As i peek through the hole on the floor of the old tree house, I can faintly see shadows of evil
spirits tearing my mother to pieces. I shriek, careful of who hears me.

My dad, who was dead to the world, awoke and saw me peeking through the floor, sat up feeling the disastrous cold from the monsters underneath us and shivered. "What's going on, honey?" he said, groggily. His name was Landon and he was a handsome guy, mid-forties and a doctor. He wasn't my real dad; in fact, my mother and him met about three years ago and got married last year.

"Nothing dad. Just go back to sleep." I whispered.

"Well, I'm thirsty, so I'm going down to get some water."

"NO! I mean, no...we brought water up here, remember?" something to stall our death sentence a little longer.

"Okay you got me. I am going to sleep with your mom.This floor is killing my back and I have to work tomorrow." he got up, out of his sleeping bag, and headed for the stairs. I might as well die now! Landon always has to ruin everything.

As Landon headed down the ladder, I heard the rumbling of the demons stop. Just like a story book I see him get taken and ripped to pieces. I cry and try to shout but faster than i can blink, a hand covers my mouth. Out of instinct I sink my teeth into the palm, it doesn't move. I take a moment and look up; the guy is a rusty blond with green eyes. Kind of gorgeous except the fact the he is one of the guys ripping my parents to shreds. "Stay quiet, I don't think you want to die with them. I've seen it one too many times and I try to save anyone I can. Nod if you trust me." His voice is like music to my ears, I nod unthinkingly and he pulls me up. "In a minute they will be headed up to check if anyone else is up here. All I should have to tell you is to hold on tight, okay?" I nod, unable to find words.

"Go search for others! If there are any, bring them back to me alive. I want to show them how they'll end up." The voice was dark as the night and and I felt as if sharp spears of glass were penetrating through my skin. I grabbed the mysterious boy and clung as tight as I could. He was right, I didn't want to end up like my parents.

"By the way, your brothers are fine. They are at a little house not to far form here." he answered my unasked question. "I rescued them before anybody knew I was here." I could feel the burning sensation of tears clotting in my eyes. "Don't worry you'll be fine.... I'm really sorry you had to see that."

"Why-did-they" I started before he cut me off.

"None of us are actually sure why they come after innocent bystanders." I shuttered as he said the word 'us'. How many were there? Did they have plans to devour my brothers and I? I was quiet the rest of the way. I still don't understand how we got there. "Okay, we're here. Your brothers are inside. I'll be back in a while. Stay indoors and stay quiet. If they smell or hear you, they will kill you to." I didn't think he would have to worry about me, considering I wasn't able to have a discourse with him on what was going on.

"You should be safe and sound here." he said opening the door for me. "Devereaux should have something prepared for you inside. Go now and stay with your brothers."

As I walked inside I realized it was more homely than I had imagined, even though the walls were tinted with a dark shade of blue and there was candelabras scattered everywhere. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a quick movement and heard something crash. I turned at an almost inhumanly speed and caught glimpse of another boy, about my age with dark, russet colored hair, laying on the floor. I walked leisurely over to him and knelt down to see if he was okay.

"Are you okay?" I solicited.

"Wow! The new girl, I suppose." He was cute in an inelegant way.

"I do have a name, you know." I learned from my mom that playing hard to get was the one thing guys abhorrent the most.

"Okay, well whats your name?"

"Rebbecca." I helped the teenager up and started to walk away.

"Hey! Don't you want to know my name?" he said in a sort of ineffective way.

"No, not really." I answered continuing to strut away.

"Oh, well, I have a feeling we'll be meeting like this again so, my name is Aaron... Aaron Porter."

I stopped dead in my tracks and sped around to face him. "Porter? Like Lillian Porter?" Lillian was my best friend since third grade when she disappeared. People said that she was dead, but I knew she wasn't.

We talked every Saturday.

"Yeah, that's my sister. why?"

"Oh My Gosh, where is she?" Aaron gave me an awkward look then pointed to the kitchen.

I ran to the kitchen and saw a blond girl sitting at the island in the middle of the kitchen. "Lillian?" I ask cautiously. If it's not her I will feel utterly stupid.

"If it's about Aaron I don't care to know. I know he can be a bit-" she turns around and looks at me. "Rebby? What? Why? Am I dreaming?" she pinches her arm. "Ow!"

"Lilly, you're not dreaming. It's really me, in the flesh." Aaron mocked from the doorway.

"Hey, Dorothy. Why don't you catch the next tornado to hell." Lillian said throwing a steak knife at Aaron.

"Nice throw," he said catching it with rapid reflexes, "to bad I was expecting it."

"Aaron! Oh my god, Lilly. That's dangerous I said running over to Aaron to make sure he was okay, when I saw the first drip of blood.

"Rebbecca, you're gonna have to get use to this. Watch, when you open his hand, there will be absolutely no sign of a cut." The mysterious boy was back, but now he looked more like an 18 year old.

"Wait, what?" I opened his hand that held the knife and noticed that there was no sign of the incident that I just witnessed.

"Don't worry I'll let Aaron explain everything to you." Who was this mysterious boy and how did he know so much?

"Hey, Alec. Why don't you let me show everything so that she doesn't wanna run away?" Lillian spoke up.

"Alec?" I asked.

"Ha! So now you know what it feels like not knowing someone!" Aaron accused.

"Actually, if I'm not mistaken, Rebbecca here knows both of you guys."

"She does? How?" Aaron said.

"Aaron, do remember how I used to tell you how I couldn't make a Lilly girl believe I was dead?"

"Oh, yeah. But what does that have to do with her?"

"This is that Lilly." Alec said, "now, why don't you take her to see her brothers and get acquainted with her new room?"

"Okay, will do. Downstairs, on the right, right?"

"Yes. Now Lillian, I would like to do some recording if that's okay with you?"

When we left the room I asked Aaron about the "recording" that Alec talked about and he only said he would tell me when we got to my room.

*************************************************************************************************


"Rebby! Where were you? Did you meet Alec? He's really nice!" My brother Lucas bombarded me with questions while Carter just hugged me.

I smiled and got down on my knees, they probably had no idea that mom and Landon were dead and evil spirits were seemingly out to kill us, too. Would they be mad if I explained that our family was dead? Lucas was 14 so he would go through a stage of depression I'm sure. But Carter was 10 and he would cry all the time, he can be emotional some times.

"I love you guys, you know that right?" I said as I put my arms around my brothers waists. They towered over me since I was still on my knees.

"Of course we do, Ray." Carter said kissing me on the cheek. He called me Ray and Lucas called me Rebby. Rebby was my most commonly used nickname.

"We love you, too, Rebby." Lucas said, he was at the age where kissing girls was gross unless she was a girlfriend.
I smiled and kissed both the boys on the cheeks and stood up, I tried to act like it didn't bother me that Lucas wiped the kiss away. He did the same thing when our mom used to kiss him in the morning before school.

"Wanna see my room? Alec said I can paint it if I want." Cater and Lucas said in unison.

"Sure, who first?" I let them fight while I went over to where Aaron was staring in amazement. "What's wrong with you?"

Aaron just kept staring, he looked almost like a manikin. I was about to wave my hand in front of his face when he grabbed my wrist, "hey guys, we'll be back in 'bout half an hour so your sister can see your rooms."

When we got downstairs he let go of my wrist, "Ow. What was that for?" I said.

He opened the door to the room on the right and shloved me in. "We need to talk in privacy."

"Okay? What's up?" I asked sitting on the bed. The room was extravagant in an old fashioned way.

"Pay attention, Rebbecca. Alec hasn't told your brothers about your parents. He's testing you to see how well you will do in this house. Lilly told me with no problem, that's why she's his favorite. If you make Alec tell them, you'll end up like me." Aaron was completely serious now.

"You sound like it's a death sentence. 'You only have four hours to live' kinda thing." I laughed then felt like someone stabbed me in the stomach.

"What's wrong?" Aaron sat next to me.

"Can't. Breathe." I muttered. I screamed in pain, then everything went black.

"Is she awake, yet?" a woman's voice echoed through my sensitive ears as weight was applied to my left leg. Was it a weight or was I just feeling things?

"No, I was explaining how she shouldn't worry so much about her brothers and she looked like someone through a brick at her." That was Aaron, somehow I knew the pitch of his voice and it really stuck out to me.

"I'm in the recording studio for 10 minutes and something happens to Rebbecca, why doesn't that surprise me? She always was such a klutz." Lillian. Who else would talk about me while I could be dead.

"Lillian, I thought she was your friend?" a man's voice inquired.

"I have no doubt she can hear you. I mean seriously Lillian, she's looking straight at you." Aaron tested. Were my eyes open? If so, why couldn't I see anything?

"I can't see anything." I sounded weak and so quiet I doubted anyone could hear me.

"Rebbecca, hunny? Can you hear me?" It was the woman, again.

I tried to nod because talking hurt but moving felt like death.

"Don't move. She's almost completed the process." Who was this woman and what was "the process"?

The door opened and shut, "don't worry about what it is until we have figured out what happened." Alec's voice now sounded as if it were inside my head. "Just take a deep breath and drink this." I felt something cold touch my lips and when I parted them there was liquid in my mouth and the thing was remloved. I felt myself blink and my vision slowly came back. The woman was wearing a purple dress and closely resembled my mother while the man was wearing swimming trunks and a volcom sweatshirt even though he looked about 35 years old.

"That's my girl," Alec and Aaron said at the same time then looked at each other.

"Actually, she's my girl," Lillian said, "ignore those two idiots, how are you?"

"Better," my voice was instantly strong and so loud it scared me.

"Don't worry, it's part of the process." Alec stammered, still staring at Aaron.

I sat up, "would everybody please leave? I would like to speak with Alec, alone."

"Should I be scared?" Alec asked once everybody had piled out of the room.

"Why were you in my head? How can you hear my thoughts? What the hell is the process?!?"

"Um, well, I don't know how to explain it-"

"Well, you better figure out and quick because if you don't I'm leaving and taking my brothers with me."

"You can't! I mean, no, please don't." Alec seemed real intent on keeping me here.

I walked to the door and said, "If you want me to stay send Aaron in, please."

"Why? He's no help in these situations." Alec stood up and strolled loved to my side.

"Well, somehow he actually calms me down." I didn't realize how true it was until I said it.

Alec kissed me on the cheek, "if you insist. I'll be upstairs if you need a big brother to laugh with."

"Thanks, Alec." I hugged him then sent him out. Maybe I can trust him, I mean, he seems to know his stuff.

I walked around and examined the room, there has to be a camera somewhere. I noticed an easel sitting next to a window, what's that doing in here? Most of the things in here were from my room at home, but how? Is it possible that Alec grabbed everything when he rescued my brothers?

The door creaked open and I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Wow, jumpy much?" Aaron laughed. He wasn't alone though. Another boy, about 17, stood awkwardly behind him. He kind of reminded me of the old children's show, Spongebob Squarepants. "Oh, yeah. This is Nick, he and his sister are new here. Same thing happened to them tonight." I noticed that the spongebob kid seemed sad but now I knew I had to give him a hug. I go up and give him a big hug and tell him that I witnessed the same thing.

"Nick? Are you down here?" A girls voice echoed down the hall.

"He's in here, Melissa." Aaron said. Nick and I still in an embrace.

"Okay," the girl I presumed to be Melissa said as she walked in. She was blond with bright blue, bloodshot eyes. She must've been crying and trying to hide it now. "Who's she and why is my brother snotting all over her?"

"I'm Rebbecca and it's okay I lost my parents tonight to and I was welcomed by some idiot." I say winking at Aaron.

"I'm sorry, I just really needed a hug." Nick cried.

"It's aight. I understand how you must feel. I witnessed my mom being torn to shreds then my step-dad. I would've been next if Alec wouldn't have helped me." I explain.

"Oh, Nick witnessed it then told me. When I was about to go outside, Asherah stopped me." Melissa mentioned Asherah, why did that name sound familiar?

"Ray, are you feeling okay?" Aaron asked.

I tried to tell him I was fine but nothing came out of my mouth.