Prologue
Faith -The Day My World Ended
It was a normal Thursday afternoon. They were walking home from school as they usually do. Felix hated having to watch over her, but he knew if he wanted to hang out with his friends on the weekends, he had to ensure his little sister got home safely. The neighborhood they were traveling through wasn’t the best.
She stopped to admire graffiti on the side of a building. It was a rainbow over a winding river. “Not bad,” she whispered. She reached for her drawing pad and pencil and quickly sketched.
“Faith Olivia Lincoln! Get your ass moving!”
Glaring at her older brother, she stuffed her things into her backpack. “I’m going to tell Mom and Dad you cussed.”
“Great, but you have to get home first to do that.”
As they crossed the street, they heard a loud sound. Then she stopped moving, but her body trembled. It felt like the Earth shook. She would have fallen if Felix hadn’t grabbed hold of her elbow.
“What was that?” she asked.
“I don’t know. It’s too loud to be gunfire. Maybe bombs.”
Faith looked up and gasped. “Oh my God, Felix. Look at the sky!”
She watched as streaks of fire skated across the blue above. Birds caught fire and fell to the ground. Alarms sounded. People were getting out of their cars to stare up. A car beeping its horn at them got their attention.
“Hey! You kids need to seek shelter!” a woman yelled from the driver’s side.
“What’s happening?” Felix asked.
“The news reports are saying it’s a nuclear attack. We have less than fifteen minutes to seek shelter.”
“Run, Faith!” Felix pulled her along with him.
“Run where?”
He didn’t answer her but pushed her ahead of him. She shoved through the crowds of people now on the street. She did what her older brother Felix told her and ran like her life depended on it… because it did. Glancing back, she made sure that Felix was still coming. How did things go so badly, so fast?
The world was exploding all around. Those in cars were trying to get through the traffic, ignoring the laws. People not in cars were pushing and shoving one another. She tripped over something and used her hands to catch herself before hitting the sidewalk. Slowly pulling herself to her knees, she glanced back to see she had tripped over the body of an older woman.
“Oh my God! Are you okay?” She reached over to help the woman, rolling her over to her back. Blood was oozing from a gash on the woman’s forehead.
“Get up, Faith!” Felix pulled at her arm.
“But I have to help her!”
“We have to help ourselves right now!” he insisted, pulling her to her feet.
She was practically dragged over the top of the hurt woman. Guilt filled her. Felix was like a crazy person as he maneuvered them down the sidewalk.
“We’re going the wrong way to get home!” Faith yelled.
“We will not make it home!”
Suddenly, Felix stopped and looked around. He then took them toward a car abandoned partially on the sidewalk.
“Get in!”
“What? We can’t steal a car! What would Mom and Dad say?”
“They would tell us to stay alive no matter what. Now get the fuck in the car, Faith!”
