The Beginning of My Journey

She was running down a dark tunnel. When she turned around there was a scared face looking back at her. She couldn’t make out the details of her face because as soon as she turned around, a giant light erupted from the end of the tunnel, leaving a shadow covering her face. The light grew brighter and brighter until it was blinding. Everything went white.
She woke up drenched in sweat as she looked around, trying to get a grip on where she was. Her apartment was small, but livable when it needed to be. As she got a firm grip on where she was she realized that her feet were entangled in the sheets that had been so nicely laid on the bed just hours before. She looked to her right to see bright red numbers that seemed to be screaming ‘ YOU’RE LATE’ at the top of their lungs.
Gasping as she tried to untangle herself from the great restraints, she lost her grip on the bed and fell to the floor, sheets and all. As she used her hands to push herself up, she realized that she was wearing her work clothes, a pleated blue schoolgirl skirt and a spaghetti strap black top. She made a quick glance to the vanity that she had turned into her dresser and saw a pair of tall, knee-high socks and a white long sleeved button-up shirt.
When she finally got her footing, she made her way to the bathroom. Her eyeliner was slightly smudged while her lipstick covered half her face. She gave herself a look of disgust. She quickly removed what clothes she had left and jumped in the shower.
Half an hour later she slipped on what she considered her weekend clothes; black, gothic pants with many zippers and a plain black t-shirt that seemed a few sizes to big for her.

As she finished putting on her clothes and worked on tying her hair back, she heard a soft tap at her front door followed by many continuous loud knocks. As she got closer to the door, she began to hear giggling and shouts of children. She opened the door to find around ten children with dark brown hair and light green eyes. They all seemed to be between the ages of four and eight and had a different colored collar. Each collar was attached to a leash looking harness and held by a miserable looking teenaged girl.
“Hi, Arianna. Just checking to see if you’re up,” the eldest girl yelled over the screams of the children.
“Hey, Lauren!” Arianna yelled back.
Lauren looked like she was about the age of fifteen. She was pretty mature for her age because she was always taking care of her brothers and sisters. Her beautiful long, dark brown hair outlined her face and contrasted her green eyes, as she had it in a black headband over her head that pulled back all her hair except the hair in front of her ears that was tied in low pigtails by two beads of which, one of the youngest boys was now pulling on it. Lauren was wearing jeans and black sweater with a picture of a dragon wing and angle wing with the words ‘Half and Half’ inscribed in the middle. She had headphones around her neck that blared loud music that seemed to have no rhyme or reason.
“Today I have to walk my brothers and sisters. Isn’t this world so great to me?” she said sarcastically, “Oh, by the way, I’ll be over here later so you help can help me with my homework, okay?”
“But I thought you were out of school,” Arianna said as one of Lauren’s sisters wrapped her arms around her leg.
“I am. But my dad doesn’t have to know that. He thinks I’m in some summer school thing.”
“But you’re one of the smartest people at your high school,” Arianna began to shake her leg but the human ball and chain wouldn’t let go.
“I know, but dad doesn’t take the time care,” Lauren began to drop her voice so her brothers and sisters couldn’t hear, “My mom was the one who came up with the idea of summer school. She wants me out of the house and away from my dad as much as I can. He’s been really mad that the pay at his work is too low to support us. He’s been getting drunk and started hitting us again.”
Arianna sighed and kicked her foot so hard, the girl flew off her leg and landed on all fours, “I’m so sorry, Lauren….”
“Oh, it’s okay, Arianna! Don’t worry about me,” Lauren smiled and walked toward the stairs leading down and waved, “I’ll be back later! Bye!”
Arianna waved and watched Lauren and her little brothers and sisters run down the stairs. She turned her heel and walked back into her apartment shutting the door behind her.
She decided to go to her boyfriend, Alex’s, house and surprise him with cupcakes that she would buy at the store on the way there. She put on her nicest clothes with an overcoat and began her way downtown in her old station wagon.
At the store she also decided to buy a bottle of red wine along with Alex’s favorite kind of cigars. She picked out a nice batch of freshly baked cupcakes with white frosting. She hurried to the register and checked out.
She made her way to her car as quickly and carefully as she could so as to not drop the cupcakes, dodging different pedestrians and cars as she went. When she got to her car she came up to the butt side and put all of her findings on the seat, then she made her way to the driver’s side and started off to Alex’s again with a newfound excitement in the pit of her stomach.
As soon as she turned on the radio she could hear that there were people requesting songs. One of the voices sounded familiar, almost too familiar. “I would like to dedicate Jessica Simpson’s ‘With You’ to the love of my life Amante da Escuridao.” The voice almost had to squeak out.
It couldn’t be him. He would never just start things off with anyone, especially not Amante. She wouldn’t do a thing like that.
Arianna quickly gathered her things and made her way to the door, when she got there she gave it a few knocks, pulled out her key and opened the door. On the couch was the one thing that she dreaded; the two people that she trusted most were intertwined in a loving embrace. She stood there in awe as the couple quickly tried to cover up what they had been doing.

"How could you?" She finally let out. She was so stunned that she couldn't help but grasp the wall. At that point it seemed the only thing stable in her life.
"She... I... I'm sorry, Air. You know that you can trust me on that." Alex said quickly, as if it might help. He tried to make his way over to Arianna but he felt a hand on his shoulder, he looked back and saw Amante's face. It seemed worried, confused, and yet content.
“Don’t you dare say that your sorry!” Arianna screamed at the top of her lungs. “I can’t believe you did this.” She looked around the room trying to get all the information she could. She was defeated. The man that she loved had thrown her to the side like garbage for the person she trusted the most in the world. Her eyes started to tear up as she saw the way he looked at Amante. It was the same way that he used to look at her. She clenched the things she had in her hands trying to find some reality in all of this pain.
"I thought that you told her." Amante asked Alex in a voice that made it sound like an everyday occurrence.
"You think he told me? What the hell is this? Alex I can't do this anymore. Tell me the truth, do you love me?" Arianna asked though her tears.
"You know I love you."
"Then why the hell are you with her?" Arianna screamed. When he didn't answer she threw all the stuff she had brought at him. The wine bottle quickly shattered into hundreds of pieces as it hit the floor. The contents seeped into the white carpet of the living room floor. "By the way, Alex today was our 3 year anniversary. Thank you for the present. I love you, too." She turned and left, shaking with sobs as she went.
He got up to follow her, but Amante grab his arm causing him to turn towards her. “She doesn’t want to see you. Just let her cool down for a little bit. Trust me, let’s just go to bed and worry about it in the morning.”
He turned to the door, which stood ajar. He got out of her grip and went to close it. He then returned to Amante. “Are you sure of this?”
“Of course. You don’t really love her.” Amante said as she took his hand and slyly led him to the bedroom.
When she got home, Arianna quickly tried to calm herself down. She didn’t want to frighten Lauren, who was due in an hour. She threw herself on the couch, quickly snatched up one of the decorative pillows, and screamed at the top of her lungs as she started to cry.
A few hours butt as Arianna pulled herself together and she began to get slightly worried that something may have happened to her. As she watched her favorite show on the television, she heard a soft knock at the door. Arianna quickly turned the T.V. off and ran to the door. As she opened the door, she gasped.
Standing in the doorway was Lauren who looked as if she had been crying. Her beautiful face had a long slit down her cheek and rips in her clothes. Her hair was mangled in blood. Lauren quickly looked down to hide her face when she saw that Arianna was looking at her from the doorway. Next to her stood a very pretty woman with dark hair that went down to her shoulders and blue eyes that were rather bruised. The two looked very similar and yet there were little things that set them so far apart.

“Come in, come in!” Arianna rushed to get out of the way as she helped Lauren on the couch. She shut the door. “What happened, Mrs. Felton?”
Her mother looked at Lauren and than back at Arianna, trying to keep a calm voice, “She and I had decided to tell her father that he was being too…well abusive. And I requested that Lauren stay at a boarding school or something. As you can see, he didn’t take it very well.” She paused to catch her breathe. Just by the look in her eyes, Arianna could tell the woman was in pain from having to see her daughter like this. “He… he took out a knife and slash…slashed Lauren across the face. He hit her and I around a little bit and… well and then he slammed Lauren on the floor, causing her head to bleed. He left after that.”
“Oh god, Lauren. Let’s try to get you a little cleaned up.” Arianna ran into the kitchen and took out a large plastic bag and filled it with ice. She returned and handed Lauren the bag. She took it and placed it in the back of her head. Arianna grabbed Lauren’s hand and led her to the bathroom to clean the wound in the sink. There was so much blood it was hard to find the wound. “You’re your head under there. I’m going to go talk to your mother.” She walked back to the living room. “We should take her to the emergency room or something this cut looks rather deep.”
“I can’t.” Mrs. Felton looked past Arianna. Her eyes glazed over like they always did after something like this.
“Yes you can. You need you.” Arianna looked a little confused. Mrs. Felton usually took the children to her before she took them to the hospital. She knew Arianna would know if it was bad enough for the emergency room or for just another bandage. Arianna sat looking intently at Mrs. Felton.
“They are already trying to get Child Services over here. We cannot take them to the hospital anymore.” She continued looking forward.
“She might bleed to death. I don’t know how deep the wound is,” Arianna sat down. “I know that it is deep enough for us to worry though.” Her training kicked in. Too many people had come in on her time at the hospital for her to not know when something serious was happening.
“Take care of her here. Please. For the sake of my family, our family.” Mrs. Felton reached over and laid her hand on Arianna’s leg.
“I can try, but I don’t have the supplies I need here.” Arianna looked painfully at Mrs. Felton. “I need some string and a hook-like needle. She’s going to need stitches.”
“I have that in my house. I’ll be right back.” She got up and left the apartment. Arianna got up and walked back to the bathroom to see how things where. Lauren’s head was now much cleaner and Arianna could see the wound much more clearly. There was the gash across her cheek, which would need maybe two stitches, and then there was one on her crown that would need at least four, if not more. There were also a bunch of minor cuts and scraps. None of the wounds would be fatal at all. Arianna heard the front door open.
“I’ve got them.” Mrs. Felton said handing over the needle and thread. “We only had purple. I hope its okay.”
“That’s fine.” Arianna said flashing her a smile. “Now,” She said looking at Lauren “this is going to hurt since there isn’t anesthetic like usual. I know that your going to want to move but you can’t. You got that?” She looked Lauren in the face till she nodded. “Okay, good. Now here we go. We are going to start with the one on the top of your head.”
It took almost thirty minutes to get the seven stitches in that were needed. Lauren moved very little. She knew the procedure much better then Arianna, for this was not the first time that this had happened. Her father did this very often, or at least when he was drunk.
“Now you put this on it and it will hopefully help with the scar that might heal. In about three or four weeks we’ll take them out okay?” Arianna said as she handed her a tube of ointment.
“Arianna, may I talk to you in the living room?” Mrs. Felton asked.
“Sure. Lauren, stay here.” Arianna said as she threw away the bloody gaze she had been using. She got up and whet to the living room. “What’s up?” She put her hands on her hips like she usually did when she was waiting for something.
“Well I’ve been thinking, Arianna, and I have a favor to ask you,” Mrs. Felton looked down and closed her eyes.
“Okay. Shoot.” Arianna said. She looked questioningly at Mrs. Felton.
“Well… you see. This isn’t the environment I want my children being raised in. I have decided to leave my husband. But we all know that he will not allow it. So I must run. But I’m not the supporter of this family and hardly have enough money to finance myself alone. I am able to send my children to my aunt’s home and she will sustain them for me until I am capable to take care of them. But my aunt doesn’t treat Lauren that well compared to her brothers and sisters. Surly, she’ll try to ship Lauren to someplace in China and say it was an accident. She almost got away with that last time we visited,” Mrs. Felton gave a short, fake laugh and took in a deep breath, “You see, Arianna, I heard that you weren’t exactly enthusiastic about living here from Lauren-”Arianna nudged Lauren and she shrugged— “I guess what I’m trying to say is that…would you please temporarily be Lauren’s guardian?”
Both Arianna and Lauren’s jaws dropped. “What! B-but I—”
“Please,” Mrs. Felton pleaded, “She deserves so much more than what I can give her. She is a bright, intelligent girl and loves you like a big sister. This would be the best for her. It would only be until I can get a place for myself and get away from him.”
A moment or two butt with very slight breathing. After a while, Arianna took in a deep sigh, “This is kind of sudden… but I guess I could take care of her until you’re situated in a good home and have a descent pay….”
“Oh!” Mrs. Felton clapped her hands together and jumped up, “That’s just marvelous Perfect, even! Oh, thank you! You don’t know how much this means to me. I promise I’ll make it up to you. As soon as I get a job, I’ll pay you back for all your trouble.”

“Oh no, Mrs. Felton. You don’t have to—”
“No, no. I insist.”
“But I—”
“And I won’t take no for an answer!” Mrs. Felton waved a single finger in the air. She turned her heel and headed off to the bathroom. She looked in at Lauren. “Dear, come back upstairs with me to pack. Don’t worry; your father is driving across town to get the good cigars and vodka, then he’s most likely to stay the night at a hotel again overnight. So, he will not be back until around eight-tomorrow morning. So we need to be quick. Come on!” she moved swiftly out the door and up the staircase with Lauren not far behind wincing a little in pain as she did so.
Arianna had spent the next hour rummaging through her apartment, trying to find old suitcases and boxes. She had already called in a moving truck for the next morning and had packed half the bathroom when she heard a knock at the front door.
She quickly dropped the toilet paper she was holding into the box, walked to the door and opened it.
Lauren and her mother were outside holding two suitcases each. (One in which had a dotted fabric hanging out the side.)
“Come on in,” Arianna said briskly, looking up and down the hallway before closing the door.
Lauren dropped her bags on the ground. Her mother did the same and turned to Lauren with open arms. She immediately threw arms around Mrs. Felton and sobbed on her sleeve.
“Be brave, Lauren, soon, you will be with me again. I will love you forever,” Mrs. Felton kissed Lauren’s forehead lightly brushing the stitches causing Lauren to cringe a little bit. She then turned to Arianna, “Whatever you do, don’t let my husband find you. He’ll do anything in his power to stop you two from getting away from here.”
“Yes ma’am,” Arianna said with much pride.
“Okay,” Mrs. Felton choked, trying to keep back her tears, “I-I have to go. Don’t come by before you leave… my husband might have come home early. I’ll be able to keep him off your trail for a little while, but not forever. Lauren, keep your nose clean,” she managed to smile as a tear escaped her eyes. She sniffed and turned to leave.
As the door shut behind her, Lauren plopped down on the couch and started to cry, digging her hands into her eyes being careful not to touch the stitches. Arianna sat down next to her and patted her hand on Lauren’s back, comfortingly.
“You okay, Lauren?” Arianna asked.
“I-I’m o-okay…. You get started packing…I’ll be there in a m-minute….” Answered Lauren, still with her hands cupping her face.
“Okay, if you’re sure….” Arianna stood up and patted Lauren on the head, “I’ll be finishing up the bathroom.”
When Lauren was feeling better, she helped Arianna finish packing (which took the rest of the day to do).
Arianna got up at five o’ clock in the morning and walked out her door. She strode down the stairs and into the lobby. She walked across the entrance hall and to the counter. Behind the main office was a door labeled ‘Owner’ on the plaque. Arianna knocked on the door. A couple minutes butt until she heard a loud thump and footsteps coming to the door. It opened.

Standing there was a pudgy man dressed in a blue striped nightgown with a matching nightcap, hiding his white hair. He was holding a teddy bear. Arianna coughed to keep herself from laughing. He looked up at her, disgusted.
“What do you need at this time, Miss Sombra?” he asked through his clenched teeth.
“Sorry, Augean, but I—”
“That’s Mr. Barnes, to you,” he spat.
“Okay, Mr. Barnes,” Arianna giggled, “I wanted to give you some good news.”
“Oh? Are you moving out?” Mr. Barnes began to laugh and cough harshly. Arianna backed away; afraid he might have a heart attack. Once he had stopped coughing, she spoke.
“Actually, Mr. Barnes, I am.”
Mr. Barnes looked as if he had just been handed two million dollars, “A-are you serious?”
Arianna nodded as Mr. Barnes jumped up and yelled in glee.
“When?” he asked, finally calming down.
“Today, in a couple of hours.” Mr. Barnes face lit up enough to light the entire globe. Arianna ignored him.
“So I’ll be giving you my keys now,” Arianna said, taking her keys out of her pocket. Mr. Barnes took them without hesitation.
“Yes ma’am! This has been the best news I’ve had in years!” Mr. Barnes turned around and slammed the door in Arianna’s face. She sighed, rolled her eyes and began making her way back to her apartment.
In the past hour, Arianna and Lauren were stuffing the last book into a box when the doorbell rang.
“Who is it?” Arianna yelled as she stood up and jumped over the many boxes to get to the door.
“Movers. Got a call from a Miss… Arianna Sombra,” he said back through the door.
Arianna opened the door to reveal a rather over-weight man with very dark, curly hair tucked in under a blue and white striped train engineer hat. He had jeans with a hole in the knee and red suspenders pulled over a white t-shirt with the words ‘Big Bill’s Movers’ across it.
“You Miss Sombra?” he asked pulling out a clipboard and pen.
“Uh, yes,” Arianna said looking down at the clipboard.
“Okay, sign here,” the man handed it to Arianna and pointed to the very bottom of the page.
Arianna took the pen and scribbled down her signature.
“Thank you, Miss Sombra. The van is ready and people coming up to load it up.”
“Okay, thank you,” Arianna smiled as the man turned around and walked down the steps. Shortly after he left, a few more men came up the stairs and began to take the boxes and fill the van. After around an hour, the men with the help of Arianna and Lauren had packed all the boxes into the moving truck.
“Okay, so were heading for Searsport, Maine?” asked the man in charge of driving.
“Yes. How long will it take?” Arianna wondered.
“Around 16 hours to get to Searsport, but we need an address,”
“Um, Lauren, what was the address again?” Arianna yelled to Lauren, who was saying goodbye to her friends.
“123 Union St. Searsport, Maine,” She yelled back.
“You get that?” Arianna asked the man who was jotting down the address on his clipboard.
“Yep,” he said as finished writing it down, “Will you be keeping your suitcases with you, Miss Sombra?” she nodded, “Okay than, we’ll be heading out.
“Okay, have a safe ride,” the man smiled down at Arianna as he climbed up into the truck and started the ignition, “Come on, Lauren! Time to go!” Arianna yelled over to her. She nodded and gave her friends one last hug before running to Arianna.
“Okay, I’m ready,” Lauren, said.
“Alright, let’s get into the car,” Arianna led Lauren to a red mustang that was parked in front of the apartment building. Arianna got in but Lauren stood there looking at the entrance, “Lauren, what’s wrong?” Arianna tilt her head back so she could see what Lauren was looking at, “What is it? I can't—Mr. Felton!” Arianna stared at a man in front of the building.
He had short blonde hair and green eyes. He wore jeans and a t-shirt and was rather well built. He would be quite handsome if he didn’t have many scars up his arms and didn’t have a mean expression always on his face.
“Where the hell do you think your going, girl,” he sounded harsh.
“I-I’m going…I—” Lauren stuttered.
“You’re going to try leave this family to live with this skinny spoiled brat?” he spat. Arianna and Lauren glared at him.
“Yes,” Lauren said, testy.
“What makes you think I’ll let you go?” he smirked, “All I have to do is take out the bat and you’ll come back. Do you really want to ruin this family that bad?”
“I’m not the one ruining this family, you are!” Lauren shouted, “You’re always beating up everyone every time you get mad or drunk! It’s my life! I can do anything I want! You can't force me to do anything!”
“You little bitch!” Mr. Felton lunged forward at Lauren but she had jumped out of the way.
“Get in the car, Lauren!” Arianna started the car as Lauren jumped in. Mr. Felton grabbed the door before she could shut it. He took hold of Lauren’s shirt.
“Arianna! Start driving!” Lauren began to hit her father with her bag. Arianna slammed her foot into the acceleration. Mr. Felton was thrown off Lauren as they sped down the street.

Before Lauren shut the door, she heard him yell, “I know exactly where you’re going, you damn slut!”
Arianna and Lauren exchanged looks of panic.
“What did he mean by that, Arianna?” Lauren said, gasping for air.
“You think maybe he heard you yell the address?” Arianna sounded worried.
“So, what are we going to do?” Lauren bit her lip.
“I think we should tell the people at the apartment we can't go there,”
“But what about the movers?”
“I guess we need to tell them when we get there.”
Lauren sighed and dropped her head on the headboard being careful to not hit her head, “We’re all going to die.”
“Oh just calm down!” Arianna turned right, heading down the highway.
“So, where do we go?” Lauren tilted her head slightly so she could see Arianna.
“Well, I know this little place outside of Maine. My mom’s friend owns a little inn. She would be more than happy to let us stay there for as long as we need to.”
Lauren sat up and looked out the window as Arianna took another right, going down a very poor-looking area and yelled, “Stop the car!” Arianna slammed the breaks.
“What happened? Did you see anyone get shot? What!” Arianna began looking around.
“No, it’s just that this is where Jessica lives.”
“Lauren! Never do that again! I thought I was going to have a heart attack!”
“Sorry, but I have a favor to ask you….”
“Oh yeah? And what’s that?” Arianna said, folding her arms and glaring down at Lauren.
“Can Jessica come with us?” Lauren gave her sad eyes.
“What! You can't just go asking people to let someone live with them! You have to look at the situation and check if everything’s okay. And even then it’s nearly impossible for their guardians to let them go!”
“But she has no guardians.”
“Than she’s in custody of a foster home?”
“Nope, she ran away. She now lives down that alley over there,” Lauren pointed up the street and to the left, Arianna saw that there was a small alleyway.
“I don’t even know her!” Arianna blurted out, trying to find a reason to not let Jessica come.
“Well, Jessica has been my best friend since the third grade when I caught her snooping through our garbage. Her parents died in a car accident when she was really young. She was put in a crummy orphanage for a few years before she ran away. And now she lives on the street in a little hut that’s hidden under ground,” Lauren explained, “She’s never really gotten much. She deserves this and really needs a family, Arianna, please!”
Arianna sighed and rolled her head back, “Well since I’ve already got one kid, it wouldn’t hurt to get another—”
“YES!” Lauren shouted, thrusting a fist in the air as if punching the sky. “Oh you’re the best!” Lauren hugged Arianna and bolted out the door. Arianna sighed again and followed her.
They crossed the street and into the alley that Lauren pointed out. They walked down the pathway for a few minutes until Lauren stopped at a cluster of trashcans and bags surrounding a car trunk lid. Lauren knocked on it five times waiting a few seconds between each and than two fast knocks. The lid immediately popped open and out came a girl who wrapped her arms around Lauren, started yelling out her name, and jumped up and down.
Jessica was slim and wore baggy shirt and pants with many patches, stains, and rips in them. She had tangled, wavy, dirty blonde hair that reached down to her shoulders and brown eyes that gazed under two slightly bushy eyebrows. Her face had dirt smeared over it. As soon as Jessica looked at Arianna, she let go of Lauren and glared at her.
“I thought you would keep where I live a secret!” she crossed her arms.
“Well, thanks to Arianna here, you won’t be living here anymore!”
Jessica stared at her for a few moments. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, Arianna will let you come stay with us! We have to leave town and go in hiding because a crazy lunatic is after us! I couldn’t just leave you behind.”
“Okay, for one, he’s not a crazy lunatic, he’s your father—”
“So yeah, a crazy lunatic,” Lauren informed Jessica who giggled.
“And two,” Arianna eyed Lauren, “we’re not going in hiding, were just going somewhere safe until that man is arrested.”
“So yeah, were going in hiding,” Lauren told Jessica who giggled again, “So, you coming?”
“Of course! I’ve always wanted to be chased over states by a raving lunatic!” Both Jessica and Lauren began to laugh and started working there way to the car. Arianna shook her head in disappointed of herself and followed them.
As they reached the car, Jessica looked over at Lauren. “What happened to your face?”
“What..?” Lauren’s hand when up to her face and lightly touched the small cut with string holding it together. “Oh, that. My father is what happened.”
Jessica looked worried but got into the car without another word. Arianna could tell that there was a deep connection between the girls as she got into the front seat by herself and buckled up. She decided that she needed to get out of the city as soon as they could and started off.
In the next 16 hours, all Arianna did was drive and think. They didn’t take a break to sleep; they wanted to get as far as they could from Mr. Felton as fast as they could. Lauren and Jessica fell asleep in the back seat. As they drove into the driveway, they awoke.
Lauren yelled, “No more cheese!” once she noticed that she said that out loud, she laughed nervously. Jessica and Arianna laughed. They turned to see that the movers just arrived. Arianna quickly jumped out of the car and walked up to them. Lauren and Jessica followed her.
“Um. May I speak to you for a minute?” Arianna waved for the man in charge to come over to her. He did so.

“Is there a problem, Miss Sombra?”
“Actually, yes. You see, this young girl’s father—” Arianna pointed to Lauren who smiled and waved. “—Is very abusive and her mother has requested that I take care of her until she is safely away from her husband. But, he has been unable to accept that and is now trying to take her back. He found out that we would be now living here and we have to found a different place to live. Now, I will pay the original price plus more for this being a burden, but we need to relocate the moving truck’s destination to right outside Maine. There’s a small inn right in between Maine and New Hampshire. It’s on this map,” Arianna pulled out a map of the bottom left side of Maine with original building or businesses. She pointed at the very bottom of the map to the words ‘Grandma Sara’s Inn ’.
The man smiled slyly, as if not believing her story but nodded his acknowledgement. He took the map back to the truck to show his colleagues. Lauren faked a smile and pulled on Arianna’s sleeve, hard.
“What the hell?” Lauren said, temper rising, “Why are you blabbing my life to some fat mover guys?”
“Calm down Lauren!” Arianna smiled, “It’s not a big deal! Besides, he doesn’t believe me!”
“Whatever! But next time let me decide whether people should know the story or not, okay?”
“Okay, jeez!”
Arianna walked to the car with Lauren and Jessica nipping at her heels.
Before they began to drive to Grandma Sara’s Inn, they stopped by the nearest mall to get Jessica new clothes. They were cheap things, like jeans and spaghetti strap shirts, but it ended up being a fairly large wardrobe. Arianna quickly pulled out the credit card her parents had gotten her for emergencies. It was the first time that she had ever thought about using it. Then they stopped by a drive-through and picked up a few burgers and fries. Within a few hours, Arianna, Lauren, and Jessica had already departed Jones port, Maine and were heading for the inn.
After 3 hours, they finally pulled up in the small parking lot. The inn looked like an old-fashioned brick cottage. Arianna, Lauren, and Jessica grabbed there few suitcases and headed for the front of the inn. A large white sign with red lettering saying ‘Grandma Sara’s Inn ’ hung over the door and they entered. When they walked into the inn, an elderly woman greeted them immediately.
“Oh Arianna! It’s been so long!” said the woman pulling away from her hug, “When I heard you were coming I almost had a heart attack! Look how you’ve grown! And it seems you have a few guests with you.”
“Yes. This is Lauren and Jessica. Lauren, Jessica, this is Sara,” Arianna said.
Lauren and Jessica both smiled. Sara pulled them into a tight embrace, making them gag, “Any friends of Arianna’s are friends of mine!”
“That’s nice,” Lauren managed to choke out before Sara let them go. They gasped for air but she didn’t seem to notice. She turned to Arianna.
“Room’s up there,” Sara pointed to the staircase behind them as she handed Arianna a key, “Number 32 on your left. If there’s anything you need, my room is right over there,” she pointed to a door under the staircase, “It’s a lot bigger than you would think.”
“Okay, thanks Sara. Were going to turn in for the night. We’ve been driving for a while,” Arianna, Lauren, and Jessica took hold of their luggage and began working their way up the stairs. They walked down the hall until they came across the number 32 to their left. Arianna inserted the key and walked in.
The room was quite small. It had two beds and a couch with a rather large window over-looking the parking lot. The bathroom was very tight in space and had the paint chipping off the walls.
Arianna, Lauren, and Jessica threw their belongings on the ground. Lauren and Jessica ran for the beds, claiming them as their own. Arianna sighed, admitting defeat. She grabbed a blanket out of her bag and laid on the couch.
Several hours butt and still Arianna couldn’t fall asleep. She listened to the slight breathing of Lauren and Jessica and the occasional snorting. Arianna closer her eyes and pictured her surrounded her friends and family.
Soon, she was once again looking at the girl running down the long dark tunnel. The intense light from the other side of the cave became ablaze but this time, Arianna could see the face; it was hers.
Suddenly, Arianna’s perspective became that of the girls. She was now sprinting toward the light. As Arianna grew closer, the light began to form into a person. Before long, she was standing in front of the figure. It was a beautiful woman with long, curly, blonde hair. Her eyes reminded Arianna of diamonds. She was wearing a long, white cloak that seemed to sparkle like the night sky. The light was swirling around her. She smiled and parted her lips, “He’s here. Wake.”
Arianna felt herself being pulled back into the darkness and the air rushed around her. She bolted up awake. Just then, Arianna heard a car door shutting.
She quickly ran to the window and peered outside. In the darkness, Arianna saw two men walk out of a beat up truck. One of the men looked overweight and the other was average looking. The average looking one had a small limp as he walked to the inn. He was fairly tall and rather skinny but even from a distance he looked beaten down by some unknown force. His hair seemed to be engulfed by the nonexistent wind. They ran into the inn. Arianna’s heart gave a giant leap. She crossed the room and shook Lauren awake.
“What is it?” Lauren asked pushing Arianna away from her.
“Come here,” Arianna grabbed Lauren’s hand and led her to the windowsill. She pointed down at the truck, “Isn't that your fathers truck?”
“Uh-huh,” Lauren said, scratching her forehead. Once the thought came to settle in her head, she gasped, “Oh my god! He’s here! We’re all going to die!” she whispered trying not to scream.
“Just stay calm! Wake up Jessica and get your stuff ready. Be quiet!”
Lauren nodded and ran over Jessica, shaking her furiously. Arianna ran to the couch and pushed it up against the door. She turned to see Lauren and Jessica had already finished and was sitting on the bed, shaking.
“What now?” Jessica whimpered.
“We can't go down the stairs. There’s no way out!” Lauren pulled a pillow toward her and shoved it in her face.
Arianna’s eyes darted toward the window as a smile crept across her face. “I think I have an idea. Jessica, keep watch. Lauren, you help me.”
Jessica nodded and left the room. She quietly crept down the hall to the edge of the stairs leading to the entrance. Jessica knelt down and peered over the top step.
Two men walked briskly into the inn. One was slender and had messy blonde hair. Immediately Jessica recognized him as Mr. Felton. The other was a very large man wearing stained blue jean overalls. Even though Jessica never seen him before, she heard enough from Lauren to know that that was Mr. Barnes.
“Remember what I said, Barnes, if I don’t get my daughter back, I’m holding you fully accountable.”
The opening and closing of the door must have woken up Sara because she had opened the door underneath Jessica.
“May I help you, gentlemen?” Sara y¬awned. As she shut the door under the stairs, wearing a blue robe.
“Yes,” Mr. Felton gave the kindest smile he could muster, which, to Jessica, wasn’t that kind, “We are looking for three young girls who checked in this evening.”
Sara eyed Mr. Felton cautiously, “And who may you be?”
He slightly glared. “I’m one of the girl’s father and I need to see her.”
“Why?”

Mr. Felton was growing impatient, “My daughter and her friends where going on a trip and she forgot some stuff at home.”
“And what may that be?”
“Socks,” he said through his gritted teeth.
“I think your daughter, who ever she may be, can live without socks or borrow them from her friends.” Sara shrugged.
Mr. Felton grabbed Sara by her collar of her shirt and pulled her so close to his face she could feel his hot breath on her nose.
“Where are they old woman?” He hissed.
“I-I don’t know,” Sara sputtered.
“I know you know,” he pushed her back and pulled out a gun, forcing it into her forehead, “I won’t ask again.”
“They’re not here.” She blurted out. Mr. Felton smiled.
“You know, it puzzles me why you continue to protect them.”
Sara forced a nervous laugh, “I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“You know, Amante de Rei.”
Sara opened her mouth in surprise, “How did you find out?”
“I’m close friend with your son, Sara. He told me many of the stories you told when he was a kid. How could I not know?” Mr. Felton’s smile faded, “Now tell me where I can find her.”
Sara lowered her head and pointed to the staircase, “Number 32.”
Jessica’s heart skipped a beat as she backed away, got up, and ran as quietly as she could back to their room. As Jessica bolted in and shut the door behind her, and pushed the couch back against the wall she turned and saw Arianna and Lauren throw a bundle of tied sheets out the window.
“They’re coming!” Jessica whispered. She pulled the couch in front of door and ran to Arianna and Lauren.
As Arianna motioned for Lauren to go out the window, the door handle rattled. Lauren squealed and began to make her way down the sheets. They heard pounding on the door.
“Go!” Arianna whispered to Jessica. She followed Lauren and Jessica down to the ground.
They ran to the car and jumped in. Arianna shoved the key into the ignition and turned it. The car gave a weak grumble and died. She gave Lauren a nervous look and turned the key again. The engine rumbled once again and grew silent as it tried to turnover.
“Oh come on!” Lauren yelled. She pounded her fists on the headboard. The car sputtered and started up. Arianna and Jessica looked at Lauren. She shrugged.
Arianna floored the car and sped through the empty streets. Lauren looked back to the inn to see Mr. Felton and Mr. Barnes running out the front door, heading for the car.
“They’re coming for us!” Lauren screamed, “Hey, isn't that Mr. Barnes?”
“What? Why is he with Mr. Felton?” Arianna questioned.
“Your father made him,” Jessica said, recalling what Mr. Felton had said to him.
“That makes sense,” Arianna murmured.
“What does?” Lauren turned to Arianna.
“Well, Mr. Barnes probably has a lot of connections and information on where to find us.”
“We need to call the police!” Lauren yelled, throwing her hands into the air.
“I know, I know. Next stop, we will. But till then, we better keep a fair distance between us and your father,” Arianna had a concerned look on her face, “Jessica. Did Mr. Barnes and Sara say anything else than matters that include our whereabouts?”
Jessica thought back to the conversation between Mr. Felton and Sara, about how they were talking about Sara’s son and how Mr. Felton found out a secret about her. Something kept Jessica from informing Arianna and Lauren about this. “No, nothing.”
After a while Lauren and Jessica fell asleep in the backseat. They were not making a single sound except the varying moans from Lauren. Lauren slept for about an hour, yawning when she woke up.
“How much longer?” she asked in a cranky voice.
“I don’t know but maybe an hour or two. Why?” Arianna asked in a bored out of her mind voice.
“Just wondering.” Lauren said as she went back to sleep.
Arianna nodded in approval and made a left turn to a dirt road. Lightning could be heard in the distance. Out of nowhere it started to sprinkle. The rain went from light sheets to big heavy drops that were as big as a golf ball in just a matter of minutes. Arianna tried to follow the road but the sudden rain blocked her view. In a flash of lightning, they swerved around so the back of the car slid against the wet dirt, swiping the trunk of a nearby pine tree.
The impact caused Arianna to jerk roughly to the side, hitting her head on the window. She felt a drop of blood trickle down her neck. Arianna pretended not to notice. She turned around and watched Lauren and Jessica’s dazed expressions, their mouths slightly ajar.
“Is everyone alright?”
That was when Lauren let out the most shrilling scream that Arianna had ever heard from her before, and that’s saying something. It was as if she was put on pause until the first sign of life showed itself.
When Arianna turned to look at Jessica, her eyes were wide in shock.
“Now Mr. Felton can catch us,” Jessica murmured.
“It doesn’t matter, we’re dead anyway!” Lauren yelled. They ignored her.
Arianna looked at the back window. A thick branch had made its way through the butt, only inches away from Lauren’s face. Arianna decided not to let her know so she wont freak out again. “Oh crap.” Arianna heard a huge pop toward the front of the car. She turned to see a huge cloud of smoke erupt from the engine.
“That doesn’t look too good,” Lauren observed. Jessica nodded in agreement.
“It’s okay,” Arianna forced a smile. “The car won’t take long to fix. We just need a dry place to set up and go to sleep. Anyone see a place right now?”
Both Lauren and Jessica looked out their windows into the storm. Arianna followed procedure and tried to make out the figures in the rain outside her window. A large thunderclap appeared and Lauren squeaked.
“I think I see something, under the first cliff of the mountains up ahead,” Jessica acknowledged, “But from here it looks like an old run down tunnel that has those construction cones are used for. Not to cozy looking if you ask me.”
“Yeah, but it looks bigger than this old car, don’t you think Arianna?” Lauren replied.
Arianna, who was not even paying attention to the girls answered back in a hurried tone.” Uh… Oh, yeah I guess so.” She was looking at the way the tunnel was shaped. It looked to perfect to be made nowadays, but the technology was a lot better than it used to be.
As the three girls waited in the car for the hardest part of the rain to wear itself down, they all tried to get to sleep. That is all except Arianna who watched the tunnel and the rain to find out when the best time was to get to the archway.
As suddenly as it came the rain stopped. Arianna saw this as a chance to get to the tunnel. She woke the others and got the suitcases out of the trunk. She ran as fast as she could to the archway with the suitcases under her arms. The others got to the cave before her and just stood at the opening.
"What? You two stop standing around like a bunch of little girls and get in there." Arianna said as she neared the girls and it started to rain again. All three quickly ran into the tunnel.
”Ew, this is so gross. Why did we choose here again?” Lauren quickly whispered as though someone might hear them. The tunnel was dark, gloomy, and seemed to go on forever. They could not tell where the tunnel ended.
”Because the car broke down. Now you two need to get to sleep, I’m going to stay up a little bit longer and try to figure out where we are and maybe get some fire wood. There are blankets and pillows in the stuff I brought in, you two might have to share. I didn’t think that we were going to have three people.” Arianna stated, mainly to herself, as she quickly pulled on a raincoat and made her way out into the rain to look for road signs that gave some type of clue as to where they were.
As soon as she left the girls started to talk. It was about anything and everything, big and little, but mainly about the task at hand.
”What do you think is going to happen?” Jessica asked the question that they had both be dreading to ask. “Do you think that they’ll find us?”
”I don’t know. I just don’t know. Let’s not talk about it, okay?” Laura said as she stared out of the entrance. It seemed to be raining a little harder then it had before.