Breath Of Life

Chapter One

I was sleeping in a motel in the middle of pretty much nowhere. Of course, that was where the town was; in the middle of nowhere. I used to live there, and I’d recently moved back, hoping for a fresh start, but also hoping no one who would have a chance at recognizing me still lived there. Though I wasn’t sure it was accurate to say I had actually moved back, seeing as I was living in a motel that was barely even in the town. Hm. . . I’d really have to consider that. Later, of course. I was in the middle of something, duh!

It had been over ten years, but I could still remember every single detail of the town, and every person who lived there. It wasn’t so easy for me to forget, seeing as I usually brought death wherever I went. And this town had been no different. At least that was what it had been like after I died. . .mostly.

When it had first happened, I hadn’t been able to accept. After the funeral, I’d wandered around for days, for weeks, for months, even. It had been way too easy to lose track of time, and oh, did I lose track of it! What surprised me the most was how calm I was about the whole ordeal. I never tried to reason that I was in some sort of coma and that everything was just a really freaky, messed up dream, not even with myself.

And if that wasn’t weird enough, there was the whole ‘your brother committed suicide by bear mauling’ crap. I didn’t believe a word of it, though it wasn’t like I didn’t investigate. Of course I investigated! Who do you think I am, my sister? Don’t insult me like that. And don’t try to deny that’s what you were thinking; I know you were!

Oh, and then I had to deal with my whole family being murdered. Well, the rest of them, at least. The only ones left were my parents, Jenna and Mason McKenneth, my younger sister, Aliyah McKenneth, my older sister, Rayna McKenneth, and my cousin, Mikelle Devellen. My brother, Mikel McKenneth, and of course, moi, Alara McKenneth, had already been killed. Yes, we’re just that wondrous that our entire family had to be murdered. Yes, even monsters must keep up appearances.

It’s really too much weirdness and information(plus, you know, I’m just lazy)to get into at that moment, plus I had a weird feeling that mine and my family’s deaths weren’t just random. That there was a reason for what had happened to us, though I couldn’t see it at the moment. It was probably a good thing that I didn’t believe in revenge, not really.

A knock sounded on the door and I stiffened, muscles tense and coiled, ready to fight anyone or anything off if they flew through the door before I reached it. I was expecting the worst as I rolled off of the bed and onto my feet. I glanced down to see I was wearing a sports bra and fuzzy black pants. I shrugged. This would do.

I stopped at the door and stared at it as another knock sounded, slightly louder than the one before had been. I braced myself as I took a step back and opened the door. . .to see someone I had never expected to see ever again.

She smiled, familiar dark eyes lighting up. “Hello, Alara.”

I slammed the door in her face, my nerves frayed and my mind going into overdrive. “Go away!” I shrieked as my legs gave out and I crumpled to the floor. “You’re not real!”

She took a step forward and crouched in front of me, holding her hand out hesitantly towards me, as if she was afraid of what my reaction would be if she touched me. Hell, I was afraid of my own reactions at the moment; I didn’t even know what would happen if she tried to touch me.

I stared at her hand as if she was holding a nuclear bomb as I scrambled backwards. My back collided with the frame of the bed and I stared at my long dead sister, my mind moving too fast to allow me time to process what was going on.

I almost immediately went into auto-pilot, trusting my reflexes instead of my brain; it wasn’t exactly working normally, now, was it? I mean, I was too freaked to even begin to understand what was going on, or how to deal with it. I knew I should be glad that Ali was okay, that she was breathing, but I just couldn’t seem to accept that all of this came with no strings attached.