Chapter 1

I flipped through the pages in the magazine as I chewed on the inside of her lip. My mom always told me not to do that, but I couldn't help it. Sometimes I didn't even realize she was doing it. I lied back and rested my head on her pillow. I looked over the words of celebrity gossip.

There was a loud noise downstairs. I set aside her magazine and walked to my door. I opened it and slowly walked down the stairs. "Mom, Dad," I said. I peered through the railing. My dad looked back at me with fear on his face. I tried to look at what he was standing next to, but I couldn't see.

"Go to your room," he whispered loudly. I didn't argue. I just went back up to my room and shut the door. I found a chair and propped it up against the doorknob. I walked over to my closet, climbed in, and shut the door. I was scared, and I didn't even want to breathe. What the hell was going on?

There was another loud noise which made me jump. I wanted to go back out to see what was going on and to see why my dad looked so scared. What happened to my mom? Was she okay?

Silence pierced my ears. It was a long silence. I felt like it was okay to move… until I felt the heat. I stood up and grabbed the doorknob. My hand jerked back because of how hot it was. I started breathing quickly, and tears were starting to form. What happened to my parents, and was that really a fire?

This is it, I thought. I curled up in the corner and shivered despite the heat.

The door suddenly shot open, and I let out a shriek. There was a man standing there with a dark jacket and short hair. The fire was in the background. "Come on," he said to me. I started to stand up, but he came up to her and scooped me into his arms. I stared at the flames as he ran out with me. I began to cough. The man ran down the stairs, and I was able to see the bodies of my parents. The man holding me turned my head away. He ran out the front door just as the house let out a boom. He fell to the ground making sure to not land on me. I bounced out of his arms onto the grass. I looked at the house as the flames grew around it. The place where she grew up was destroyed.

The man helped her to her feet and ran her away from the house. I was still in my slippers and pajamas. "You'll have to come with us," he said. I asked no questions. I just went with him. After all, he just saved my life.

We ran down to the corner of the neighborhood when we reached a car that looked like it was older than most cars on the street. The man opened the back seat of the car. "Get in," he said. I looked at him with a look of unsure. "I'll explain everything later, just get in the car." I got in and he closed the door. He got into the driver's seat and drove off.

There was another man in the passenger's seat. He had longer, darker hair, broad shoulders, and a gentler face. He looked back at me. "Don't worry," he said. "We won't hurt you. We want to help you. What's your name?" I hesitated.

"Emily," I said shakily.

"Alright, Emily, we're going to protect you, okay?" I nodded. "I'm Sam, and this is Dean. We're going to keep you until we can find out where to put you where you'll be safe."

"What happened to my parents?" I asked. Sam glanced at Dean and then looked back at me.

"That's one of the things we'll have to tell you later," he says. "Why don't you try to get some sleep?" I just shook my head. I didn't trust these guys yet and didn't want to fall asleep. Sam understood and just turned back around. I brought my feet up and rested my chin on my knees. Was what just happened real? Was she really in this car with these men? What was going on?

We pulled up to a motel a while later. I opened my door and got out of the car. The other two got out of the car as well. I could now see that Sam was taller than Dean. When we walked up to a door, Dean opened it. We walked in and turned on a light. "You can take the bed. I'll take the couch," Sam said to me. I walked up to the bed and sat down on it. It did not have the feeling of my bed at home. Of course, by this time it was probably blown to bits.

I lied my head down on the pillow. Sam walked up to my bed. "You okay?" he asked. I nodded even though I wasn't okay. My house just exploded, and I just lost my family.

Sam got onto the couch as Dean got into bed. "Get some sleep," said Dean. He turned out the light. I rolled over and faced the window. I looked out at the sky before I closed my eyes. I hoped to fall asleep immediately, but I didn't. My eyes were closed for quite some time before I finally fell asleep.