Mother is trying to protect us. She is buying us time. I need to keep Rose safe. I gently pushed Rose into my closet, she didn't protest. I ran to the other side of my room, my hands fumbling for the drawer of my desk, which was made of wood but painted a cloud white, along with my bed frame and dresser. After my hands stopped shaking enough so I could grasp the hand, I opened it. Once inside, I grabbed the soundproof headphones that I used to wear when there were fireworks or thunderstorms. I hate loud noises. I made my way back to the closet, where Rose had managed to squeeze her body into a corner. The interior of the closet was a soft blue, just a little bit lighter than the other walls of my room. A plank of wood, just slightly under the height of the closet, sat behind my dresses and coats that were hanging.

Good. They won't be able to find her here. I handed her the headphones and she looked up at me, her voice trembling,

“What about you?” Her eyes met mine, begging me to stay with her, to not leave her all alone in this house. I let out a defeated sigh.

` “I’ll be okay,” I lied, “I’ll be okay and I’ll come find you when this is over. You, Mom, Dad and I will all find each other again. All you have to do is put these on and stay in this closet, okay? Just stay here.” I cringed, I knew that was a lie. Whatever was happening downstairs, I had a bad feeling it would change my life forever. 

“Okay,” I watched as Rose’s small fingers grabbed onto the headphones, her small hands touching mine for a moment before she pulled away, retreating back into the corner. Before she put the headphones on I spoke again, my voice wavering, 

“Keep those on okay? I’m going to block you in,” I checked my watch, 9 pm. I handed her it, clipping it on her small wrist. It was way too big for her, the excess bit hung from her wrist. “Once it hits 7 AM you can come out, okay? No matter what happens, not even if Mom or Dad calls out your name, are you to come out before that—not even a minute before. Got it?” 

Rose nods her small head, a strand of her strawberry blonde hair falls in front of her face and I reach my shaking hand up and gingerly tuck it behind her ear.

After I pulled my hand away, I watched as she slid the headphones on. I know she can’t hear me now, and I took a moment to stare at her, taking it all in. This is the last time I’ll ever see her. The way her blue eyes stared into mine, the sound of her cheerful voice, calling my name from the other side of the door when she wanted to play, the way her hair seemed to always find a way to fall in front of her eyes. 

“I love you.” My voice was soft, and I felt as one of the tears I had been trying so hard to hold in, slid down my cheek. I dug to the back of the closet, my hands reaching for the board I knew was back there. Dad had made this for me when we used to play hide and seek, so I could win almost every time. Rose had always called it cheating, but she had never found out where I was hiding. I had always come out before someone found me, and I would hide in a place that they had already checked, so I could keep using that spot over and over again. 

I lifted the wood piece into place, while my arms trembled, struggling to hold its weight. After I slid it into place, I gave it a good kick, making sure it wouldn't move if someone suspected that there was something amiss with it. I closed the closet door to conceal that someone had ever been there. 

As I walked towards my bedroom door, I flicked the lightswitch, plunging the room into an inky blackness as I quietly backed out of the room. I crept over to the stairs, the carpet muffling the sound of my soft footsteps. 

As I slowly made my way down, the pleas of my parents caught my attention. I stopped halfway, looking around the living room. The soft sage walls, the white doors, the oak wood floor that Dad put in himself. The TV and black coach with an armchair that matched, sitting a few feet away, the small nook with the bench and table where my family always did puzzles.

 I spotted my parents, tied to our dining room chairs, ropes around their legs and arms, holding them tightly in place. There were eight people, five of which were armed, three women and five men. One of them turned to look in my direction and I ducked down just in time to not be spotted, the wall on the side of the stairwell hid myself from their view. I tried to breathe more shallowly, an attempt to be able to eavesdrop on the conversation.

“No! You can’t take them!” That was Mom’s voice, she was begging. The next voice was one I did not recognize, and I concluded it had to belong to one of the strangers. It sounded deep so I concluded it was a man speaking.  

“We can do whatever we want. You can’t do anything to stop us.” The sadistic tone of his voice sent a shiver up my spine, “And we know you have kids, two beautiful girls. That's what we want.”

“No!” That was Dads voice. I couldn’t see anything, thankfully, but the scream he let out echoed throughout the house, blood curdling. That made my body start to tremble, and tears silently ran down my cheeks. I heard my mothers soft cries. At that moment I knew. I knew he was dead. 

“Now. Where are they?” This was a woman's voice this time. Her tone held no emotion, which was even more terrifying than the man. It took me a moment to realize the ‘they’ they were talking about was Rose and I. 

Story by- that unkow writer

published by- powerful like a girl