The wind blew violently outside; I could hear the tree scratch against the window. I didn't know it yet, but the smoke seeped in slowly through the cracks under the door. The fire quietly grew in the house. My throat started to tighten and I woke up from the wave of heat. I took a breath in but it didn't smell like usual. 

I recognized the smell suddenly, and shot up from my bed. 

Fire! 

A gray cloud hovered at the top of my room. Panic-stricken, I grabbed my phone and sprinted for the door. I moved as if in slow motion.

I frantically yelled to wake up my little brother Will. I bolted quickly out of the house with him. 

There was no way I was going to leave him behind. 

I didn't see where the smoke and where the fire came from but all I knew was that it was spreading faster than a blink of an eye. 

I stood in front of the house in shock and despair. We’re going to have to start all over again. I can’t do it again. I can’t lose everything and start all over. It’s too much. 

 I could hear the firefighters down the street and more and more neighbors stood out on their driveway watching as they tried to control the fire.

“Oh no!” I said, my heart sank as I suddenly remembered I took off my necklace before I went to bed! My necklace is the last thing my mom had given me before she passed. That's the last thing left--the last thing I had of hers. 

I thought about where I had put it. I left it next to her picture on my desk. I could feel the tears wanting to burst out and my throat felt dryer than before. Before I could think I dashed back into the flames. 

“CHARLOTTE!” I heard my brother call my name behind me. I felt too many emotions to know exactly what I felt. Sadness, anger, frustration. As I ran back in I thought of my brother. I didn't think about him and how if I didn't make it back he'd have no one. 

I suddenly heard a loud crash and jumped in fear, something hit my head. I felt dizzy and my vision blurred. 

“Thud,” I was on the ground.

Before I passed out I glanced up and saw a silhouette. They looked familiar .

“Father” i whispered 

I woke up frantically to the sounds of hospital machinery. 

“Where am I?” “Charlotte, you're awake!” Will said. 

I looked around the unfamiliar place. I couldn't remember how I ended up here. 

Will explained to me what I had done and how the firefighters had to go after me. 

I slowly started to remember,” I remember now!” I said “I was going back for my mom's necklace.” but there was something else that happened. What was it, I thought. It slowly came back to me.

“If i recall i saw father just before i passed out” 

“Father?” will said “no way, we haven't seen him in years”

“We haven't seen him since a couple months before mom got in the car accident”

“No i swear it was him but you can not tell anyone” I said “Okay?”. 

Will agreed to stay quiet.

The necklace was nowhere to be seen. I went back for nothing. It's gone too late, nothing left except memories. I laid there sorrowfully thinking about it, that's all I could think about. I thought some more, well it isn't the only thing I had of her at least I still have my favorite and only brother will. 

He looks just like momma. I hugged Will tight in silence. “It's okay as long as you're safe,” I said.

Will was relieved I was okay but angry that I would do such a thing. Angry because there was a chance I wouldn’t come back. I should have thought more about my actions before doing so. Will has gone through so much. I felt guilty and ashamed, Will is my responsibility now and I should know.

I could finally leave after a couple days. I was given a bucket with all my belongings to finally leave the hospital. I grabbed the rest of my things from it. I heard a noise that sounded as if a piece of metal fell on the floor. I looked down and next to my feet I saw a silver necklace. I crouched down as soon as I saw it. In hopes of it being the necklace I went back for so desperately. 

The nurse must have seen the way my eyes lit up when I laid my eyes on the necklace because she said, “It was in your hands when they brought you here” as she held the door open for me. 

A single tear streamed down my face. It was tears of joy. I remember I wrapped it around my wrist and held it in my hand. 

That's why it didn't fall off, I thought. I didn't remember until now that I had gotten it. I must have passed out when I was going to exit the house. 

Will and I were able to get a temporary home. We went back to our old home to see what was left. There wasn't much to see. We packed up what we could salvage and left. They weren't able to locate what or maybe even who started the fire. It felt like a set up but who would do this? Who would go after two kids. 

We stayed in a hotel for a couple of weeks. I opened the door to head out  and a piece of paper that had been stuck between the crack of the door drifted to the floor. It was a black envelope with a gold seal. It had no address from where it came from. I opened it thinking it might be from the hotel but it wasn't. 

The letter read:

You were lucky this time, just keep running.

From,

Michelle. 

Michelle?” Mom?” 

I got angry. 

What kind of sick joke is this? And how did they know where to find us? My mom died in a car crash--wait, did she? 

I thought back to when I got the news--it was only a call and we never saw her again. Could this have all been set up i thought. Even so, Why? I thought back to our childhood we were always moving to different places. Were we running away from someone? I had so many questions but no answers. All of a sudden all the memories of my father started coming back to me. 

He was gone on his so-called trip when mom died, but when I called his work they said they hadn't seen him for months. We didn't live with him at the time but there was no one else to call. No one, we only had ourselves. Mom wouldn't have wanted us to reach out for him but I was desperate. We needed someone there for us.

I know why she didn't want him in our lives anymore. I remember now he was sent away to a psychiatric hospital. He had come back one night and was acting differently. Like something had happened to him he was going slowly insane. 

“Father” i muttered to myself 

He's the one we are running away from. That's who started the fire. The call three years ago is how he must have tracked us down. He's the enemy.