Gone

Chapter 21- Mina

He'll be back any minute, Mina assured herself. Any minute now, he just needs time to cool off. But even she didn't believe it, after three hours.

She fidgeted uncomfortably, trying to reenter the conversation.

"Me and Evan have been together since grade school. There was three of us, originally. Evan, me, and...." She choked on the last word, overcome with grief. This explained her hatred of the BloodWarriors.

"Lilah. Her name was Lilah. She...... She died from a spear wound. A BloodWarrior got her in the side. Only a few miles before we saw you." Evan finished, his voice flat. Mina knew how he felt; trying to keep the emotions suppressed to keep surviving was vital. She had done the same at her father's death.

Flashback
A screech, followed by an agonized scream, split through the air.

"Mommy? What is happening? Where is Daddy?" Emmett wailed, clutching Mina's hand so tightly that minuscule pinpricks of pain shot up her arm. It felt like nothing, compared to the wild fear and helplessness that overwhelmed her.

"Hush, Bug. You have to be quiet." Her mother soothed calmly, but her emaciated appearance and sunken eyes betrayed her worry.

They were under attack from the Gone. Her father was outside, while they were barricaded inside their basement. Safe, protected, but oblivious to the danger outside.

Emmett whimpered piteously. Mina tried to soothe his frayed nerves with a gentle rocking motion.

"Wanna play a game, Bug? Let's pretend we are warriors." Mina tried to keep the vivid visions of the outside activity from her mind.

He sniffled, "Sure. We are like Daddy!" He brightened up, but drooped once more. "I want Daddy, Mommy."

"I know, Sweetie. But Daddy is busy." Mother replied.

A snarl echoed through the room. Mina froze with fear. She heard a scuffling outside the door, nails scraping on the concrete floor. She heard a panting, like a rabid dog before the kill.

She gasped, then hated herself for it. The scraping stopped, directly in front of the door. A shadow crept underneath the door. It seemed as if the very room held its breath.

Then a splintering sound broke the fragile silence. The wooden door strained against the force, but collapsed, causing sunlight to filter in. But with this reprieve came horror.

A Gone bounded through, and in the disorder her mother screamed "Run, children! Run!"

But Mina stood, paralyzed to the spot, and watched her mother torn to shreds by a monster. Only when the creature turned to her, muzzle coated in blood, eyes glinting hungrily, did she run.

Although she had a head start, the creature was hard on her tail. She could feel the Gone's hot breath on her legs, and it only made her panic. This is the end. She thought. I will die by the hands of the monster that killed my mother.

Then her father, barely recognizable in the gore that covered him, burst forth. He tackled the Gone, screaming "RUN, MINA RUN!"

This time she didn't hesitate. That was the last time she ever saw her parents.