Prologue
The water sparkled in the mid-day sun. The heat wasn't so bad, but the little girl with dark brown hair didn't care as she followed the bouncing ball. Her brown-green eyes were focused on the blue ball that rolled out of her reach and into a swimming pool. Her father had told her thousands of times to not go near the pool without them, but the young girl thought she could reach it as it bobbed on the surface near the edge. Surely it wouldn't be hard to get. She reached out for it, careful not to stretch too far, but it was floating away slowly. Determined to get the ball before it went too far, it happened before she was even aware of it. The water was cold, but its cooling effect was forgotten as it closed over her head. She tried to scream, but the water filled her, choking her and no matter how much she flailed it was no use. As she reached towards the surface that was slowly fading she saw a pair of shockingly blue eyes. The water seemed to chill around her. The grip that held her close was cold, but she swore she heard a soft voice speak to her.
You're going to be okay now. Before she could figure it out the eyes disappeared at the shriek of a familiar voice.
"Em!" She turned to see her cousin running forward and scooping her up. After a moment Emily focused on the voice, coughing up water.
"Oh geez, Em!" Emily could barely focus on the girl who was carrying her into the house again, the blue eyes dancing in her mind. Who had that been? Had a boy really pulled her from the water? Those blue eyes, they had reminded Emily of gems and she wondered if perhaps she simply hadn't imagined it, but if she had... then who had pulled her out of the pool?