Chapter 1:
It Started Out Ordinary
(Prologue)
Anya Matthews didn’t think she could take any more of this. She tried to bear it by thinking of all the excuses adults always tried to use on her; Children in Africa would kill for her kind of life, some kids’ parents weren’t lucky enough to have jobs, blah, blah, blah, but it wasn’t working. The old library was crowded and hot, and she had been stuck sitting in a hard wooden chair for the past four hours while her mom worked at the check-out desk, occasionally wandering around to help people find whatever book they wanted. With a heavy sigh, Anya leaned back in her chair and gently closed her eyes, flipping her smooth auburn locks behind her shoulder, attempting to focus on nothing but the comforting scent of new and old books colliding, worn, yellowed pages and clean white ones alike. Breathing deeply, she tried to relax so she wouldn’t go off on her mother about this later, she’d certainly been through enough recently and she’d only just got this job, Anya wasn’t about to be the one to screw It up for her.
Just as she had successfully started to lose herself in her own little world, her favorite kind of escape, someone hit her “gently” over the head with a paperback book. Well, he probably thought it was gentle, anyway. Scowling, she turned around and saw her brother smirking and waving the book in the air.
“What was that for?” she whispered harshly.
Her older brother Alec Matthews shrugged and turned the chair next to Anya around, straddling it. “’Dunno, just bored, I guess. Finished three books already.”
Anya sighed and set down the book that she’d given up on reading an hour ago. “Yeah, I guess I know how you feel. How much longer do we have to be here, anyway?”
Alec tried to pull his phone out to check, but Anya quickly placed a hand around his wrist, tilting her head casually in the direction of their mom’s boss, conveniently standing right in front of the sign reading NO CELL PHONES. Nodding, Alec remembered that he was wearing his father’s old watch, and brought his wrist up higher to read it. “Only a few more minutes, Annie, then we’re free. Besides, at least we won’t have to come here tomorrow, we’re picking my car up at the shop later so we can spend the day shopping or something tomorrow.” He winked at her and gazed longingly at the door.
Anya was glad that it was almost time to go home, but she scowled at her brother yet again, knitting her eyebrows together. “Alec, you know I hate being called that.”
Alec let out a small chuckle. “And that’s the fun of it, Annie.”
With a sigh, Anya decided that he was a hopeless case and instead put her nose back into the middle of the book she never really started, hoping to occupy herself for the next few minutes. It didn’t work too well, as the remaining time was just as excruciating as the rest of the day had been, so she was even more relieved than she expected when her mom came up behind her and tapped them both on the shoulder, jingling her keys distractedly. Understanding, they got up and placed their books back on the shelves where they belonged before following their mother out the exit. The clean summer air and the warm breeze felt good after being cooped up inside all day, and they walked mostly in silence to their car, which was parked around the back of the stone library.
Their mom unlocked the car and they all climbed in, ready to go. Keys in the ignition, engine revving, windows down, Alec and Anya thought they were finally free from the cramped old building, but before they even had a chance to pull out of the parking space, their mom gave an exaggerated sigh and leaned back exasperatedly in her seat.
