Prologue
A crash. That’s what they called it. A car crash. They didn’t mention how the girl’s parents really died and that they were murdered by an order from the king himself. They didn’t say that her parents were good people. They didn’t say how they saved her and others. They covered it all up with a car crash.
The girl wraps her arms around herself and lets the tears flow down, only because she knows she’s alone. She rocks back and forth and silently prays that this is all a dream, but knows that it will never, ever be true.
The girl recalls the moment her parents were both killed. Her parents were talking in the park, doing nothing harmful and they came out of nowhere, the boy and the two men. She remembers her mother’s voice telling her to run as her father hides her somewhere safe. She still hears the shots ringing out and the order for them to be put in a car and have the deaths covered up. She still has the boy’s laughter fill up her ears as each shot is fired.
“Get up. Get up. Get up!” A female voice from above the girl orders. “There’s no time to mourn, we are on a time limit.” She looks up at the woman and notices that she’s just under twenty and really pretty. The woman’s blond hair glints in the sun and frames her pale face, with her blue eyes being the most compelling feature of it.
“Let’s go.” She says, and without a choice the girl follows her to wherever it is they’re meant to be.
There’s a truck up ahead with an open door, so the woman pulls the girl inside the truck and curses under her breath. The girl realizes that it’s because of a police vehicle that is coming their way.
“Drive, Himi, drive!” The woman yells to the driver, who obliges.
“Captain,” a girl from beside her whispers. “We have two tails. One to the right of us and another one behind.”
“Okay.” The woman who picked the girl up, and seems to be the captain, thinks for a moment. “Himi, swerve onto the lane on our left and turn into the alleyway.” “Ma’am, the map says it’s a dead end.”
“Exactly.” The captain smiles. “Buckle your seatbelts, everyone.”
The truck turns onto the alleyway and one car follows. The other has to keep going straight due to the fact that they were in the wrong lane.
“Give me the wheel.” The driver get’s up and swaps seats with the captain.
The captain turns the car around and the unexpected happens. The car comes towards them and she uses a cardboard box as a ramp to fly over the other car and back onto the street. The girl hears a crash behind them and thinks to herself.
“Now that’s a real car crash.” The girl hears herself saying.
Registering what she just said, the girl clamps her hand over her mouth as the eyes in the car turn to her.
“Oh, girls, I forgot to tell you all about the recruit.” The captain says. “Who are you, sweetheart?”
The girl sweats and thinks about the attention that’s directed at her. She worries that she might say something wrong and decides to keep it simple.
“I’m Luciana Sparx from the planet of Lexter. Age twelve.”
