Chapter One

The storm is so loud I almost don’t hear them coming.

            Rain slams against my window and thunder crashes just overhead, all but obscuring the sound of hooves on the wet pavement. I sit bolt upright in bead, listening hard. Yes, there it is again, a high-pitched whinny followed by a flash of lightning. My shaking fingers part the blinds, revealing three black horses, one without a rider, standing nervously in the pool of light created by the street light. A tall, man is striding up our driveway, apparently oblivious to the pounding rain.

            A turn in my bed and gasp at a figure in my doorway, but then my mother is rushing into my room, sitting on my bed and clasping my hands in hers.

            “Mom, there’s someone outside, horses and-“ I’m interrupted by a sharp rap on the door. I see her eyes widen momentarily, a flash of panic quickly replaced by warm reassurance.

            “I know, honey. I need you to listen right now, okay? I need to run. Run and never come back, okay? They’ll be looking for you and we can’t let them find you.”

            “Who’s looking for me?” I ask desperately. “Where will I go? Where will you go? Mom-”

            “Shh. Don’t worry about us. Just go. Everything you need to know is in this bag.” She hands me a brown leather packet with a long shoulder strap. “We love you very much Alexandra.” She stands up and tosses me a thick blue hoodie lying on my floor and hands me a pair of sneakers. Knock knock knock. I follow her hurried steps downstairs and into the mudroom, struggling to put my shoes on as I go.

            She opens the door, then turns to look at me, pulling my hood up and giving me a long kiss on the forehead.

            “Be brave,” My mother’s sad smile lingers in my mind as I stumble out into the dark rain. I clutch the bag to my chest and run, pushing all thoughts out of my mind in an attempt to stop the tears.

            I sprint feverishly into the woods behind my yard, jumping rocks and dodging trees. Branches grasp at my hair and scrape any bare skin they can find. My foot catches on a root and sends me sprawling to the ground, sends fire shooting up my leg. I push myself out of the mud and keep running. Rain blurs my vision. I must be soaked to the bone by now. I push through a wall of pine needles so thick that it envelops me completely before releasing gasping and stumbling to the other side. I’m completely disoriented now; all that matters is putting one foot in front of the other. I run.

            Out of nowhere, a column of lightening strikes the ground in front of me with such force that I’m thrown into the air and slammed against a tree. Shock courses through my body, followed by a painful tingling, just like when my foot falls asleep after sitting on it for too long. Lights pop in front of my eyes and the ringing in my ears  subsides just long enough for me to register the pounding of hooves.

            I roll to my right, out of reflexes more than anything. Leaves envelope my as hooves clatter by just inches away from my face. I consider climbing a tree to gain a better vantage point- I feel so vulnerable on the ground. But the adrenaline rush is wearing off, making me all too aware of how cold and wet and tired I really am. My ankle throbs and the tingling has given way to a dull ache. The leaves slide in and out of focus before my eyes as I silently drop out of consciousness.

 

            When I wake, the woods are alive again. Birds chirp and a thin light filters through the dense bushes and onto my face. I prop myself up on one elbow and brush a mud caked strand of hair from my face. My hand travels to the knot on my head and comes away bloody.

            I drag my self carefully out of the bush, slowly stretching out my unbelievably sore body. My hair goes up in a messy bun and my sweatshirt is laid out on the least muddy patch of ground I can find to dry.

            The leather strap is plastered around my chest by a long night of water and mud. Somehow it doesn’t seem right to open it here, in the middle of the woods. I rack my brain for a place to go and come up with the local swimming pool; hot showers, hand dryers and a vending machine. Sounds like heaven. I put the bag on again under my sweatshirt and get to my feet. As I limp my way towards the sound of speeding cars, I wonder why I’m not dying to know what’s in the bag.

            “Maybe sometimes it’s easier to just pretend,” I whisper to myself.