Silver Necklace Chapter 1

Chapter one

Running For My Life, Lost Memories





         A girl with long red hair and pale skin runs down a  set of abandoned railroad tracks. Its pitch black, the only light is from a pale, full moon. Her feet are bare, and her tank top and sweat pants are dirty from mud. Her clothing sticks to her muscular frame as sweat drips from her body. Her breathing is forced from running. The wind is icy against her moist skin. Her hair is up in a ponytail. She can feel it brush her neck. She can feel the old wood and iron tracks beneath her feet. Each jagged rock pierces her feet causing little trails of blood with every step.

         She can taste the moisture with every breath. Her eyes and lungs burn from the icy wind. It must be below fifty degrees. She doesn't care, she has to escape, she has to run, she can't take another minute. Her body screams for her to stop. It can't take much more, every step takes a toll on her. Every muscle burns with every movement. But she keeps running, keeps pushing. A man with black eyes, a black t-shirt, and jeans is chasing her.  She feels like her heart is pounding a hundred miles a minute. She looks behind her for only a second and can see that he is still chasing her.

         “He won't give up. I don't think I can shake him tonight”. She thinks to herself. She sees her old home a couple hundred feet away. “Okay I can make it. It's just a couple hundred feet! I can do this!” she picks up the speed and reaches the bottom step to the stairs leading to her old home, there were only a few but they slow her down a little.

         Her tank top is now soaked from sweat and she has to stop to catch her breath. This allows her pursuer to catch up with her. “ I got you now! You won't escape me again. And if you do -- I'll kill you next time.” the man snarls from behind her. She knows if she stops now the beating would be worse. That fear captivates her and freezes her. She has to think fast if she wants to live. She didn't have time however, she feels something hit her hard on her temple and it goes black for a split second.

         She quickly got her bearings back. She feels a large rock against her stomach. “ Get up!” the man pauses waiting for his command to be fulfilled. When she doesn't get up he repeats himself angrily. Finally the girl obeys and stands up. Her hands are behind her. “What are you holding?” The man asks hotly.  He watches her and smiles at her as he laughs, “ Don't do anything stupid that you will regret.  Now put it down! Now!” The man orders finally completely pissed. He stood there tall and angry.

         The man before her called authority and smelt of whiskey and aftershave. He was drunk but he knew what he was doing. The girl just stands there, she looks up at him angrily. She hates him. Her hair blows in the wind, a few strands blows into her face. She would make her stand tonight. The place where it all started so many years ago. He grabs her arm and pulls her close. The stench was stronger his words slightly slurred. “What do you think your doing? Do you honestly think you can win?” She looks at him for a few seconds with out saying anything. Her words came out slowly “No, but that hasn't stopped me before.”  She brings the rock up in one perfect swing. She hits his temple with as much force as her body could muster. All those years of abuse and anger were brought out in one perfect swing. She would regret it later but for now she had to get away.

         The old home looked foreboding to most but to her this was home. Fear was something she knew all to well but tonight for a few minutes she would forget it. She looked around her home there was a tree that seemed to be a hundred feet tall, and a bench that had been there since before she was born, still sit beneath the tree. The house was a soft blue with boards over the windows and there were a few shingles missing from the roof. They hadn't been there since she was ten years old and she was now eighteen.  She wasn't frightened but wasn't entirely sure as to what she should do next. She had never gotten this far before, normally she was caught before now. She smiles at the house and runs up to the door and unlocks it. It was a soft blue and the handle was brass.

         The door creaks loudly a sound that was still all too familiar.  The house smells of dust and faint memories, as she walks, the boards beneath her creak and moan.  She could almost still smell her mothers cooking, so many years ago. A tear slowly slides down her pale face as she remembers her mother. Her death had been sudden and although her father had said they were mugged she knew he had beaten her to death.

         She turns to lock the door and then makes her way up the stairs, to her mothers room. The stair case now dusty and very dirty, the once maroon carpet, now a brownish color from the eight years of dirt and dust. It was over a hundred years old the house was. The stair railing is a mahogany wood.  She smiled as she remembered all the times her and Raven had slid down the railing when they were younger. She missed the old days when her mother was still alive. 

         She missed the hugs and kisses but never would she  admit to being so vulnerable. She missed her mother so much. She forced back the tears and opened the door and she walked into what use to be her mothers room. The walls use to be a pale pink and the carpet was a soft blue at one time.  There was a mahogany wood bed frame, as well as the matching dresser, and a vanity set. There was her mothers favorite chair in front of it. It  had a wood frame with soft blue velvet cushions. The dust was so thick that it was no longer blue. She sit in it and closed her eyes. The dust puffed up and made her cough. She could still hear her mothers soft humming as she brushed her hair and applied her makeup to cover all the bruises.

         They would watch there mother for hours as she got ready for the day. She remembered once asking her mother how she had gotten the bruises. Her mother had looked up in surprise and then looked very sad at the two of them. She then turned away from her two daughters and had casually told them she had fallen, then laughed about how clumsy she was. But they had known there mother wasn't clumsy at all. She had once been a famous ballerina. She was the  most graceful women they had ever known. Tears began to fall down her cheeks. She buried her face in her hands as she cried. She hated remembering. She didn't want to anymore.

         She looked down at her mothers old makeup and brushes. She begin to remember her mothers morning routines. She remembered how her mother used to sing as she put on her makeup, how she would laugh and smile and joke. The whole time she would get ready for the day. Not that she would go anywhere. She was never allowed out of the house except to pick them up for the school or from any places they would be allowed to go. There mother was so beautiful. She missed her so much. More tears begin to fall as she remembered her mothers beautiful face. She cried slowly. Her hair fell into her face and slowly absorbed the tears.

         She finally got out of the chair and begin to wonder around the room. Remembering all the times she had played in this room with her mother. The hide and seek, jumping on the bed, the pillow fights. It all brought a smile to her face. She sit on her mothers bed and more memories flushed in her head. But one in particular stayed and played out: “ Mommy! Mommy!” Raven and Willow screamed in union. “ What is it sweeties? What's the matter?” there mother said. “ Mommy, daddy yelled at us and he smells funny. All we were doing was playing outside. But he started yelling at us and telling us we were stupid.” Willow cried out clinging to her mother. There mother sighed and held them both. “ I will go and talk to him. You just stay in my room and everything will be okay.” Raven and Willow stared at there mother and nodded. They would obey her no matter what. They loved her beyond anything else in there life. There mother walked in her room and looked at them. She had a black eye and busted lip. She smiled at both of them. “ Your father is sorry darlings. Where going to go out to eat. I've called you aunt and shes going to come and watch the two of you okay?” They both just nodded but had a very bad feeling about it. Something wasn't right.

         That was the last time they had seen there precious mommy. More tears made there way down her cheeks and hit her tank top and dirty jogging pants. She blamed her self constantly. She begin to remember how her father had told them of there mothers death: There father walks into the house and looks over at them coldly. There aunt looks up from the couch and both girls jump up and run to the door expecting there mother to walk in at any time. But she doesn't. They stand there for about five minutes before asking there father where she is. He looks up coldly from pouring him a glass of whiskey “ Oh, yea. Your mothers dead. We where mugged. Yea we where mugged.” He shakes his head sadly. “It was horrible. They snatched your mother and beat her. I begged them to stop. But they wouldn't!” There aunt stands up suddenly and looks at the girls and then there father. “Raven. Willow. Go to your rooms, time for bed. I need to talk to you father.” Raven and Willow where on the floor balling there eyes out. They nod and walk upstairs crying uncontrollably. But they stop themselves long enough to sit on the top of the stairs and listen to what there aunt has to say. “I will get the kids from you. You won't hurt them like you hurt my sister.” “I don't know what you're talking about. We were mugged.” there father said all to causal. 

         She sobbed as she remembered. There was to many painful memories. She didn't want to remember the day her mother died. Her father had been to causal about it. She never saw her aunt again. It was sad how her father kept her so isolated.  She sniffled and laid down on the dusty bed and fell asleep. She begin to dream.

          There was a big beautiful garden with big beautiful flowers and butterfly's everywhere. The grass was soft and green and felt cool against her feet. The sun was bright and felt warm against her skin. Her summer dress was bright pink with big yellow sunflowers all over. Her hair was in a high ponytail and was gently hitting her neck. She was running and giggling with her hands out stretched. She was five years old again. “ Mommy! Mommy! I missed you mommy!” She kept running but the faster she ran the further away her mother was. “Mommy! Mommy don't leave me mommy! Please mommy! I need you, don't leave me mommy!” tears slid down her face and dripped on her summer dress. She kept running but her mother just kept going further and further away. “Mommy!” She screamed and cried. She fell and her mother had disappeared when she looked back up in fear. She cried harder and curled up in a ball. “Mommy! No mommy! Come back. Come back. I need you mommy.” “Why are you crying you little brat?” a mean voice growled behind her. A dark shadow was cast over her and she slowly looked behind her.

         She saw her father behind her, she rolled over and reached out for him. “Daddy, help me up please daddy?” He laughed and slapped her across the face. “You're pathetic” She cried and jumped up and began to run. She was sixteen again and running for her life. He was chasing her. She fell and he caught up. He towered over her and laughed menacingly. He stood over her and held a gun out. “Dad please don't! Please!” He just laughed and pulled the trigger.

         She sit up quickly and was panting. She was covered in sweat. She just sit there staring around the room as the sun came up. She laid back down and continued to pant. Oh my god. That was way to real. She thought to herself and laughed “Great I' m not even safe in my dreams.” She stared at the ceiling for a while. She finally sit up again and stared out the window. The sun was up and she wondered what time it was.