic asked.
"You're with her. Aren't you?" Rich stated. "You love her," he added easily. Vic just looked down and sighed. Then he silently nodded. "You feel like she was made for you. Like nothing anyone alive or dead can do will tear you apart? The love you feel for this special, gifted girl blinds you. You eat, breathe and sleep Hannah Preciado."
"Yes." Vic replied.
"That's how I know you have a chance," Rich told me. "To survive you need love. If it's half-hearted you're already dead."
"It's not. I'd die for her." Vic said quickly.
"Stop." I frowned.
"If he didn't feel that way then you wouldn't be one of The Haunted," Rich explained. "So, the beginning," he started. "When my grandfather was twenty the year was 1888. He was in love with one of The Haunted. He was her's. Just like Vic is yours. But she pushed him away and got herself killed. After that he studied anyone who showed signs of being like her. He documented them.
"Once he reached a certain age he showed everything to my father - his son. My father continued documenting everything and helping The Haunted. He passed it on to me. I try to do what I can to help people like you."
"What have the studies shown?" I asked quietly.
"It's bleak. Very bleak," Rich sighed. "You go one way or another. You live or you die."
"What's going to help Hannah live?" Vic asked.
"She needs you. Every one of The Haunted and driven to the person that can save them. That person is theirs. The love they have is so strong it's almost terrifying. But that is the thing that will save you. Save you both. The only people that have survived the assault the paranormal rage are those that had their person and stayed with them until the end."
"If I survive it what happens to us?" I asked.
"You are still one of The Haunted. But you still have each other. You get to live now you've survived it," he explained. "But you finding your person means the assault is coming. It's coming hard and fast."
"And the ones who lose their person?" I muttered.
"They die," Rich said, not meeting my eye. I felt Vic squeeze my shoulders. "If you lose your person you die. They're the only thing that is going to save you. The only thing that can. Without them you die."
"I'm never leaving you." Vic told me.
"Vic, if you leave Hannah she dies. You have to understand that and that you have as much responsibility for her life as she does." Rich explained.
"I understand."
"A ghost gave me your number." I said.
"How?" Rich asked.
"She visited me before they pulled her back. She was sitting right in front of your number in Aidan's room." I told him.
"Do they always pull her back?" Rich asked.
"Yeah." I nodded.
"Can we stop that?" Vic asked.
"If there's something I should tell you it's to be prepared. You have to know every tradition ever followed. I mean crucifix's, prayers, salt. It will help you."
"Is there a safe place?" I asked.
"The church. Go to the churches. The ghosts can enter when summoned but the evil spirits can't."
"If I got a ghost into the church would I be able to talk with them without the bad people pulling her back?"
"Yes." he nodded certainly.
"I don't believe this." I put my head in my hands.
"Han'." Vic tried.
"Give me a moment," I told him. "Can I look at some of the files?" I asked. Rich nodded and I went over to the filing cabinets. I flicked through and pulled three out at random. The first I looked at was of a boy just a little older than me. Everything had been written by Rich. I put it away and looked at the second. It was a little older and had been written by Rich's father. It was of a young woman. The final one I looked at I nearly dropped. "Can I keep this?" I asked weakly.
"Of course." Rich nodded.
"Thank you for your help," I told him.
"If you need anything else, please phone me."
"We will." I nodded. I took Vic's hand and started out of the house. I reached the door and pulled Vic to his car, leaving Rich behind. I got into the car and breathed heavily.
"What's wrong?" Vic asked, joining me.
"Vic, this file..." I gasped.
"What about it?"
"It's me." my voice shook. I opened the file and held up the black and white picture. It girl looked like me, she was me. Every detail was me. Then on the back of the photo in Rich's grandfather's writing was my name - Hannah Charlotte. But the date was old - 1890.
"Han'," Vic sighed. He brought his hand up to cup my cheek gently.
"Take me home, please." I said, my eyes glassy.

Notes

Hey! I know it's been a week! I'm sorry! My life is just all rubbish at the minute and some of you know what's going on in my life right now and how hard it is for me. I just haven't felt like writing. Hopefully I'm back now. But I wrote you an interesting good chapter that hopefully will give you some answers. What do you think it all means? Any predictions? If you have any questions ask! :)