“Damn!” I muttered, hitting my head yet again on the ceiling of the vent. I had started counting how many times I had done that, but I had lost count more than a few minutes ago. And that was just my head, not my knees or arms or elbows. I even hit my stomach; how the hell did you hit your stomach when you’re doing what I’m doing?!

“Owwwww,” I moaned. “Why do I always hurt myself somehow?” I thought about what I said. Maybe I would be hurting myself more than I thought by leaving the house, but it was the choice I took, so I’d just have to live with it. Even if it was a short time to live.

I had been crawling along this small, cold metal vent for who knows how long, hitting which ever part of my body that had even a slight chance of bumping the side of the small square.

“Some would call this torture. Look on the bright side; I call it adventure,” I mumbled to myself. Maybe if I tried to make it look better than it really was, I would get out without seriously wondering if I should’ve stayed.

After I had crawled forward a few feet when I first got in, it had become totally dark. For a while I couldn’t see where I was placing my hands. Lucky for me, I wasn’t scared of spiders or any other small animals that might be roaming around in the vent with me. I had gotten over the fear when I had forced myself to pick up a wolf spider that had gotten stuck in my bathroom sink so I could put it back outside. I almost brought myself to tears because I was so scared, but when the spider curled up in a ball, I had realized that it was far more scared than I was. So I sucked it up, all for a spider. And I got away without it biting me.

While being in the dark, though, my eyes quickly got used to the lack of light, which might’ve been a little quicker of a time than for other people. I had always had the lights off in my room unless I really needed to see, so my eyes were well trained for this type of lighting.

I watched my hands fall on the metal as I moved forward, a slight blue tint to the blackness. So far, I had been traveling in a generally straight line, tilted upward a little bit.

I was beginning to think that this would go on forever. I knew for sure that I was no longer under Damien’s house, let alone anywhere around it. I just hoped that the exit would be close to a city or town. Maybe I could get a bed or some food. I had been working on how to do that once I got out, seeing as how I only had a few dollars that had stayed with me through my experiences.

And my iPod, always my iPod. I wouldn’t leave anywhere without it.

“Ah, something different,” I mumbled, seeing a turn in the metal square I was in. “I wonder where this will go.” I kept crawling along, following the bend.

Maybe it was just me, but I thought I heard a car somewhere above me. I wondered if I should backtrack and think about where this would lead if I ended up under a road.

Well, this was a vent tunnel I was in, not a sewer, or at least I hoped to God it wasn’t, so I didn’t know why I would turn into a manhole.

I crawled along, settling on the fact that I wouldn’t get out of this until I got to the exit. As time went by, I could hear more and more cars running by. Not like there was a highway above me, but the road seemed to be well used by a few people.

The vent kept its steady upward turn and I thought I would get to the end of this maze soon. It took a few more minutes than I thought it would, but I came to the end of the small metal cage.

Of course, I wasn’t paying too much attention and ran into it with my face. I pulled back abruptly, hitting my head on the ceiling again. I pulled my hands up to grasp my head and hit both my elbows. Now I had nothing supporting the front part of my body, and everything from my ribs up hit the metal floor with a loud and painful bang!

I took a deep breath. “OW!” I said, holding a hand out to keep me up and massaging my head with the other. “Damn, so glad that I’m getting out of here. I hurt myself more on my own than when I’m with people who actually want to hurt me. Damn.” Ah, irony. If everything else left me, it would keep me company forever. That and sarcasm, always sarcasm.

I sat on my legs so I could us my hands to push the vent out, which made me bend my back in a very painful way. I couldn’t wait to get out.

Ah, but no. I couldn’t get out, not yet. I had to use all my strength to force open the end of the vent. I guessed that no one had bothered with it for quite a few years, so there was probably lots of rust around it.

But rust wouldn’t stop me from getting out. I pushed against the gate, cutting my hands open in a few places. I would’ve worried more if they were deeper or had bled longer, but they were as harmful as a kitten’s playful scratch. It didn’t really hurt, but my face was starting to burn where I had hit the vent.

I took a small break from trying to get it open and touched my face. Just as I had thought, there was a nice long cut on my cheek, running from the beginning of my cheekbone and almost all the way to my ear. Blood was still dribbling down my face, but the cut seemed so small that I didn’t think that it mattered much. My hands had stopped bleeding, so maybe this would just take a little longer. I didn’t worry about it.

After a little more work, I decided it just might be better to kick it out. I was about to go with that plan when one final shove on the gate sent it flying across the ground. I smiled with satisfaction and also that I didn’t have to go through the pain of turning around in the vent again.

I crawled out onto the ground, which was grassy and a little wet, like it had rained just a few minutes ago. The air was cool and though it was getting dark, I could see clouds covering the sky; there was only gray, you couldn’t see any blue.

I pulled the other half of my body out and stood up and stretched, inhaling the smell of the grass and rain around me. I smiled. I loved this type of weather, rain always made me happy.

My spine had taken quite a beating during my time in the vent tunnel. It hurt to bend over to touch my toes. Slowly, so I wouldn’t hurt myself any more, I straightened my back then arched it. It felt so good each time my back cracked. I could feel each individual vertebrae separating from its neighbors, bending backwards as it stretched. I felt so much better with my back all cracked. I twisted my hips with my arms wide to exercise my arms.

When I was done, my body felt like it had just gotten done with a brutal spa treatment. I felt good, but I still hurt. I decided that it would be a good thing to try and figure out what all was around me; I had given up hope about knowing where I was long ago.

There was a small road about 50 feet behind where the vent exit was. In front of the vent were just lots of grass with smooth hills and a few trees.

A car passed by, heading toward the small town that seemed a mile or two up the road.

Although it looked later, it was only late afternoon. I knew the sun was still up in the sky somewhere behind the clouds.

“Well, I’m not gonna get anywhere by just standing here and hoping that a rabbit that crosses my path will tell me what to do,” I said to myself. Actually I thought that it would mean something very bad if a rabbit started talking to me, so I got walking. That would be a strange version of Alice in Wonderland.

Oh. That reminded me of my comparison to my choice to a stupid movie girl. Well, so far my choice hadn’t been too horrible, just a few cuts and bruises all over me. Eh, better me than anyone else though.

Then I remembered Damien’s family. I wondered how they had handled. I didn’t think they would give up at all, but maybe they had been beaten. What would happen to them all? What about Arianna? Did they find her or would she come out and realize her family was gone or . . . or worse?

I didn’t like thinking about that. Feeling like they had almost killed themselves for me. Would they be angry if they came down to the basement, bruised and bloody, just to find that I had done my disappearing act? They would think that they had done all of that for nothing, and I couldn’t blame them.

But it was my choice, be it right or wrong. I had told myself before that I would live with it, and it’s not like I had a chance to change that fact.

Besides, I didn’t honestly think that they would lose so easily. All the boys and Jessica were strong, and they would put up a huge fight before they even thought about losing. It’s not like they would give in, either. So I had nothing to worry about.

And I did try my best to force it out of my head for the next two miles or so, but it somehow found a way to worm itself back into my thoughts. But after a while of walking, my mind got numb, not really thinking of anything in particular, so I was released of Damien’s family’s hold on my mind, at least for now.

I had taken my time walking, so it was a bit later than I thought it would be when I got to the town. I had gotten a few whistles, hollers, yells, and even one or two fingers while I was walking, but I didn’t even acknowledge any of them; I was too tired to.

However, now that I was in the town, with a few people walking along the streets still, my senses were put a little more on high alert. I never did well around people, and I don’t think that my ripped clothing really helped me too much.

I got a few stares from people, some worried, some disgusted, but I ignored them all. I just wanted to sit down and rest. I thought that I had earned it.

Thankfully, this was a rather small town. I had only walked a few blocks in and found just what I was looking for; a park. Not one of the parks parents bring their kids to. No, it was one of the ones for taking a stroll around the path, sitting on the benches, and playing around in the water that seemed to go from one end of the park to the other in an elegant S shape with a few bumps to make it look a little bit natural. There were trees providing shade everywhere, not that there was a sun to hide from. Some flower bushes were scattered around.

I decided to sit on a bench right next to a red rose bush and a well grown oak tree behind me. There wasn’t anyone around me, so I relaxed. I sprawled across the bench, inhaling the soft smell of the roses after the rain. Happily, the bench wasn’t wet at all, thanks to the protective oak tree; I promised myself to give it a hug before I left.

I was very close to falling asleep. My arm was over my eyes to block out the light and although it wasn’t a giant mattress with a pillow cover-top, it was far more comfortable than the stupid vent I had spent my day in.

Something very smooth and soft lightly touched my lips and stayed there. I thought at first that it was a person, but I probably would’ve heard them come. I took my arm off my eyes and picked up whatever was on my lips and brought it to my eyes to see what it was.

It was a rose petal.

I turned around. The bush was right behind me, the stalks bending slightly because of the weight of the flowers and there was a slight wind. I noticed that one of the flowers seemed to be missing something. I held the petal up to it and it looked normal. I sighed and dropped the petal below the rose bush.

I pushed myself up and looked around. Not much had changed at all, maybe getting a little darker, but that was it. I had thought about it and knew that I couldn’t sleep on the bench for the night. I wondered if I could possibly stay the night at a very cheap motel. If there was one here.

I didn’t want to take my chances. If I got tired and didn’t find one, then I’d just be out of luck. So maybe it would be a good thing to have a little something to keep me awake.

Okay, I guess I should go find a coffee shop or something around here. A little caffeine never did any harm to someone in my situation. Besides, if I don’t find a place it’ll help me stay up so that no one tries to kill me in my sleep, I thought.

I started walking away from the bench when a cold burst of wind hit me. It wasn’t the type of winds where leaves go flying around, just a small breeze, but it was freezing cold. My shirt didn’t help me keep myself warm.

Right. Coffee, look for a bed, new shirt, I noted in my head. It might also be a good idea to get the bandages off of me, but right now it was saving the town’s people’s eyes from a gruesome sight.

The coffee shop wasn’t hard to find. It was just across the street from the park. I walked in, enjoying the warm flow of air as it surrounded me. I walked up to the counter and ordered a warm drink with an extra shot of espresso to help keep me awake. When I reached into my back pocket to get the money to pay for the somewhat pricey drink, I realized that I had a few cards in there as well. I paid with cash then looked over the cards as I waited for my drink.

Thank God I had thought ahead when I dashed out of my house for the last time. I had two of my mother’s debit cards, and the other one was her credit card. I was also happy that she had no idea how many cards, debit or credit, she owned, so she probably wouldn’t realize these were gone until I had used them up. I smiled and thought of the shopping sprees I could go on with these.

Even better for me, I knew the PIN number to every card that she had. I had handled most of the financial stuff back at home. Although I didn’t really even know for sure what my mother did, she got a lot of money for it. She just did something in an office cubical for a few hours each day, then came home with a big pay check. So she didn’t think her money would ever run out.

Well, let’s see how that goes when I’m not there. I always paid the bills with your money, so you’ll probably be lost unless that asshole you’re dating knows what to do, I said to myself in my head with a smile. My drink came up and I took it happily, watching the steam come out before taking a small sip. Although it burned my tongue, I could tell it was well worth the price.

I made my way over to one of the giant chairs that they had, the ones you would think people would actually have in their homes, not this coffee shop. I didn’t know about the rest of the town, but I already loved the coffee shop. I sank down into the chair a little and took another sip of my coffee.

I started thinking about where I would look to find a place to stay for the night. With debit and credit cards, it wouldn’t be as hard as I thought it would be to get a place. But I didn’t want to use them on the slight chance that my mother or her abusive boyfriend had decided to start tracking all purchases. If I got a hotel, then they would know I’d be there for at least a few hours. If they wanted to get me back to torture me back at home, they could probably get down here in no time.

I kept thinking about it for a few minutes, my mind going in circles; not enough cash, use the card, being tracked, use cash, not enough cash, and so one. I could see no way out of it.

I was deep in thought trying to figure out what to do when someone sat down right next to me. I snapped my head up and looked at the person a little suspiciously; why sit next to me when there were more chairs far from me. But the look on their face was bright and happy, hoping to help me out.

She was very beautiful, that was the first thing I noticed. She had rich blonde hair that had a slight wave and ended a few inches below her shoulders. Her hair wasn’t thin at all, bumping out a little bit because of the natural volume of it. Her eyes were a clear blue, not quite as bright as mine, but more than average. Mascara made her eyelashes look long and thick and a small amount of black eyeliner really made her eyes pop. Her lips were a bit big, but at least she knew how to dress them up, shining light pink lip gloss evenly covering her lips. She wore a semi-fancy white shirt with a black string tied around the collar on her neck.

I raised my eyebrows at her, unsure of what she wanted. Right now she was only smiling sweetly at me. She had some coffee of her own in her hand, her well-manicured hands holding the cup somewhat delicately.

“Hi!” she said, deciding to start the conversation a few seconds late. “You look like you’re thinking pretty hard there.” Her voice was pretty, but if she tried to get a southern accent then she might sound very stupid. It was like she was talking to a kid or something.

“Yes, I am thinking. But right now I’m trying to figure out why my thoughts would concern you,” I said politely though my undertone was harsh. Why did she care, exactly?

She looked a little scared that I might’ve been offended, and I guess she didn’t want that. She moved her head away from me a bit and her eyes got a bit bigger. “Oh, I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be rude or creepy. I’m not one of those creepers out on the street that want a pretty girl like you to entertain them. No, I’m very much into men, so please don’t think-!”

I held up my hand, a smile on my face; I had kept myself from laughing, though, and that was the goal. “Okay, okay, I believe you. Don’t worry I wasn’t worried about that. But seriously, why are you talking to me?” I asked her, being a little friendlier with her. She was clearly a bit of a ditz that would keep talking if they got sidetracked. It wasn’t her fault, and besides, I did that sometimes, too.

“Oh right!” she said, perking up with a smile. “Well, you look really young, I’m guessing around 17 or somewhere around there. And I don’t see anyone with you, and you look like you’ve had a pretty rough time,” she said, pointing at my wrapped stomach and the cuts on my arms and legs. “Anyway, I haven’t seen you around here, so you must be new. And if you had someone with you, I don’t think they’d just take off.”

“Ha, well okay, that’s true,” I admitted. “Yeah, I just got in here, and no one’s with me.” That was kinda the point of leaving the place I was in, though.

“And I’m guessing you don’t have anywhere to stay?” I glanced at her and her eyes lit up, happy that she had guessed right; maybe she wasn’t as much of a ditz as I had thought she was. She held out her hand and said, “My name’s Emily Greene.”

Her silver-glittering nails waited for my hand. I reached over slowly, not quite sure what I was getting myself into, saying, “Twilight Night.”

“Oh, I light that name!” and she was back to the ditz. Huh, what a strange person. “Well, I was wondering if you wanted to maybe stay at my place? Like I said before, I don’t want . . . you, I just want to know that you’ll be safe for the night. Please don’t turn me down just because you don’t know me; you can have a whole room to yourself. There’s a lock on the door and no keyhole on the outside.”

I thought about it. A bed, a room to myself, a place to sleep that was warm, a lock if I really didn’t trust her. And she actually seemed like she was worried about me. Her eyes were getting all big and worried, and I could usually tell when someone was faking something, and she’d been very genuine about everything so far.

“Well, do you have any roommates that might not be very happy about someone like me staying for the night?” I asked cautiously.

She smiled, happy that I had at least considered it. “Nope, no roommates! Well, actually. . . Um, well, you see,” she said, taking a quick sip of her coffee, “the best way to describe the place I live in would be like a dorm, but I don’t go to college. I work for someone in his house, and in exchange he gives us a place to stay. Oh no! Not that type of work, no,” she said with shocked eyes as she saw my reaction to her description of working for the guy.

“No, I work as a maid there. It’s a big house and needs to be cleaned a lot. And he always has parties with his friends, so there’s always something to clean. About ten or so girl work there, some are maids like me, others organize all the stuff he does, one or two are chauffeurs, and there’s one personal assistant. The rooms are all really nice, he makes sure that we’re comfortable and there’s a spare room incase someone’s visiting one of the girls or for something like this,” she said with a smile.

“There’s only one thing about it,” she said reluctantly. “Since you aren’t visiting, then you’ll have to work tomorrow to pay off for the bed. I would tell him that you’re my sister or something to get you in for the night, but I’m a really bad liar. He can tell every time I try,” she made a pouty face as she said it. “But I guess as long as you’re okay with working the next day, then it’s up to you. Oh, and since I brought you, then you’ll just help me around his house.”

“Is there a certain dress code while working?” I asked. I actually didn’t mind cleaning, it helped clear my mind.

“Well, it just has to be nice, like this,” she motioned at herself. “And we have a small girl, so you can probably borrow some clothes from her. I don’t think you’d be able to work in the clothes you have on right now,” she said with a giggle.

“Alright fine. But one more question: how old are you, and the other girls?”

“Yay! Well, I’m 20, almost 21,” she said with a smile, “and the other girls are from 19 to I think 23.”

“And how old is the guy you work for?” I asked.

“Um, 26 I think he said?” she said slowly, looking up and biting her lip.

Ah. So I’d be the youngest, hands down. Well, as long as he didn’t take any “extra” interest in me, it’d be fine. I was worried that my bad luck would be passed on to Emily, but she was a human. So far my bad luck had only touched those other than normal, excluding Jessica and Arianna. However, they did live with werewolves.

We cleared a few more things up. Apparently, Emily didn’t call her boss Mr. (Last Name Here), but Master. All of the girls in the house did. I was getting a bad feeling about him. But she said that the girls called him that because he had asked them to, but it was their choice. He had given them all a place to stay and a good job, so they all owed him a lot.

We left the coffee shop and started to walk to the house. Emily said that it was only about five blocks away, so it shouldn’t take too long. She explained that the girls had their own two-story house a short walk away from Master’s house. They had their own kitchen, living room, big bathrooms, and what sounded like well-sized rooms. There was even a hot tub in the back incase they wanted to relax a little. She said there were about 7 bathrooms, all with showers and tubs because the girls would argue if all of them were taken up when she needed to take a shower or something.

Finally, we got to the house. She showed me my room and said she’d wake me up in the morning. She left and I kicked off my shoes, got out of my torn up clothes and crawled into the warm bed after locking the door securely. I didn’t think I had to worry about someone sneaking in at night.

And with that, I nestled into the warm bed, falling asleep quickly and peacefully.