It was dark! So dark I could barely see my hands in front of me. All I could see was the light coming from underneath the door to my parents room down the hall.
I could hear their screams from my bedroom. Icy fear shot down my spine as I heard my mother scream for him to stop. Her screams of terror ran down the hallway into my room only to be halted with a loud bang and then the sound of glass being shattered and then...Nothing. Deathly silent. Nothing but the eerie sensation of death. The knowledge that the fierce Janine Hathaway Mazur was dead.
My mother was cold, hard and distant. Nothing like you would expect from a mother, but I loved her with my whole heart. She was the only mother I had and I had to love her. She made me this strong woman who I am today. Or so I would like to believe.
Another sound rang through the house. A sound that was very faint and could only be heard in complete silence. *Zip* The sound rang again. It was a sound that I remember from when my father took me for target practice. A silencer. Why might you ask would my father make me practice shooting with a silencer? Well it was a secret thing between my father and I. Some sort of strange bonding time. Abe Mazur was not a particularly normal father. But he was mine and I cherished those times together. A silencer was so that noone would hear us shooting. In case you haven't noticed a gun shot is a loud thing. I knew that with those two shots my loving parents would be dead. I knew deep in my bones that he had come to kill them. To seek his revenge. I heard footsteps nearing their door and I quickly closed mine, only leaving a small space to peek out.
Three men walked out and traveled down the stairs and out the front door. Only when I heard the front door close did I dare move from my spot. I stood and inched my way out of my room. With each step I could hear the hardwood floor creak under my bare feet. The closer I got the more afraid I became. I knew what I was going to find.
As I gently pushed the door to my parents room open, the light from their bedroom engulfed me, briefly blinding me. As my eyes focused, I called out to my mother like the scared child I was.
"Mom?" No response. I didn't expect an answer, but I prayed that I would get one. My eyes finally focused and my god, what I sight it was.
My mother layed directly in front of me. Throat slit, gash on her forehead oozing blood and blank brown eyes staring back at me. Shock and horror consumed me. I knew what I was going to find but actually seeing it with my eyes was another thing. When I summoned up as much courage as I could, I stepped past my mother in search for my father. And I found him. He sat on the floor beside the bed with a bullet between his eyes. I moved my head to look at my mother once again and saw the bullet hole in the back of her head, where I was unable to see it from my original position.
Finally the gravity of the situation sunk in. My parents were dead. Gone. Never to hold me or comfort me when I was scared. Never to tell me what to do or teach me how to make the right decisions. I was too scared to scream. Too numb to make any noise at all. What pulled me from my stupefied state was the front door opening.
He came back! No, no, no. I thought. He came back for me. He must have remembered that I was home. I dashed into my parents closet. The only sight I had was the crack between the doors. I heard him step up the stairs, once I suspected he reached the top he paused. That pause was far more frightening than his movement. I heard him start moving once again but the footsteps grew fainter. He must be walking into my room I thought. I was right. I heard my door open, another pause and then the sound of him rummaging through my room. After a few minutes he began walking back to my parents room.
I close my eyes. The scared child in me believes that what I can't see won't hurt me. When I do slowly open my eyes I see a tall dark figure pouring something all over the room. The smell of gasoline smacks me in the face with the force of a small truck. No.
I know what he is going to do. He is going to burn the house down. Make our deaths look like some type of tragic accident. I can't believe it. I don't want to burn. I can't. I'm barely seventeen. I can't die this way. I need to get out. Minutes and minutes pass while he soak the house in gallons of gasoline. The fear of being caught by trying to escape halts any movements that I dare to make.
He walks back into my room and throws his lighter on the bed and walks out in a hurry. Orange and yellow blur my vision as I witness my parents going up in flames. I can't take any more. Smoke invades my lungs as I run out of the closet. I grab the closest thing which happens to be a vase and throw it at the window. Nothing happens. The window stays completely intact. Why I believed that would work, I will never know. Too many action movies. I go to open the window manually and once I've succeeded I get ready to climb out. It is three stories up. I have two options here. I can jump and probably break my neck or stay and burn to death. I can't run outside because those men might still be there. I don't want to burn. The smell of burning flesh is already choking me. I take a deep breath and let myself fall. I can see the ground growing. Getting closer like a monster about to swallow me up.
My body jolts out of bed. I'm so disoriented that I have no idea where I am. My body is drenched in a cold sweat. My breath is labored. My whole body is shaking. My eyes focus and I see the bedroom that I'm currently occupying. I have relived this memory every night since I've gotten out of the hospital.
When I jumped I had miraculously survived the fall. I had two broken legs, a broken arm, a concussion and internal bleeding, but I was alive. The firefighters and paramedics had found me in the backyard and rushed me to the hospital where I went into a coma for three weeks. When I woke up I was alone. All of my family had been murdered, and I had no one to come and take me home. My mother home schooled me so I didn't have many friends. I was alone. My long time family friend, my only real friend, came to take me back to Montana to live with him. School had just started so I would be attending St. Vladimir's. Great. Samuel Szelsky was a nice guy though. I hadn't seen him in a while, a year to be exact. He was a doctor. A damn good one at that. He was only 30 years old and had just finished his residency but was able to become one of the best doctors in the state. Sam has dirty blond hair and sapphire blue eyes. He is rather tall, standing at 6'5" with lean but hard muscles. Sexy as hell I might add. He was my best friend. The only person I could really open up to. But for making me attend a high school I will always resent him for it.
St. Vladimir's is a school for the rich and soon to be powerful. Gag. I've always been rich with my fathers shady business that left me with a massive inheritance, but I've never gotten along with rich people. And more importantly they have never gotten along with me.
"Rose! Get up! It's time for school." Sam yelled from down stairs. I could hear the smirk in his voice. School starting at 7 am is just beyond cruel.
"Kay." was my only response. I only continued to lay on my damp bed. I turn my head to the door as I hear it creak open, sam pops in.
"Hey. If it is too soon, we can postpone. Start another day." He said.
No. I'm ready. I can't sit around anymore." I try giving him a smile. Sam is wonderful. Always caring about my feelings and he has been great with my during my recovery. I need to find a way to show him how grateful I am.
"Well then, get your lazy ass up and get ready. Take a shower while you're at it... You stink!" He plugs his nose to prove his point. A dangerous grin finds its way onto my face and I jump up giving Sam only a second to widen his eyes and haul ass out of my room. I chase him into the hallway and tackle him before he reaches the stairs.
"Smell my nasty stinkiness!" I begin to torment him by placing my armpit by his face.
"Get off you little dork." He laughs at me. I roll off of him and laugh myself. Life with Sam is always like this. Easy. Fun. Once I finished my childish omission I ran to my room to shower and change.
I decided to keep it simple and wear dark jeans with my black combat boots and a black tank top. I glanced in the mirror and decided I looked too dark so I decided to add my white sweater. I never wore makeup because I don't need it. I've always been pretty with my long really dark brown hair, big eyes and thin waist. I have a thin waist but I also have curves in all the right places.
"Get out before I drag you out." Sam threatens although I can hear the amusement in his voice.
"Coming." I shout back.
"Want me to take you?" Sam asks as I walk into the kitchen. He is sitting drinking coffee pretending to read the paper.
"Uhh... Yeah sure." I mumble back.
"Why do you read that?" I point to the paper when he gives me a questioning glance.
"Shut up! It makes me look mature." He says. Earning a snort from me. He grabs his keys and we make our way to the school.
The drive was silent. It was a comforting silence that we sometimes find ourselves in. When he stopped at the school and I made no move to get out he glances at me.
"You okay? I can turn around and we can just go home. You don't have to go if you're not ready." He says calmly. Gently.
"No. I'm ready. You won't let me be homeschooled and if I wait any longer I'll be behind in my studies." I say harshly.
"You need to be around people. I love you Rose but it is not healthy to be alone all the time. I know I'm sexy and incredibly awesome but you need to be around other people. Flirt with guys. Gossip with girls. Bitch at teachers. Plus I'm scared your horrible personality might rub off on me if we're around each other too much." Sam says trying to be funny. I smack his arm and laugh with him.
"HA HA very funny. See you after school." I tell him and hug him before exiting the car. As I walk up to the school I see a sign. 'Welcome to St. Vladimir's.' Pshh more like welcome to hell on earth.