Night World : Black Dawn Chapter 1

Maggie Neely woke up to the sound of her mother sidesplitter.Shed at rest(p) to bed as usual, with Jake the GreatDane sprawled heavily across her feet and the threecats jockeying for position around her head. Hercheek was resting on her open geometry book there were homework papers scattered among theblankets, on with fragments of potato chips andan empty bag. She was wearing her jeans and a flowered pajama top convinced(p) the only two socks shedbeen able to find last night angiotensin-converting enzyme red velveteen anklet and one blue cotton slouch sock.Those crabbed socks would eventually meanthe difference between life and death for her, but at the moment Maggie had no idea of that.She was simply startled and disoriented frombeing wakened suddenly. Shed never heard thiskind of screaming in advance, and she wondered howshe could be so certain it was her mother doing it.Something slumpfully bad is happening, Maggierealized slowly. The worst. The clock on her nightstand sai d 211A.M.And then before she even realized she was moving, she was lurching across her bedroom floor,with piles of dirtyclothes and sports equipmenttrying to trip her up. She banged her skin on a wastebasket in the middle of the roomand ploughed right on through. The hallway was dim,but the living room at the end was crying(a) withlight and the screams were coming from there.Jake trotted along beside her. When they got tothe foyer by the living room he gave a half growl,half bark.Maggie took in the whole scene in a glance. Itwas one of those moments when everythingchanges forever.The front door was open, letting in the cold airof a November night in Washington. Maggies father was wearing a short bathrobe and place hermother, who was pulling and tearing at him as ifshe were trying to get away, screaming breathlesslyall the while. And in the doorway four people were standing two sheriffs, a National Park ranger, and Sylvia Weald.Sylvia. Her brother Miless girlfriend.And knowledge h it her quick and hardasa spirt blow.My brother is dead, Maggie thought.