Serenity's Murder

Chapter 1: First of Many Nightmares

"God grant me the Courage to change the things I can, the Serenity to accept those I cannot change and the Wisdom to know the difference -- but God grant me the Courage not to give up on what I think is right, even though I think it is hopeless, Amen." -- Admiral Chester W. Nimitz

Halloween, 2013 Ember's Dream

Ember knelt at the edge of the pool and watched the surface as a girls head bobbe in and out of the water. He wondered if she's even alive, why and how he knows her. Even though he wanted to help her, he realized it's time for him to go. He stood up while scanning the pool, and looking to his left. In that general direction, he saw a QuikMart across a highway, lit only by the street lights and the headlights of the few-and-far-between cars. The pool was literally teaming with swimmers, ranging from the very young, to the very old. "This whole place is packed for so late at night." He thinks to himself.

So he got home and noticed the front door wasn't locked. "I thought for sure I locked it." He looked around, and although everything was trashed, nothing seemed to have been taken. Down his main hallway, he saw a trail of water, and wet foot prints. The next thing he saw, was at the very end of the hallway. It was the girl from the pool, stark naked, with only her floor length hair to cover her body parts. She looked to be about 15 or 16, pale skinned, and tall for that age. Her hair was of a midnight black, her fingers, from where he could see, were long, her eyes, from what he could see, were almost completely black, and it looked like she had no whites. Next thing he knew, her face is so close to his and realized just as quick that her eyes weren't black, but she had none, they were gone, just empty eye sockets.

He heard in what could only be her voice, someone saying, "My name is Serenity, and I need your help, but I don't have much time." He didn't hear it being spoken aloud, just in his head.

"How the hell am I supposed to help you when I have no idea how?" He asked, totally confused. He got even more confused when she smiled and started to fade away.

He sat straight up in his bed, drenched in a cold sweat, biting back a scream, shutting off the already ringing alarm clock. He shook off the dream, got ready for work and headed down stairs just as the phone starts to ring in the kitchen.  He runs for it, and picks it up on the fifth ring."Hello, Wolf residence." Ember says, between gasps for breath.

"Yes, this is the St. Avalon Hospital calling for Ember?" a woman's voice said, pausing then continuing, "Your fiance Angela Longhorn was shot last night, and we need you to come in with any or all of her relatives.

The Day Before...

"Are you sure you want to go today Ang?" Kelrose asked. "Something just doesn't feel right."

"C'mon Kel, what could go wrong?" Angela retorted, even though she knew him too well to ignore what he warned her about.

Famous last words, and that's exactly what worries me, he wanted to say, but instead only shrugge. So they took off. As always, Angela got there first.

The bad feeling that Kelrose had earlier came back, but it hit him right in the gut, but before he could say anything, Angela got shot. Neither of them saw it coming, it all happened so fast. She turned around to tell him to hurry up. Then BANG! came the sound of the gun shot, and she's on the ground, holding her side, face screwed up in pain. "Kel," she gasped. He just stood there, too afraid to move. "Kel!" she gasps again in agony, he finally responded. "Call an ambulance." she ordered. 

Like a puppet, he corresponded by robotically, and sporadically, punching in the correct numbers. He found himself kneeling beside her, and got up to leave when he heard the ambulance behind, but Angela stopped him with a bloody hand on his arm, "Stay with me," she desperately plead, blacking out before he could even answer, but he complied, well after the ambulance came. He wouldn't leave her, so the EMT's were forced to let him ride in the back with her on the way to the hospital.