My Way Out

Deborah's POV Shaking and trembling, hardly finding the courage to breathe, I stayed hidden from the masked men. The closet was too small. The scent of old cedar and mothballs suffocated me. I couldn't breathe properly. My hands clamped around my mouth to keep any sob attempting to escape. “Today you die!” snarled one of the men. “Please, we will disappear; you won't hear from us again,” my mother pleaded. This can't be it. I can't lose my parents. As I was about to take a step out of the closet, and opened the door, something or someone closed the door very hard. As the door closed, I heard a deafening bang. All I could hear was a loud ringing and a muffled voice,” Where are your children?” “What children?” my mother said, gasping for air. From the cracks of the wooden door I could see the hallway basked in the amber light of the chandelier, but I couldn't see anyone. I sat down with my knees tucked into my chest. I started rocking back and forth as I played this tune in my head. Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high “Like a diamond in the sky.” I froze. Was I singing it out loud? “Twinkle twinkle little star, How I wonder what you are.” The voice came closer to the closet. God of mercy… This is the end, isn't it? I have barely been on this earth for a decade, and I am already leaving. I flinched hard at the sounds of footsteps that were coming closer to the closet. I bit my knuckles hard as I tried to stop myself screaming. My heart raced, slamming so hard against my rib cage, like it was trying to escape as imminent death was approaching. “Itsy Bitsy Spider climbed out the water spout.” Ugh, I hated this one, maybe because spiders weren't my favorite creatures. “Down came the rain and washed the spider out.” I froze as I heard the click of the door knob. I couldn't cry, I couldn't scream. All I could do was shake. My pajamas were soaked in my tears and sweat. My buttocks ached from the rocking, but I didn't care. Tears were rolling down my face as I could feel his intimidating presence outside the closet. “Peekaboo, I see you.” A flashlight blinded me as the closet door opened, and the masked man yanked me out of the closet. I screamed and kicked as hard as I could, but it seemed like I was just tickling him. Perhaps opening the door in an attempt to save my mother wasn't the brightest idea. "Look at what we have here," the man sneered, pressing his gun against my body. "She's just a little rat." Another man who reeked of cigars leaned in. "She's perfect. Her daddy will come running." They dragged me down the stairs and I could see the blood on the tiles and smell the metallic scent so much that I could almost taste it. My mother and my dog were lifeless in the corner, their bodies twisted in ways that I couldn't comprehend. I was thrown into the center of the room like a rag doll. That's when the front door creaked opened. My father… His face, usually stern and commanding, unreadable, crumbled as his eyes locked with mine. I had never seen such pain before. "Let her go," he said, with a tone so cold yet calm. "Sorry Ravello, you know I never thought I had it in you, but you sup-" In the blink of an eye, my father pulled out his gun. Bang. The man holding me collapsed, taking me down with him. I dropped by his side and looked into his lifeless eyes. Blood oozing out of him, marking its territory as it spread across the floor. The second man had opened fire. Bang. I screamed as my father took two bullets before returning the fire to the person who had just shot him, taking him down with him. Dear God… The only family I had left held a hand to his chest as blood oozed from his chest. “Dad!!” I screamed as I crawled towards him sobbing. I knelt beside the body holding his hand. Looking into his eyes but the warmth slowly leaving his eyes. "You live," he rasped. "You hear me, Deborah? You live." “Don't leave me please,” I sobbed but to no avail. “Run.” That was his last word. I looked back and saw two lifeless bodies. I am not known for disobedience, but I couldn't just leave him here. I walked slowly back into the house. My home was no longer recognizable. It was a house of death and nightmares. I made my way through the kitchen and down the hallway to where my mother was lying. As I knelt down beside her holding my hand, she slowly turned her head towards me. “P-Promise m-me,” she stuttered, “Y-You’ll run away f-from this,” I nodded. I gave a loud sob as my mother breathed her last. I passed my hand over her eyes, closing it in the process. “Until we meet again,” I whispered. I stood up slowly and made my way to the front door, when I heard the screeching tires of three cars at the front of the house. I quickly turned around and darted to the back of the house. I didn't want to find out if they were friends or enemies. By the looks of it, they weren't friends. I don't know, maybe it was just my own gut telling me this. I made my way to the back of the house and sprinted through the back door. I stopped in my tracks as the woman slowly knelt down in front of me, looking me deep into my eyes. She had a black trench coat and wore blood-splattered boots. "You can trust me." Her tone was soft but commanding. " I am here to help you." She slowly took out her hand and I nodded, closing my eyes but putting my hand in hers. I don't have any choice but to trust her.