Someone to Die For

Chapter 1

 The stair case is empty as I sneak down. One of the stairs creaks under my right bare foot. I freeze and turn to look at my parents sitting in the living room. They still didn't see me. I made my way to the front door and opened it slowly, hoping they wouldn't hear. The cool winter air haunted me as I ran from the drive way. I had been here too long and needed to leave... now. 

          My feet stomped loudly as I ran down Elmore Street. We were a quiet town so everyone was still asleep. The only noise was my breath and the loud thumping. I couldn't tell if it was my chest or my feet. This sleepy town knew too much. Everyone had secrets but none where like mine. Someone had found out, so it was time to run. 

          My head hit a branch as I made my way through the forest. My feet slipped out from under me as the branch came in contact with my forehead. I didn't stop. My breath was heavy and my stomach hurt. My feet lead me to a small river. My gaze went up to the sky. When I left the sun had just set so it was probably around midnight. I looked back at the creek. My reflection looked just like my real mother. She was burned to death.

          It was eight years ago. I was just seven and I was in the kitchen practicing making pizza dough. There was a knock at the door so my mother went to answer. I remember hearing the door open. The sound of the floor boards creaking, and then my mother's scream. I had never heard anything so painful. 

     I crossed the river and saw the old abandoned house. It stood a good five stories high. The stories were true. People said it was an old whore house. I didn't care I ran inside. The heavy door took a lot might to push but it finally squeezed open. The smell of something dead burned my nose. I took a step in the house and a soft whisper entered my ears. 

Welcome Katherine, we have been waiting for you.

         

The cold, iced wind kissed my bare naked skin. Rope was tied around my wrist and I could feel my warm blood drip down to my finger tips. My back was scratched from the wooden pole my body laid against. My stomach ached for food, and my throat longed for water. I could hear chants from around me. But my ears were too weak to concentrate on the words. My eyes saw the red glare of fire and the angry vision of people. Aching pain spread through my body as someone threw a stone at me. The physical pain wasn't what hurt. It was the pain I had felt inside, the pain that someone dear had been hurt. What I was feeling was the pain of... lost...

   

  I lifted my head from my hands. I had fallen asleep on a dusty, old sofa. My back ached from the old springs and my stomach was more starved then normal. I tossed my feet aside and forced my body into a standing position. I wasn't going to explore the old house anymore. I stepped outside into the dusty morning air. 

          I walked opposite of which I came. The woods seemed broader now. Between crunching leaves and running animals I kept hearing a fainted whisper. Katherine. It would call, but I ignored the calls. I wasn't going to let them control my life anymore. 

          I came out of the trees to a small, little village. The old houses looked torn, and the people tired. Small children hung to their mothers while begging for the slightest bit of food. I walked past a little girl with a single red ribbon in her hair. She gave me a fainted smile and nodded as I made my way into the market. Something about her triggered me. The way she looked had reminded me of something, but I didn't know what.

          The inside of the market was hostile. My feet didn't dare to move as I watched all the eyes on me. I felt a warm and settling hand on my shoulder. I looked towards the hand to see a young man looking down at me. His face was rough, and beaten, but the way his hands felt made him seem kind, and gentle.