Daya

It started out as a normal night. Well, almost normal. Mother had been acting strange for the past month. That was about the time we stopped watching the news. I wanted to find out what was wrong with Mother. She was always so tense all the time. She had bags under her usually radiant brown eyes from lack of sleep.

This night however, was different. Mother looked more relaxed than I had seen in the past month. She was reading her book while fondly catching glimpses of me playing with my angel action figures. I looked up at her.

"Mama, can I go get something to color?" I asked.

"Yes sweetie," Mother said, brushing back a piece of her dark chestnut hair.

I stood up and put my dolls away, then climbed up the stairs to my room. I walked into my room, then reached up the striped pink wall, feeling for the light switch. I had to jump to turn the light on. I grabbed my favorite princess coloring book and my box of crayons and went to go back downstairs, when something outside my window got my attention.

It was a floating light, off in the distance and getting closer. Maybe it was a fairy!

Suddenly, the house was plunged into pitch darkness. My eyes widened and I whimpered. I was afraid of the dark.

Someone grabbed me from behind and I screamed. A soft hand covered my mouth. "Shh, child," Mother said. "We need to be quiet."

I had tears in my eyes. "Mama, what's happening?"

"It'll be fine," Mother reassured me. "We're just playing a game."

"I don't like this game," I whispered.

"I know child, but it'll be fun."

"Okay."

I allowed Mother to take my hand and lead me out of the house. We briskly walked down towards the barn. She pulled open the heavy doors, gritting her teeth. She gently pushed me inside.

She started to kick the hay on the floor all around the barn.

"Mama, what are you doing?" I asked.

She didn't reply. Her foot kicked something hollow. "Aha!" she exclaimed. "Found it!"

She cleared away the hay and opened a trapdoor. She picked me up and gently carried me down into a small, dirt tunnel, about three feet wide and five feet tall. Mother had to crouch so her head wouldn't hit the ceiling.

She closed the trapdoor behind us. I was too frightened to ask questions. I didn't like this game that we were playing.

Mother pulled out a flashlight and made her way down the tunnel, stopping every so often to check and see if I was keeping up okay.

"Mommy, I don't like this game, I want to go home!" I whimpered as tears started to pool in my eyes.

"I'm sorry angel, but we can't go home right now," Mother replied. "We'll be done soon."

I whimpered again, but continued on with Mother. The air in the tunnel was cold and smelled musty.

A loud banging sound suddenly cut through the silence. I heard faint voices.

Mother tried not to show it on her face, but I knew she was afraid. She picked up the pace, and I started to fall behind. She took my hand and together we made it to the end of the tunnel, where she opened another trapdoor and lifted me out of that horrid tunnel.

I immediately wish she hadn't. My new surroundings gave me the creeps. It was an abandoned cabin, rotting and falling apart. The roof looked like it could collapse any second. The windows were cracked and the furniture was ripped and dusty.

Mother clambered out of the tunnel and picked me up. She raced across the cabin, dust coming up with every footstep and making me sneeze.

Only until she exited through the door that was hanging off its hinges did I breathe a sigh of relief. She ran out into the crisp fall night.

I couldn't see much because I was cradled in Mother's arms, but I caught a few glimpses of the run-down cabin behind us, a forest in front of us, a meadow below, and the stars shimmering in the skies above.

Suddenly, Mother pitched forwards, and crashed to the ground, throwing me away from her at the last second.

I groaned. The meadow grass was tickling me, but I didn't dare make a movement, not even a slight one.

I chanced to look behind me and nearly cried out. Mother was trapped underneath a very tall, very scary man's boot. She tried to wriggle out from underneath it, but he was too strong.

He picked her up by her hair and her screams echoed through the night. I cringed, but still didn't move.

His friend, who had been standing next to him, laughed sadistically. "She'll sell for a pretty price on the market," he said, while stroking her chin. Mother bit him, hard enough to draw blood.

"Gwah!" he exclaimed, drawing back his hand. He shook it, and droplets of blood went soaring into the air. He raised his other hand, as if he were about to hit Mother, but the first man stopped him.

"Stop. She won't sell for as much if she has signs of abuse," he said.

The second man reluctantly put down his hand and rested it at his side. "Fine." Then he addressed Mother. "Let's go, little tiger."

"I'm not going anywhere with you," Mother spat.

"Feisty one, eh? Maybe you'll be more cooperative if we drag your daughter into this," the first man said with a leering smile.

I realized it was time to get out of there. I jumped up and spun around towards the woods. As soon as I did, I bumped into another man and toppled back down into the grass.

He grabbed my arm and pulled me up, screaming and kicking, until he kicked me, hard. The air whooshed out of my lungs and I looked at Mother, silently begging her to save me.

Mother was absolutely livid. She started to grow fur on her face and her nose morphed into a snout. What was happening to mommy?

The second man tsked. "I wouldn't do that if I were you, filthy mutt."

The third man pressed a knife against my throat. I started to cry.

Mother had a look of desperation on her face. Her face returned to normal.

"Good girl," the second man crooned.

They tied our hands and feet with rope and shoved us into separate wire cages, which were cramped and stacked on top of other cages. Some of the other cages had people in them too.

Then everything plunged into darkness as the door was slammed shut.