Chapter 1
PROLOGUE
Writer's Point of View
France… March 2015!!
Friday Night... 7:45 pm
Chatters and laughter could be heard in the car as it drove across the city of France. From the look on the faces of its inhabitants, one could tell they were one happy family.
They came from Italy to France for a family and friends get-together party.
"Dad! Can you believe Hazel stole out of my chips!" Aiden cried out as he clenched his fists tightly.
"I didn't steal, I took from it," Hazel shrugged
"Come on Aiden, you are no longer a kid, okay? Stop crying, can't you allow your sister to take out of it," Mrs. Martin consoled as she pouted her lips while Hazel frowned at his face.
"Mom, are you taking my side or hers," Aiden asked with scorn on his face
"I'm doing both," Mrs. Martin shrugged nonchalantly
"Mum, let him cry, I don't care. Aiden always thinks he is still a kid," Hazel said, scoffing as she rolled her eyes, looking out through the window.
"Of course, I am still a kid," Aiden snapped at her
"Hazel, you shouldn't have eaten his chips. You did wrong," Mr. Martin defended Aiden.
"Oh please dad, I know why you are defending him okay? We both know it is nothing. He is just making faces to be pitied," Hazel hissed and added
"Moreover, you are just taking his side because you want him to accept your proposal to be homeschooled," Hazel bit out, looking away with a sly smirk on her face, leaving her dad to face all sets of wide eyes gaping at him in disbelief.
"Is that true, dad? I hate to be homeschooled," Aiden queried, feigning anger while Mrs. Martin hit her palm against her forehead, inhaling sharply.
"But you have never done it before and it is even for your good," Mrs. Martin told her son.
"Mum," Aiden yelled
"No, no, no, Aiden, I never say so, I swear. Hazel is just making it up!" Dad exclaimed, trying to defend himself as he shot Hazel a death glare. If looks could kill, Hazel would have been six feet below the earth right now.
"Really dad," Aiden pouted
"You aren't going to say anything, mum" Aiden questioned mum, who has been mute during the whole argument.
"What do you expect me to say" she replied scoffing, looking away from the group.
"That is my baby talking!" Mr. Martin exclaimed in a comment, getting a playful hit on the shoulder from his wife, who proceeded to roll her eyes at him.
"Tch, whatever" Aiden said with a slight frown on his face, still staring away.
"Anyway, being homeschooled is better than facing those freaks at school," he added shrugging.
"I doubt you love it because you won't be seeing Mia again, you know," Hazel said with a sky grin
"Who is Mia," Mrs. Martin asked
"She is no one," Aiden shrugged glaring at Hazel and she sticker out her tongue at him.
"Now, she happens to be a no one right now, so bad," Hazel hissed
"Hazel," Mrs. Martin called her name in a warning manner.
"How I wish I have an elder brother to always spank your a*s whenever you misbehave or treat me anyhow," Aiden sighed
At his comment, the car fell dead silent as they all focused on their father driving, Mr. Martin and Mrs. Martin's faces became sad, and ignored what they said because instead of three kids but they are two now.
"We should have brought along the convoy, Dad. I kinda miss the way the convoy follows us. Why did you insist we use a regular car for the get-together party without some sort of protection? Anything could happen to us right now and we have no security to save us." Hazel mused with a displeased frown on her face. She had been feeling uneasy since the start of their journey but had only shrugged off the feeling.
"Try to be optimistic for once, Hazel Nothing is going to happen, okay? The area is one of the best in safety," Mrs. Martin asked, in an attempt to calm down her daughter, as she turned to give Hazel a look.
"I'm having this awful feeling dad, I don't know why," Hazel sighed
"Don't worry nothing is going to happen, I'm a simple man with a simple family, Hazel darling. Who is going to try to hurt us? So there is no need to worry, we are safe, okay?" Mr. Martin assured and turned to a dead-end street
"Dad, why did you turn," Hazel asked confused
"As you can see, there was traffic and for us to get to where we are going fast, we have to take a shortcut and that was what I did," Their dad shrugged
"Did you think that street is saved," Aiden asked
"Yes, I'm very familiar with this road whenever I'm always coming to France," He nodded
"I'm just scared, actually I'm feeling restless" Hazel sighed
"Don't be afraid dear, trust your dad," Mrs. Martin tried to calm them down.
"Um, Dad I think you should slow down a bit," Aiden warned his Dad before he bump into a coming truck.
Just as Mr. Martin turned to the other side to avoid being hit, the truck kept coming to their car.
"It seems the car is coming towards our car," Hazel screamed and pointed at the same car coming at full speed, causing the once-happy family to shiver in fear.
"It is ok, nothing is going to happen,"
Mr. Martin gulped and trembled ad he tried stopping the car.
"Why is the car break not working," Mr. Martin panicked.
He didn't know that when the car break as been broken by someone before they left with it.
In the attempt to stop the car, the truck came at full speed and collided with the family. In a hurry, the truck driver drove off immediately he noticed that the family might be dead, leaving behind the ugly image of the bloodied family.
*
*
"I pray they are still alive, I hope so," The woman says as she and her husband stand, pacing anxiously outside the ICU room.
"The husband and wife are long dead when I examined them, but I can't say anything about the children." The nurse explained with a shrug as she rushed back to the surgery room.
His wife sighed deeply as she moved towards the array of waiting chairs, taking a seat as they awaited the doctor, who stepped out a few minutes later to announce the death of the man and his wife himself.
"What about the other two kids, Doctor?" The man asked sadly.
"We were able to stabilize them for now but they still have a slim chance of surviving. I'm sorry," the doctor answered bitterly.
"Really, what are you saying? What nonsense are you talking about. a whole family of four, huh?!" The man's wife exclaimed with eyes turning to deep anger at the thought of such huge misfortune befalling such a family with even little kids.
"Wait a second. I thought you are the best doctor in this hospital which people were supposed to be one of the best in the most prestigious hospital, yet you idiots couldn't save their lives! We brought in four injured patients and you couldn't even save them?! Aren't you supposed to save them since it is your work, huh I'm out!" She shouted, tears streaming down her face as she picked up her purse and walked out
*
*
The Same Friday Night... 8:01 pm
In another part of France, another family is getting the house and everything prepared for the party they are hosting in their house this evening...
The family of Five, the father, Mr. Ruskin, Mrs. Ruskin, their children, Wyatt, Ellie, and Aaron...