The Lost Alpha Queen

Arabella ____________ An explosion, fire engulfing the room, I cannot get out. I try to get to my door but it's blocked by the fire. I ran to the connecting door to my parents’ bedroom. I'm screaming for mommy and daddy but they cannot hear me. There are screams throughout the entire residence. No one will come for me, the fire is getting closer and closer. There is another explosion down the hall, I get knocked to the ground. I'm crying for help but no one seems to hear me, I'm going to die. I know I need to get out so I try once more to get to the door. This time I make it through the fire but the door won’t budge. I push with all my might and band on the door but nothing. All of a sudden, I hear a scream down the hall and fighting. Someone is trying to get to my room but I do not know if they are friends or foe. All of a sudden the commotion in the hallway stops. There is a large crash and the door comes flying in. I can't see who comes through the door because the smoke is too thick. I do not know what is happening until I realize someone has picked me up. I'm screaming for them to put me down, hitting their back with my little fist, not that it is doing much to stop him. I try to scream but my throat is raw from breathing in too much smoke. Finally I hear the gruff voice of my Uncle Jasper saying, "Ari, darling, it's me. Please stay quiet so they do not hear us. We need to get out of here before it is too late. I cannot let them find you. We need to get you to safety." He turns me around so I can see him and though I am relieved it is him, I'm still crying. I try to whisper but all that comes out is a whimper. I finally struggled to get out, "but mommy and daddy, we can't leave them. We need to make sure they are alright." He won't look at me but says, "your mother and father are already out and waiting for you outside the tunnels, I need to get you out before it's too late. I promise we will meet them when we are safe. Can you do as I say and follow me or do you need me to carry you? If you can walk, follow me and stay as quiet as you can until we are out of the house. Can you do that?" All I could do was nod and let him lead the way. I followed him down the stairs to the first floor. We sneak through the corridors until we come to the kitchen. We can still hear screams from all throughout the residence but we need to keep going. In the kitchen, hidden in the pantry, there is a door in the floor that most do not know about. We use that door to escape, climbing down the ladder. Once I am on the ground, Uncle Jasper makes sure to secure the door. We are now in the city's emergency tunnels. They are cold and damp. It seems like someone has not been down here in years. We use the tunnels to sneak out underneath the city. As we are running through the tunnels, we hear another explosion that rocks the city. That explosion destroyed the entire building. My old home is gone. Everyone that was still at the house was gone. I know no one could have survived that last explosion. When we make it to the end of the tunnel, I realize we are alone. I looked around trying to find my parents but they are nowhere in sight. I turned to my uncle, "where are mommy and daddy? I thought they were meeting us? You told me they would be here. Why did you lie? Where are they?" My world came crashing down in four little words, "They are gone, sweetie. They were dead before I even made it to your room. Your mother and father fought so hard to protect you, they laid down their lives to save you. By doing that, it gave me enough time to get to you and get you out. They made sure their little princess survived. We need to make sure their sacrifice was worth it. We need to go." "No! You're wrong! We have to go back! Mommy! Daddy! No! Let me go! You're a liar! I don't want to go anywhere with you!" I'm yelling and trying to run back into the tunnels but my uncle is holding me down. "Ari! Ari darling, wake up!!! You need to wake up, it is just a dream! Please wake up!" I shot up in bed in a cold sweat with my Uncle Jasper rubbing my head. Suddenly, the dream fades and I'm back in my room. This happens too frequently, "I'm sorry I woke you. I don’t know why I keep having this dream over and over again." "It's fine, sweetie, I'm always here for you. I love you. Do you want to talk about it? You were screaming really badly this time, more than normal," he says, continuing to rub my head. I shook my head, " I am fine, thanks though, Uncle Jasper. I love you too." I know that he will always be there for me. Even though it's been almost ten years since that night. I still have frequent nightmares. I feel like the nightmares should be getting better, but they are always the same. I relive the worst day of my life over and over, remembering everything that my eight year old self witnessed the night my parents died and my life changed forever.