Prologue
The night was pitch black. It was two in the morning. Now was the time to go.
Steel gray eyes looked out of the window, which had until recently been barred. Now it was open, and a cold breeze came in the dingy little attic. He had to leave, to run away from this place as fast and far as his legs could carry him.
Making sure the black backpack was tight on his shoulders, he looked around once more to make certain no one was coming. Satisfied, he turned back to the window and began to climb out. The slanted roof was missing a few shingles but other remained intact. Biting his lower lip and praying the roof was stable, he pulled his body through the barely large enough window and crouched in the shadows.
Walking slowly, he reached out and grabbed the branch of an old oak tree. It was surprising that no had thought to take it down, but it was the perfect way to escape. Being only seventeen, he couldn't do anything until next year, but if he had to service anyone else, he was going to be sick. He did everything he could to get strong, to prepare for this flight, but he was afraid. There was no telling who was out there. What if someone took him away, to turn him into a sex slave again?
The idea made him shudder, feeling colder than before. For about two years he rotted in that place waiting for someone else to take from his body. He couldn't allow anyone else to do that to him. His parents thought him dead. After a year, the mistress of this hellhole told him that no one would come looking for him, that his parents had held a funeral for him. He was as good as gone.
Based off of what she had said, his parents had moved to somewhere in San Francisco. She thought he wouldn't be able to leave at all, even when he came of age. She had made it plenty clear that if he tried, she would kill him after having her way with him. Again.
Releasing the breath he had been holding, he began to climb down the sturdy tree, thankful the wind helped conceal the sound of his movements. His dark brown hair was black in the night, though his pale face shined. He pulled the cap low on his face and continued his climb. Once he reached the ground, he crouched and looked around. No one was there, but he had the feeling someone was watching him. He waited for a moment before leaving the tree and ran to the forest the bordered the property.
Once safely inside the shadows, he looked back at the dilapidated two-story house. Relief swarmed him, but he wasn't safe yet. Not until he was away from here for good.
No matter what happened, he would never again be someone's plaything. Never again will he let anyone touch him. And never again will he let anyone take his body again.
Aang Windstorm was going to find his family. And start a new beginning.
