Chapter 4 Hope you enjoy -
The rough sound of a old motorcycle. The wild breathing of a frightened family. The smell of oil. The sound of a scuffle then a shot from a gun and then a cry of pain as a thud sounded. Screaming of a women then another shot. The smell of blood. Then a blood curdling scream that I found out was not just in my dream but was actually happening as I woke from my nightmare.
Not really a nightmare but a memory that I relived every single night since it happened twenty years ago.
The worst part the single most horrifying part of the whole thing was that instead of seeing the scene. I could only see the extremely close moon as my young fourteen year old body reached out to touch it. Never quite reaching it just being bathed in it's glowing light.
I swung my legs over the side of the bed. Rushing out of my hot room I walked into the chilly tunnel. Following the winding path to the front corridor. I walked past all the sleeping bodies to the entrance of the cave. I raised the platform by the pulley till I was at the manhole. I slid a small panel aside and stared up at the moon.
I loathed the moon but I could never deny it's beauty. The Moon. It was extremely close to the earth the effect of what happened twenty years ago never leaving probably never will. I still remember the night it happened.
The news had broadcast for the last two weeks about the upcoming meteor that would pass over the earth. Sailing right by the moon.
I was only fourteen at the time. I was always fascinated with the moon so I begged my mom and dad to perch our chairs outside and set up the telescope.
Turns out that I wasn't the only one with this idea, because everyone was outside. The time was approaching then I saw it the sparkling red glowing orb sailing across the night sky.
My breath caught in my throat at its beauty. It was heading straight towards the moon preparing to sail over it.
The next series of event happened in a sort of slow motion thru my memory. The glowing meteor was heading for the moon looking as if to pass over but instead slamming straight into the luminous orb.
Then bouncing back and heading in a different direction, but the moons damage couldn't be undone it moved closer to us. The moon looked almost like a 3D image compared with the rest of the sky.
I reached my hand out to touch it out of instinct. The whole neighborhood had went quiet with bated breath. The moon didn't move just stayed at it's extremely close place.
Everyone stumbled back into they're homes shocked. The news was broadcasting the event over and over with worried expressions which I didn't understand at the time.
So I just went to my room and cozied up under my window the very prominent moon staring back at me.
When I woke up the sun was shining but I could still see the moon. I walked out to my living room to see my mother crying. She overreacted all the time. So I didn't even pay attention until I noticed my dad in a sort of catatonic state in front of the tv.
Then I noticed it the flashing warning. The floods on all the coastal city's. The power outages everywhere.
Then I got it the moon it controls the tides the flooding was caused by it's closeness.
The next day the power cut off. Clicking on and off until a week later it never came back on.
Many refugees of coastal city's piled into other city's, towns and countries. This caused a shortage of food which caused tensions to go high as people broke into stores without the police to take care of the criminals.
The world went into a state of chaos. Riots everywhere people dying. In three months we didn't have a U.S.A we had a civil war.
The government abandoned us as soon as the eruption from the Volcanoes came causing the sky to turn a weird gray scattering dust over the world.
Refugees brought news to me and my family. Every person was looking to be the new dictator. They started out by taking over small towns. Most people caught wind of them coming, moving over to different city's to stay
One year after the Moon .v. Meteor Happened half the population had died off and it only rained very occasionally because of the thick cloud of dust. There weren't anymore city's just small settlements by water sources.
The civil war for control had been won by a Billy Black of La push. He now controlled everything Food, Water, Gas, homes. Everything.
They were brutal in their rule. Making young men be guards and stealing girls and women and selling them into slavery.
I remembered the reasons for the nightmares. I was seventeen when it happened three years after the moon/meteor incident. My family had been relatively safe and unharmed compared to others.
Fathers were forced to join the Black army while daughters and Mothers were split up to serve as slaves to pay off debts to feed themselves.
Women weren't allowed to hold positions in this society other then home makers and slaves or servants.
In those three years my dad Charlie taught me how to hunt small things in the surrounding area. Birds, rabbits, dogs, owls things like that it kept us afloat and from starving to death. My dad was to old being fifty and all so he wasn't recruited so we didn't have to split at all.
He taught me hand to hand combat and knife throwing and shooting. He lived thru a war that I never could remember the name of but he was skilled.
I remember the journeys throughout the dusty rain deprived landscape looking for food and water.
I loved these adventures my dads quiet but comforting presence soothed me and we grew closer. My talent was throwing knives I was excellent never missing a target moving or not. My dad gave me a shiny set of Stilettos tiny throwing knives that you could hide anywhere.
They were one of the sharpest blades in the world. At hand to hand combat I was good my small stature helping me in agility and he showed me pressure points to kill someone in seconds.
At shooting I was fine at best not my strong suit but I could hit a target. Since bullets were forbidden by the La push Town my dad made his own by melting metal or coins he found into the shape of bullets.
It happened one day when me and my mother were in the kitchen trying to cut up the small bird and make food. My dad was in the living room doing something I never knew.
Then he ran into the kitchen yelling at us and pushing us toward the hiding space under the floor boards.
"Stay under there don't come out for anything." he said in a harsh voice.
"But da.." I darted into a question
"No Bella promise me you'll stay." He said back with determination.
"Dad?"
"Promise me!" he whispered urgently grasping my hand tightly.
Pursing my lips I nodded and said "I promise."
He looked relived then turned towards my mother giving her a look she nodded back a silent agreement.
"Keep your mother safe Bells. I love you both."
Then I heard it the rough sounds of motorcycles whispering back my love he closed the hatch and pulled the gun out of his belt hiding it behind his back.
That's all I could see before he walked from overtop of us. The whole town was quiet unlike the usual noise.
I heard a pounding on our wooden door. Two sets of boots the thick smell of oil like gasoline.
My mother started to breathe faster so did I. Muffled voices I couldn't make out then a sound like a scuffle then a shot rang out followed by a cry sounding like, like my dads.
The thudding of something hitting the floor and before I could stop her I saw my mother lifting the hatch climbing out and I heard the cry of a women insane, screaming.
Then a cry of man then another shot ringing out by this time my head was peeking out of the open hatch I watched as my mother was shot to the ground after clawing the russet skinned man holding a guns face.
Both of my parents lay on the floor my dad was still gasping while My mother lay still. I was filled with so much rage.
I grabbed the gun on the floor closest to me I climbed to feet and ran over to the men.
They faced me with leers on their faces. Gun pointed at me I knew I was going to die but I was going to take them with me.
I could feel something strange happening to me as I faced the men like my senses grew everything grew. Slower as I took in every possible outcome feeling my pupils become larger. Then my tongue feeling as if coated in honey.
"Hey sweetie why don't you put the gun down." one spoke his deep voice showing amusement as they faced me.
My honey coated mouth opened and I spoke but the voice was more sweet more persuasive as if I was pulling someone into a trance.
"Why don't you drop dead." the one with the gun face started turning a deep blue then purple as it looked like he stopped breathing his smirking buddy turned towards his friend just in time to see him fall to his knees and drop dead. Just drop dead.
He looked shocked and confused then looked at me considering my old words but they didn't click in my mind as he charged towards me.
My still silver tongued mouth screamed out "Stop!" and he did right in his tracks as if frozen in mid step I didn't wait for a reaction I shot him in the head. Not even waiting for his body to hit the floor I dropped to the floor next to my gasping father.
"Daddy please daddy you can't not now." he opened his glazed over eyes.
"Bella I love you. Your wonderful the single greatest thing in my life." he coughed blood coming out of his mouth, but started again the tears were falling onto his chest from my eyes now. He grasped my hand in his shaking one
"Don't cry Bells I'm proud of you don't ever doubt that I'm not proud of you no matter what you do. No matter what. Keep safe okay remember what I taught you."
He closed his eyes his raged breathing slowing as I whispered words of my love and dread filled crys of Daddy.
When his grip on my hand loosened I clutched it harder. I waited till the warm appendage went cold in my hand. Then gently put it into his lap.
The sun was gone by now. Four dead bodies lay in my house. The sweetness of my tongue long gone my pupils felt still larger but not as large as they were doing that confrontation.
After that I noticed that the honey coating my tongue was very useful. In the last twenty years since then it's helped me greatly. I now refer to it as silver tongue.
I also noticed my green eyed pupils never shrink back to their original size. Taking up the majority of my eyes it lured people into my persuasive ways more almost like a hypnotic gaze of a pendulum.
Including those changes I noticed I haven't aged at all in the last twenty years since then I looked eighteen forever and always.
In the years following I periodically visited my parents grave in the back of my old house.
I've been taking out brothels ever since freeing women from Billy and then Jacobs hold.
Billy died about ten years after my parents murder I guess all the stress of ten brothels being taking out in five years by me and a couple other women didn't go to well.
His then fifteen year old son Jacob took control. Running if with not more cruelty. We payed taxes and if we couldn't they took your family until you could.
The camp had been running for about five years now. Alice and me mainly got it running she was the only one who knew my secret. I met her when she was fifteen she was incredibly smart in electronic area even though there was barely any left.
She even got us a small amount in the base camp. All the people here came from brothels or decimated towns.
Well except for a few. Like me, Alice, Bree, and a couple of the guys some were supporters of the rebel cause. While others just didn't want they're family hurt.
If I ever got a chance I would kill Jacob Black. Twenty years only increased my ire for revenge.