Still rubbing my eyes from the lack of sleep at Kaylee's, one of my friends from school, party, I trudged up the path to my house.
I swear the girl will be the death of me. And Hotaru wasn't helping! I thought, reminiscing about my best friend who had eaten too much sugar and spent most of the night annoying the heck out of me.
Sticking my key in the lock, I turned it until I heard a click. A creak echoed through the house as I entered.
"Hello? Anybody home?" I called out.
When no one answered, I shrugged and dumped my bag on the floor in the entryway. As I walked farther into the house I became aware of a distinctly coppery smell emanating from the living room.
"Mom? Dad? Em?"
I thought I heard something in the next room, so I followed to investigate. A horrible sight met my eyes.
Mom lay in a puddle of blood, presumably her own. Her throat had a shallow cut, and blood soaked her beautiful red hair, turning it an ominous shade. I rushed to her side, dropping to my knees. I pressed my head to her chest, but found no heartbeat.
Tears sprung to my eyes as I turned to my father. He had obviously put up a fight; bruises and lacerations littered his face, neck, and arms. He was not breathing, having lost a significant amount of blood.
I didn't want to believe my eyes. Blood was splattered across the room, more signs that dad had fought his best. Furniture was overturned, and there were slash marks from a knife in the curtains and other fabric.
Em!
I stood quickly, my eyes searching for her small form.
She was supposed to come home last night…
When I didn't find her in the living room, I went to go look elsewhere. Besides the living room, not much was out of place on the bottom floor, so I proceeded upstairs. Coughing sounds became apparent, and I increased my pace. I pushed open the door to Emily's room, and what I saw broke my heart fully in two.
Emily lay on the bed, barely breathing. Blood poured out of a large cut down the left side of her face. Her favorite stuffed animal, Mr. Snuggles, was clutched in her right arm; her left hung limply off the bed at an unnatural angle.
"Bec…ca…" Em whispered hoarsely.
She coughed again, bright red blood sliding down the corner of her mouth.
"Shh, don't talk Emmy-bear," I told her quietly. My voice cracked and tears rolled freely down my cheeks.
"I…had…t-to see…see you…o-one…more…time…" Em replied softly in a barely distinguishable voice.
"You'll be okay…you'll b-be ok-okay…" I insisted.
Both of us knew that wasn't true.
"I…l-love…you…"
Emily pulled her lips into a bittersweet smile, and then her body went still.
"Em…Emmy-bear...Emily!" I cried, realization setting in.
I heard a bloodcurdling scream, and it took a minute for me to realize that it came from my lips. I cradled Emily's body to my chest, stroking her rich chocolate brown hair.
Dad's computer…
The thought occurred to me that dad's security cameras might've been able to record something. They were disguised as normal household objects, for instance one of the cameras in Em's room was embedded in her alarm clock. Mom always did tease dad about being paranoid, but now those tapes might be the missing piece. I had to find out who the assailant had been after; surely if they knew I was alive they would come after me.
Reluctant to leave Emily's side, I pulled myself away with great effort. Walking down the hall like a ghost, I barely registered mom and dad's room. I quickly scoured the room for dad's laptop; the assailant had apparently been looking as well. The bed had been torn apart, and everything was misplaced.
Picking up a broken chair and moving the rug underneath out of the way, I finally found what I was looking for: a loose floor board under the bed. I pulled it up, and found a sleek silver computer. Dad's backup computer, the latest Apple design; I bet wouldn't be on the market for at least a year.
Pressing it to my body, I hurried down the hall to my room. I didn't have much time; someone had surely heard me earlier. Placing the computer carefully on my bed, I looked underneath the armchair in the corner. My keen eyes found the small slit in the fabric covering its wooden frame. I weaseled my arm into the space, feeling a familiar cold metal.
I retrieved the object, placing it beside my dad's computer. It was a Macbook, one of the older models. I had swiped it from dad a few years back; he'd had quite a few, and it wasn't one of his work computers, so he never knew. Still, I hid it just incase he noticed.
Stowing the computers in my school messenger bag, I returned to Emily's room. Sitting on the bed, I gently brushed the stray hairs from Emily's face. I closed her eyes carefully, giving her the semblance of sleep.
Sirens outside caught my attention. If the authorities caught me, I would first have to prove I didn't kill them, and second I would get sent into a foster home most likely. Mom and dad were both only children, and mom's parents were dead. No one knew what happened to dad's; he was an orphan.
Just like me, I thought bitterly.
Panicking, I grabbed whatever I could from my room and fit the stuff into my bag. My wallet, computer charge cord, and a few photos were all I could think of. I slipped on my favorite jacket, a tan trench coat, over the t-shirt and jeans I had on already.
I went into Emily's room one more time, wanting a keepsake to remember everyone by. I found it on her dresser; a sterling silver locket containing a set of family photos. The smiling faces made me cry all over again.
Mom…dad…Emmy…I'm sorry…
The sirens neared, and I ran down the stairs. Grabbing my bag from the sleepover last night, I bolted out the back door. After tossing the bag with my clothes in it over the fence, I boosted myself over using the trash can. I prayed that our neighbors were gone; that would complicate things more than I wanted, making my escape impossible.
I must've run for an hour or so, I couldn't remember. I finally stopped at a coffee shop to get some food and calm my racing heart. After ordering a coffee drink so that I could use the Wi-Fi, I pulled out my old computer. The feds dad worked for might be tracking his right now, and I didn't want that.
After verifying that I was connected to a secure network and, taking a page from dad's book, triple-checking every possible entry point, I went to work. Accessing dad's work computer remotely wasn't a challenge at all. Using GPS coordinates close to it, I triangulated its location. It was currently in downtown San Jose, which meant that the murderer had indeed found dad's computer.
Hoping that dad's security measures could keep him distracted, I began to copy over the most important things to my computer. Things like social security, credit card numbers and PINs, bank accounts, the security tapes, and other items that I couldn't let this guy have.
Opening the security cameras, I fast forwarded to the most important parts of the night. The time stamp read 8:04 p.m., just after mom had finished the dishes and when the two of them settled onto the couch. Switching perspectives every once in a while, I carefully went over every second of that night. At precisely 8:12 p.m., someone entered through the back door. The person was dressed all in black, from a mask and gloves concealing every detail right down to the boots on their feet. The stature suggested a male, but I didn't want to assume and couldn't be sure. It was hard watching these tapes. At one point I was tempted to just close them and never look again. But I forced myself to watch, knowing that this was important.
After I finished, I also wired a copy of the tapes to dad's desktop, putting it under medium security. I had to be sure that the investigators could find them, just so I would be discredited as a suspect. I also had to edit the tapes, inserting a loop when no one had come home yet where the tapes showed me in the rooms. It was hard, monotonous work, because I had to make sure everything was perfect, otherwise the feds would be able to unravel my work.
My last piece of business was to set a system wipe for dad's laptop. The murderer didn't deserve to have anything on that computer. I couldn't do anything about the computer itself, so I deleted its memory, the next best thing.
When I had finally finished everything, it was nighttime. I shut down and locked everything, leaving no openings. I sat back, and tried to figure out where to go next. I couldn't stay in a hotel because I personally didn't have enough money to pay for it, and using dad's accounts would alert the investigators.
My mind drifted to Hotaru. She was my best friend, and I could trust her with my life. Surely she'd understand my need to hide. Collecting my things, I paid for a ticket and waited at the bus stop. Presenting said ticket, I rode the bus across town to Hotaru's house on the outskirts of San Francisco.
Walking down the street from the bus stop, I quietly made my way to the backyard of Hotaru's two story house. The lights in the bedrooms were shining brightly, cutting through the dark surroundings. Moving to the tree that grew next to Hotaru's window, I began to climb nimbly. I shortened the strap on my messenger bag so I could climb with it; there was no way I'd be letting it out of my sight any time soon. The bag with my clothes stayed on the ground, I'd get it later.
Reaching the window, I rapped my knuckles against it lightly. Hotaru was facing away from me, her head in one of her hands. She held something in her other hand, and I craned my neck to see what it was that she clutched so tightly. After a second, I realized that it was a photograph.
The picture depicted Hotaru and I standing on a dock in our swimsuits. It was summertime, and we were both sopping wet. Hotaru flashed a million-dollar smile that lit up her face. My arm was around her shoulder, showing a peace sign.
Does she think I'm…?
I knocked again, louder this time. She turned, and when Hotaru caught sight of me, shock covered her face.
"Re…be…cca…?" I saw her say. The picture slipped from her fingers, falling soundlessly to the carpeted floor. She rushed over, and I allowed a smile to grace my face.
"Becca? Is it really you? I thought-" Hotaru said quickly once she'd opened the window.
"Calm down. I'll explain everything once I'm inside. Can you open the back door?" I asked, cutting her off.
"No, the alarm's on, mom and dad'll know. I'm assuming since you didn't come to the front door you don't want them to, right?"
I nodded. She walked away, and retuned moments later with a Swiss Army Knife. Popping open the blade, Hotaru cut the screen away quickly.
"Won't your parents notice? And what about the alarm?" I asked, not wanting Hotaru to get in trouble because of me.
"No, it's fine. The alarm is different for windows, so you should be fine. Come in."
Gingerly, I handed Hotaru my bag. Once I was sure she had it, I climbed back down the tree to get my other bag. Scaling it once more, I entered through Hotaru's window. At times like this, there is a definite advantage to being barely five feet.
"Oh my god Becca, I was so scared when I heard…" Hotaru burst out once I slid the window shut. I grabbed her into a tight hug, both of us beginning to cry.
"I know, I know, when I saw them I-"
"You found them?"
I nodded, and Hotaru realized what she'd said.
"Becca, I…I'm so sorr-"
"It's okay, Hotaru."
I took a few deep, calming breaths before I recounted my tale. I left out all of my work, as Hotaru had no idea what I could do. Hotaru then told me how she'd found out.
"So, this afternoon after I got back from the party, I went to my room to go relax. I was reading a book when I heard some emergency vehicles go by our house. Nothing too bad or out of the ordinary, right? I figured it was nothing serious and went back to reading my book.
"But then, half-an-hour later, mom called me downstairs. She had this pale look, liked she been stunned and unable to believe something. She pointed to the TV without words, and I saw the headline 'Local Family Dead; Oldest Daughter Missing' Splashed across the screen.
"I immediately assumed the worst once I was sure that it was you and your family they were reporting. I thought that the murderer'd taken you to fulfill some sick fantasy of his before killing you off. You can imagine how I felt when I saw you outside the window just now."
"I didn't mean to scare you, really, I didn't," I told Hotaru once she'd finished. "I just…I need a place to stay for tonight. Can I stay here? I know I'm asking a lot-"
"Don't worry about it," Hotaru cut in. ""After all that's happened my parents can't refuse."
"No, you can't tell your parents!" I exclaimed, jumping up.
"Why not?"
"I know you're parents. They're kind people, and they would do whatever is the right thing to do. They would either offer to take me in, which would make your family a target, or they would have to turn me over to social services. I can't go to a foster home for the same reason that I can't stay here; the murderer probably knows I'm still alive, and I don't doubt that he'll come again and try to kill me. I don't want any more innocent people to get hurt because of my work…"
I stopped, realizing I'd said too much. Hotaru didn't know anything about my skills, and now she won't be letting me go without an explanation.
"What work? Don't you have a job at Taco Bell? Why would anyone want to kill you because of that?" Hotaru asked, puzzled.
"That's…not what I'm talking about. I shouldn't even be telling you this, it's dangerous…" I muttered to myself.
"I can handle it. What could you possibly do that would get you on someone's bad side, enough to make them kill you family?"
I sighed, unwilling to give Hotaru the information she sought. Grabbing my computer out of the bag, I flipped it open and began search the hard drive. Throughout the time I'd been working, I always saved any reports about my escapades. Whether they were created by news networks or by the hacking communities, I always had the nagging feeling to save them somehow, because they aren't permanent.
Pulling up one of the more recent ones, I turned the computer towards Hotaru.
"Remember this? Anonymous information turned in two weeks ago that led to one of the biggest drug busts in a long time?" I asked.
Hotaru nodded.
"It was that one hacker or something, right? The one that's like, the police over the internet?"
"Kind of. Do you remember the name?"
"Black…dark…night fox?" Hotaru guessed.
"Not quite. Shadow fox."
I turned the computer back towards me, and began typing in a familiar code.
"Do you remember my favorite animal?"
"Duh, 'course I do. A fox."
"And why don't you take a look at your blog right now…"
Hotaru gave me a weird look, put picked up the pink laptop sitting next to her bed anyways. After typing in the web address, I could tell when it had loaded and Hotaru realized what I'd programmed onto the page.
"No…way…"
A look of disbelief, a small bit of hurt, and some amazement crossed her face.
"You're…"
"Yep, I am the hacker who goes by the name of 'Shadow Fox'. I broke up a larger kidnapping ring a few months back, and I think the person who murdered my family wanted revenge. I don't know how he tracked me here, laptops are hard to track in general, and I've always been careful," I explained to Hotaru.
"I can't believe it. You're like, a superstar! This is so cool!" Hotaru exclaimed.
"No, it's not; especially when you're whole family is murdered because of your work."
Hotaru looked down, realizing how small she'd made my loss seem.
"Well, what are you going to do if you can't stay here?" Hotaru asked after a few moments of silence.
"Promise you won't freak?"
"Becca, I've known you since birth. I think I can handle it."
"I'm going to France."
"France?! And how the hell are you going to manage that?!"
"I have money from my job, my college fund, as well as the money I've made from working on security measures for companies like Apple, Microsoft, etc."
"When are you going? It takes a while to get citizenship papers and other stuff, right?"
"Yeah, it does, but there's a reason I'm a grey hat not a white hat."
"Sorry, you lost me there."
"Right. Forgot you didn't know. White hats are the ones who only hack for companies to test security systems and report problems. Black hats are hackers who only work for their personal gain. They scam and hack into banks, credit cards, and other places like that. Then there are grey hats like me that do a little of both," I explained.
"You're going to hack into the government?!" Hotaru nearly yelled.
"Shush! Do you want everyone to hear you?" I told her, holding a finger to my lips. "Maybe. I'll try, but I have to be extremely careful. If I'm caught, I will be in serious trouble."
"You think?"
The rest of the night was spent getting everything in order. I pulled up documents like medical records, dental visits in the past, things of that nature that I would need to create my identity. Editing them didn't take that much work: covering up the fact that I'd changed them in the first place was harder. I let Hotaru decide my name and physical stuff like that, since she couldn't really help me hack in and set everything up.
Hotaru eventually decided on "Adriana Dubois", a sixteen-year-old orphan with brown hair and green eyes. I'd told her to change my hair and eyes so that I could blend in and disappear from the killer's radar better.
Once the documents were completed and proofread, I went back and erased any and all traces of tampering with the document. Using a laptop definitely had advantages at times like this; they were harder to track down than desktops simply because of the fact that they could be taken almost anywhere.
Before arranging my flight the next day, I set up appointments with an optometrist and a hair salon. My eyes had been getting worse in the past few months, staring at computer screens for long periods of time and all. Plus I needed my hair to be cut and colored. I was aware that the color would need to be redone, but I could do that on my own once I settled in France. For now, I'd rather not worry that it was colored wrong. The flight was scheduled for two p.m., so I made sure the schedule the appointments with enough time in between to get to the airport and go through security.
I did also apply for a French driver's license. I may not have a way to bring a car with me to France, but if the need arose, I'd like a license just in case. After I finished filling out the paper work (constantly referring to the cheat sheet Hotaru'd put together for my new persona), I searched for and purchased a small apartment in one of the subdivisions in Paris. Paris was a big enough city that I could easily blend with the other students, something that I needed, and it was also popular enough to draw no suspicion when someone new moved in.
Exhausted, I shut off the computer and curled up with a blanket on the floor. I was asleep the moment my head hit the pillow.
The next morning I was up as soon as possible. The first appointment was at a local hair salon, and Hotaru had agreed to bring me everywhere I needed to go. I think she wanted to be with me as much as possible before I left, so I wasn't going to contest.
I have to say, getting my hair dyed was quite the interesting experience. I ended up cutting off several inches, so much so that the hair was barely a couple inches long. The dye turned my hair a chestnut brown color, and I actually ended up liking it.
"Who knew you looked so good with boyish hair Becca?" Hotaru teased once I came out from the salon. I hit her lightly and stuck out my tongue in response.
Next stop was the optometrist. I told him that I was sort of a computer geek and my eyes were getting bad, and the doctor slightly chastised me. He went on the give me a low level prescription for glasses, something I didn't really want but agreed to anyways.
"Okay, if I didn't know you so well, I wouldn't even be able to tell you were the same person," Hotaru told me once I finished up.
We were in the car driving towards the international airport. Traffic wasn't too bad, which I was grateful for, and we got there an hour before the flight.
"I can't believe you're going to France Be...um...Adri! You're gonna leave me! How dare you," Hotaru said with a pout.
"I'm sorry Hotaru, I really want to stay here but I can't come back until I'm sure I'm safe. I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you," I replied.
I pulled her into a tight hug, not wanting to let go.
"Well, I suppose it's time for you to go," Hotaru said wistfully.
"Don't be like that, I'll call you and text you and Skype you as much as possible silly girl," I said as I joined the line for the TSA. She gave me a wave and I turned to move forwards in the line.
Thankfully I didn't encounter any horribly mean TSA agents, and was waiting by the gate in no time. Both my bags were coming carry-on as they were within regulation. As I sat down to wait in the terminal, my phone dinged, a new text had arrived.
Hotaru, 1:25 p.m. Btw, look in the front pocket of ur laptop bag. Thought I'd give ya tht for good memories.
Unzipping the pocket, I pulled out two things, a picture frame and a charm bracelet. The picture was the same one I'd seen Hotaru looking at the night before, and the charm bracelet was somehting from several years ago when we were in junior high. We'd built the bracelets together, starting then with one charm each, giving each other another charm on our birthdays and for Christmas. We'd just completed them recently, and Hotaru hadn't given mine back until now. The last charm was of the Eiffel Tower, and I gave a bittersweet smile.
Me, 1:26 p.m. Thanks H, luv it so much. Will miss u :'(
The gate agent called for boarding. I really didn't want to leave, it was my last choice, but I had to. Giving one last look at the airport, I joined the line.
Paris, here I come.