Salem's Civil War (Book Five of The Silver Society)

Chapter One

CHAPTER ONE

The smoke was so thick he couldn't breathe. He sat up in his bed and struggled to make sense of what was happening. He stood, covered his mouth and nose with a t-shirt, and hurried to the door. The handle was hot. He didn't care. He had to get out of there and try to warn his parents.

It was the middle of the night. They had gotten home only two hours earlier after a long night of slaying. He needed to make sure they woke up and got out of the house.

The hallway seemed impossibly long as he stepped into it. Their door was several feet away. He had to reach them. "Mom! Dad!" He shouted as he ran down the hall, although the words were muffled through his t-shirt. He opened their bedroom door and saw his mother, fast asleep. He hurried to her side and shook her awake.

"Mom! Mom, wake up! The house is on fire!" He shouted.

His mother was instantly alert at those words. She stood up and grabbed her son's hand. "Where's your father?" She asked him.

"I don't know," he replied. He was getting scared now. What if his father had realized the house was on fire and had gotten hurt?

"It's okay, honey. We'll find him. Come on, let's get downstairs." She led the way toward the front door. There was still no sign of his father, and flames had engulfed the majority of the house.

"Take this," his mother said, putting a silver locket shaped like a heart around his neck. "It will keep you safe. Wait outside, and don't come back in here, no matter what. Call for help."

"Mom, no! We can't split up," he protested.

"I have to find your father. You'll be safe outside. Just go." She kissed him and opened the front door.

He obeyed because he had no choice. He was only nine years old. There wasn't much he could do about the situation. He wished Aideen was there. She would know what to do. She played with fire all the time and could control it.

As if in response to his thoughts, Benny Phillips and his daughter, Aideen, arrived at that moment. Benny grabbed him and asked, "Are your mom and dad still inside?"

He nodded. "Mom went back in to find Dad," he replied. "Help them. Please, Benny."

"Stay here. The firefighters are on their way, and I'll try and get your parents out in the meantime. I'll be back," Benny said. "And Deenie, don't you dare follow me. This fire's too out of control. It's not safe."

Aideen pouted at her father and mumbled, "I can handle it," but she didn't fight him. She knew if she went into the house, her friend would follow, and that would be too dangerous. She might not burn, but he would.

Benny had barely entered the house when the roof caved in. "Dad!" Aideen screamed. She ran toward him. Benny was still near the door. Aideen pulled him back out. She wanted to run inside, but she knew she could not save her friend's parents. Even if she controlled the flames, there was too much debris in the way now.

He screamed. His parents were still in there, and the roof had fallen on top of them. Everything burned. The house was unstable and would probably not survive. He tried to run inside, but Aideen grabbed him.

"You'll die," she said. Sounding very much like her father, she added, "Don't you dare."

"They're dying, Deenie," he sobbed. "They're dying! I have to save them!"

Aideen sobbed with him and hugged him. Benny wrapped the children in his arms as firefighters arrived and tried to put out the flames.

His mother's last scream echoed through the night as the rest of the house collapsed.