The Ride

Chapter 1: The First Occurrence

Allison's mother pulled into the parking space screaming into the phone at her ex-husband, "Are you sure you don't want me to take the kids tonight? Last time you kept them you bitched and moaned for a week." Allison glanced back at her little brother and sister, they were sleeping. "Well screw you Darren!" Her mother turned to her and moved the phone to her chest to muffle her voice, "Go get your clothes for the weekend your dad says he has clothes for your brother and sister" She rolled her eyes, got out of the car and walked towards the front door of her mother's house. Her parents had been separated for over three years, which she wouldn't mind if they didn't still argue every day over nothing. Being the oldest she was like the punching bag and therapist wrapped all into one, and her younger siblings were being used as pawns in this never ending game. She opened her backpack and rummaged through looking for her house keys. She could still hear her mother's horrendous screaming in the background. She turned, "Mom," she yelled down the driveway, "Mom, I can't find my keys will you come let me in?"

No response.

"Mom!" still nothing. She rolled her eyes and began to walk back down the driveway towards the car. She could hear the muffled sounds of aggravation from her parents. She tapped the window until her mother looked. "Keys" she mouthed and her mother rolled down the window and put the phone to her chest.

"What is it Al?"

"I need the house keys. I must have left mine in my locker."

"Jesus, Al," her mother handed her the keys, "Please hurry up apparently your father can't live without you kids tonight."

Allison ran back up to the house and let herself in. She ran up to her room and grabbed enough clothes for the weekend at her father's. She walked to her wardrobe and searched inside for a bag stopping to fix her messy chocolate hair. Just then she saw something move past her in her peripheral vision, fast. She froze in place as the shadow hit her and she hit the floor. Suddenly her face was wet Arf Arf Arf  it was Arnie her mother's sheepdog. She took a deep breath and pushed Arnie off. 'Damned dog doesn't know his own size.' she thought as he continued to assault her with moist dog kisses. She pushed him away again, grabbed her bag and ran down the stairs with Arnie hot on her trail. When she got to the door she stopped and turned to face the dog. "NO!" she gave him a stern look and he immediately sat panting and drooling on the floor. "Love you Arnie." He barked in response as she slipped out the door.

Allison ran back to the car and threw her bag in the trunk. When she closed the trunk she noticed an extra head in the backseat of the car. Se walked around and got in the passenger side and turned around to look at the newest passenger but there was only her brother and sister. She looked at her mother who was finally off the phone, "Mom was someone else just in the car?"

Her mother looked at her in confusion, "Someone else like who?"

Allison shook her head never mind I must be tired. She put on her headphones and closed her eyes and her mother pulled out of her parking space. A while later she felt a nudge and opened her eyes. The sun was setting she must have fallen asleep. She looked up and they were parked in front of a tall apartment building. "Where are we?" she inquired.

"Just wait here and watch the kids I'll be right back" Her mother said as she raced out of the car and towards the building. Allison shrugged and looked in the rear view mirror at her sleeping sister. She adjusted the mirror so she could see her brother as well and saw a third reflection. She spun around to look in the backseat and there was another auburn haired little girl in the back staring at her. "Who are you?" the little girl didn't respond. She just stared at her with eyes so icy they almost looked gray. She turned back around and sank lower in her seat, almost immediately feeling a sharp twinge in the back of her neck. She could taste metal in her mouth and she felt dizzy. The world slowly faded out.

When she regained consciousness she was lying on the cold asphalt and it was almost pitch black. The only light was coming from the overhead street light and something flashing behind her. She blinked a few times and touched the back of her neck remembering the slight pain she felt before passing out. She attempted to get up but her legs were completely numb. She tried to push herself up into a sitting position and that was when she noticed her hands. She crawled closer to the light and held out her right hand. It was covered in something thick and sticky. 'What is this?' she pondered still trying to get her bearings. She manged to scoot herself into the light and prop herself onto her elbows and look at her hands. 'Is this,' she observed her hands, her heart racing faster, 'Is this blood!'

She reached behind her head searching for possible wounds but found nothing. 'whose blood is this?' she thought, "Where am I?" She rolled onto her side and saw someone approaching her with a bright light. "Found her" she heard the person saw as she tried to squint through the light. Then she recognized the sound of a police radio. She then realized what the flashing lights behind her was. "Help!" She screamed as the cop approached.

Before she had the chance to say anything more the cop lifted her to her feet and for the first time she could see past her little circle of light. Another officer jogged up and grabbed her from the other side, She turned to the cop and saw she was pulling out handcuffs. "What are you doing?" she began to wiggle. "Stop, why are you putting handcuffs on me?"

The cop to her right began to recite her rights to her. "I have the right to what? What do you mean?" As officers began to drag her away and she continued to plead for answers she saw her mother's car. "Mom? MOM!" She began to jerk away when she noticed her mother on the ground covered in blood with half her face missing. She began to scream and collapsed as the officers carried her. She looked up again and saw two stretchers with bodies on top. An arm fell over the edge of one of the stretchers and she noticed her sister's hello kitty watch. Her screaming became more frantic and she broke away from the officers making a run for the second stretcher.

One of the officers ripped her taser out of the holster and fired in Allison's direction hitting her square in the back sending her flying into the second stretcher knocking her brother's head off the table and rolling across the lot. She screamed as another officer approached her with a nightstick. "What kind of sicko are you?" he asked in disgust then knocked her unconscious.

                                                                                         *********************