Empowered book 1: "Run"

Prologue

Cara held back tears as she grabbed the last suitcase and handed it to Charlie. She couldn't believe it. Could he really be old enough to be going to college already? How did he not seem affected by this? Well, at least, he wasn't exhibiting typical college freshman behavior. He seemed scared. Not the kind of scared that most students are. Not the nervous jumpy kind of scared. Terrified. He barely had any color in his face, he'd barely eaten breakfast, and he was sweating profusely, even though it wasn't that hot.
"You ok?" Cara forced herself to ask, trying to keep her voice as even as possible.
Charlie didn't look at her. "Yeah. Of course I am," he said.
She didn't buy it. Charlie's voice was shaking, and he seemed very on edge, like he was paranoid about something. What that something was, Cara couldn't figure out. He's just nervous, he's got to be. she told herself, even though he seemed way more than just nervous. The thought of Charlie being nervous was something she couldn't fathom. He was fearless. He had tons of friends, and he never seemed to have a bad day. Ever. Surely he didn't think college was that scary. If anything, she'd thought Charlie would be excited. He wouldn't shut up about it all year, and now he seemed unable to stand still.
Charlie closed the trunk of his car and looked around their tiny suburban neighborhood one last time. They lived on the cul-de-sac, so there was only one way out of the neighborhood from there. Cara heard the door open behind her as her mother came running out in a flood of tears and carrying a camera.
"Mom, we don't need a photo," Charlie protested.
"Of course we do! My baby is going to college!"
Charlie gave Cara a desperate look that screamed "Help me!" Cara grinned. "Here, mom. I'll take the picture."
"T-thank you, honey," Her mother was barely keeping it together at this point. Charlie shot her a dirty look.
Cara snapped a few pictures of Charlie with their parents, and she allowed them to take a few pictures of her and Charlie together. She knew they were all stalling his departure, but eventually Charlie had to remind them that he couldn't be late.
Their mom was crying now, and she clung to Charlie for what seemed like forever. Their dad was more composed, he hugged Charlie, saying he was proud of him and that he'd miss him. Finally, it was Cara's turn. She couldn't stand it anymore. She let out a sob, threw her arms around her brother, and buried her face in his shoulder. Charlie hugged her back tightly, trying to get her to stop crying. Eventually he gave up on that and just held her.
"I love you," he whispered. "Don't worry. I'll call you enough times that you'll get sick of me." His voice broke when he said that, and his hug tightened.
"I love you too," Cara managed to choke out.
Finally he let her go, and Cara began to walk back to the house. She heard Charlie open his car door. She couldn't look at him. Not if she wanted him to get there on time.
"Please promise me you'll stay safe until I can come back to get you."
Cara froze. What did he mean by that? She turned around to ask him, but Charlie was already backing out. He waved to her as he did so.
She was sure that he'd said something, but there was no way he could have done that from his car. I must be going crazy, she thought. She waved back, trying to pull herself together.
She watched Charlie drive away, and went back into the house. He'd said he'd call. There was nothing to worry about. He'd looked so worried though, as if something terrible could happen at any moment.

A few days later, Cara heard the phone ringing. She sprang up to answer it, knowing it was surely Charlie calling to talk to her. She sprinted into the kitchen, grabbed the phone, and let out a breathless "Hello?"
A calm sounding woman's voice was on the other end. "Hello. I'm Nancy Wilson, director of admissions at Filer University. May I speak to Charlie Martin please?"
Cara couldn't speak for a moment. But...he left days ago. He's already there. "Charlie isn't here," she said. "What's this about?"
The woman on the other end hesitated, as if she was trying to think of the best way to word her response. Finally she said, "I'm sorry, but Mr. Martin hasn't arrived on campus. Nobody seems to know where he is."
     Cara collapsed against the wall. "There must be some mistake. He left for the university already. He should be there."
     The woman sighed. "Mr. Mason never checked in, miss."
     "Oh." Cara giggled. "Charlie must have forgotten to check in. I'm sure if you emailed him-"
     "We tried that," the woman responded. "His roommate has never even seen him."
     "But...my brother should have been there already," Cara whispered.
     The woman sounded more sentimental this time. "I'm sorry dear, but he's not here."

The police investigation seemed to last years, but in reality, it only took a few weeks. Charlie wasn't answering his phone. After that, his parents filed a missing persons report. Charlie was simply gone. No evidence led anywhere. Not that there was any. His car was nowhere to be found, his friends hadn't heard from him since he left, he had simply vanished. All of his records had disappeared. His birth certificate, his grades, all of it. It was as if he'd never existed. Even after they closed the case, Cara still asked around. Not that it helped. Either way, she was desperate for answers. She wouldn't get them though. Not for another year, but when she did, she didn't believe them at first. This tragic point in her life was only the beginning of a wild, crazy adventure.