Candles

Prologue: The Fire

"Mama!" I tasted the smoke as it burned my throat and seeped into my lungs. "Mama!" The fire licked my legs and skirt. The bits of broken glass riddled my feet. It was all my fault. I shouldn't have been playing with the candles. My mama... She told me not to...Our caravan was engulfed in flames that rose a thousand feet high. My mama was nowhere to be seen. "Mama! Ma-" I gripped my chest as a coughing fit seized me. Tears flowed from my eyes and burned my cheeks. "Mama!" Suddenly, a strong hand hoisted me up and shielded me from the heat. "No!" I fought like a rabid dog. "Let go! Let go-" I felt as though my guts were sitting in my throat. "-Let go of me! I must find my Mama!" I opened my eyes to look unto the face of my papa. I froze. He had a sad look upon his eyes. He ran. He ran faster than I've ever seen any human run before. We past the Byrnes Caravan, which was nothing more than a pile of red rubble, and a good many lifeless forms sprawled unto the dirt. "Papa!" I managed to get a few words out. "Mama?" He didn't answer. We continued to run through the moonlit forest until we saw the rest of the clan. In the blur, I saw my sister, Esmeralda, and the Byrne boys and their mother. . I did not see the face I was hoping to see. Mama. My papa laid me down on the thick, dewy moss. Esmeralda gripped my fathers arm and started to weep. I saw as he pulled her into an embrace. The Byrne boys and their mother looked solemn and laid their hands on my father's back. My vision was starting to darken. My chest ached from the suppressed coughs. Yet, I could afford to say one word, "Mama?" My father knelt down as Esmeralda collapsed in sobs. He had tears in his eyes. "My dear child," he stroked my face. "Your mama is dead."