Chapter 18

Alyssa was looking out the window as Devon's mother, Casey, kept glancing back at her. She was concerned that Alyssa seemed so troubled by something.

"You alright, honey?" she asked sympathetically.

Alyssa was a little slow to respond, and raised her head after realizing that she was being spoken to after a few seconds. "Huh? Oh, I'm fine. I'm just trying to figure out why Amelia hasn't tried to call me."

"I wouldn't worry about it so much, I tell you," Devon repeated. "After all, Asheville could've been hit worse than Weaverville."

"But do you really think the power would be out that long? Or at least the phones? Her cell phone would still be reachable, wouldn't it?"

Casey was five minutes from Alyssa's home, and she smiled, turning the wheel in a sharp turn towards home. "We're almost there, and you can see for yourself. I can assure you that things are going to be fine."

"She could've had her phone on vibrate mode, and when you tried to call, she couldn't hear it. Maybe she misplaced it. Does her phone have a channel, to where she can find it at the press of a button?" Devon asked.

"I don't think so," Alyssa responded.

"Then you don't need to be worrying. She won't ignore you if she has nothing to be mad at you about."

"Well, she and I aren't exactly close, you know. She won't call me unless she absolutely has to."

Casey turned the wheel into Alyssa's driveway, and it was packed with at least a dozen large, black SUVs, facing the roadway. Casey braked hard when she saw them in her view. Her eyes widened. "What's happening?"

Devon peeked over the dashboard and noticed the cars. "Is this the Mafia or what?"

"What's happened to Amelia and mom?" Alyssa whispered, her eyes tearing up.

Four men dressed in black business suits stepped from each of the vehicles, totaling about fifty men. They stood in a straight line, and faced them. Alyssa couldn't see their eyes because dark sunglasses concealed them, even in the dimness of the day.

"What's going on?" Devon whispered to Alyssa.

Without warning, their arms, which had been hidden behind their backs, were now in the open, in their hands, each held an M16-Machine gun. Alyssa gasped. They opened fire, and all three of them ducked for cover under the dashboard. There was complete silence.

"What the hell they up to?!" Casey shouted.

"Why are they shooting at us?" Devon whimpered.

"Amelia.." Alyssa whispered.

The fifty men didn't move after firing. They all faced the same direction, aimed their guns, and fired again. Casey had raised her head too early, and was knicked on the right side of the skull. Blood pumped from her hairline, and she fell over the steering wheel.

"Mom!" Devon screamed, and jumped for her mother. She kept low to avoid being hit.

"Devon, stay down!" Alyssa shouted.

Devon listened and heard something hiss. She peeked outside of her window and saw oil running down the hillside of the driveway. Alyssa noticed it right after her, and kicked the jammed door open, and ran out into the open.

"Alyssa, no!" Devon screamed.

Alyssa ran into the open field, and fell to the ground to avoid any shots that would be fired her way. It also came in handy when the gas tank exploded. Metal debris fell from the sky, and she kept her face in the ground, covering her face to avoid injury.

She whimpered, frightened by the men, for the grief of losing her friend, and she feared what happened to her sister and mother. She raised her head slowly, and she noticed many pairs of black shoes. She didn't raise her head high, but kept it low to the ground and saw maybe near a hundred feet. She heard guns click as they reloaded. She blinked the tears from her eyes.

"We've found the sister," one man said on his headset radio.

"Don't kill her," the man on the other side replied, but Alyssa couldn't hear him. She was still silently crying and praying.

"Yes, sir," he responded. He walked toward Alyssa and pointed the muzzle of his gun to her face. She stared up at it, the tears falling to her cheeks and rolling down her chin. She shook with fear. He raised the gun and slammed the butt of it down on Alyssa's head.

"Amelia.." Alyssa quietly cried before losing consciousness.