Darkest Before Dawn

Prologue

*****This story contains: profanity, nudity, explicit scenes, verbal abuse, kidnapping, forced intimacy (there is no r***.) I will try to post any needed warning at the beginning of a chapter.*****

I come from a slightly darker timeline than yours most likely, at least I would hope I do because if yours is worse I truly pity you.

Let me explain what I mean, at least a little bit. Everyone I knew would always remember where they were when they found out. October 25th, 2010, the day we packed up everything we could fit in the car and left our home for the last time heading to my grandparents ranch.

I was ten years old, sitting on the area rug that covered the hardwood floor eating my after school snack, occupying my small attention span with some dolls. I remember the blue sectioned plate in front of me which held several vegetables and ranch dip, and I remember the area rug was a deep burgundy pairing nicely with the chocolate brown furniture of our small but cozy living room. It's amazing the details I recall considering how little I remember of anything else from that age, but trauma I guess?

My father burst through the front door obvious alarm all over his face as he frantically bolted every lock behind him. He was home much earlier than usual and oddly didn't even say anything to me just rushed to the kitchen where my mother was cooking dinner. They were talking in harsh, but hushed tones as he showed her something on his phone, but I was far too occupied with my vegetable platter tea party to try too hard to hear them anyways. I vaguely remember my mother's gasp as she nodded at whatever my father said last. I more so remember being angry my tiny party was being interrupted when I was told to pack all my favorite things in a large suitcase, Mom said she would pack my clothes so not to worry about those. As we got situated in the car they turned the news station on the satellite radio while handing me headphones and a tablet. I eagerly took them not wanting to listen to another second of whatever the rather boring man on the radio was saying.

Unfortunately for me whether I listened or not what he was saying would change my life, well everybody's lives, forever. When we learned we truly weren't alone in the dark. When we learned every instinctual fear of a blackened room or a particularly shaded area of the forest was correct. That was the day the world found out werewolves, vampires, and all manner of story book monstrosities were truly the things that went bump in the night.