Prologue

****Author's note: I'm sorry I forgot to put the prologue in first - re-start here ****

Prologue

Gina pushed her hair back from her face. It was another hot day in Florida. She’d give anything to be in another state. This one was becoming suffocating but Michael loved it. He claimed to love the weather and the beaches but Gina was convinced he loved his status and wasn’t sure he could have the same status elsewhere.
“Come on, both of you, in the car.” Gina directed Kyle and Kayla like a drill sergeant. The twins silently obeyed. At least until Gina climbed into the driver’s seat.
“I don’t want to go to school.” Gina didn’t have to look to know it was Kyle. He hated school and hated it even more if Kayla wasn’t going to be there.
“Kyle, it’s just a dentist appointment. Kayla will be there in a little while. You’ll be fine.”
“But I don’t want to go without her…” Kyle cut off his words but Gina didn’t miss the tears that were threatening. Gina knew his concerns. He was bullied quite a bit at school and no matter how many times his father intervened or threatened the parents of the perpetrators the problem persisted.
“You’ll be fine, Kyle. I’ll be there in a bit.” Kayla’s words soothed Kyle’s nerves a bit but Gina didn’t bet on them changing his mind.
She was correct. “But, Kayla, I can’t do it without you.” In her rearview mirror, Gina could see Kyle wiping at his tears and Kayla holding his hands in hers speaking softly. Even though they were obviously not identical, the two looked so much alike. They both had their father’s dark skin and bright blue eyes. What Gina couldn’t figure out was why Kayla was popular and made friends and Kyle did not. Could longer hair make that much of a difference?
Gina looked behind her and finally pulled her BMW SUV out of the driveway and out onto the street. The school was on the way to the dentist. Maybe Kyle would change his mind. As she drove, Gina realized there would be no such luck. Sighing, she decided there would be no harm in bringing Kyle along. He could miss two hours of school and still do fine. His social life suffered but his grades never did.
As she drove past the school without stopping she could feel Kyle’s tension lift and his mood change. He began chattering with his sister and they talked constantly about nothing until she parked the car in front of the dentist’s office.
Thankfully the office was running on time and Kayla’s cleaning went smoothly. No cavities. Silently she thanked God. Michael would be pleased. He was strict about their diets, making sure they all ate healthy. Michael would not want his children having cavities. What if people found out? They would assume the children had bad eating habits.
“Okay, now it’s off to school and I don’t want any complaining,” Gina said and opened the back door for the kids. At one time she had regretted not having any more babies but seeing the two of them so self-sufficient made her life so much easier.
Gina was lost in thought, remembering Kyle and Kayla as babies, remembering her rough delivery that turned into an emergency C-section and how she thanked God then that they were all okay…
The car in front of her stopped short. Gina hit her brakes hard and jerked the wheel but the car in front of her seemed to follow her every move. They hit their brakes again and Gina braced herself. She yelled at the kids to brace themselves and prepared herself for the impact.
The blow was painful but at least the airbag had been there to take most of the shock. Shaking her head, she carefully pushed open the door. Was the accident her fault? She couldn’t remember. On wobbly legs, she stood to apologize to the person she had just hit.
She didn’t feel a thing but a small sting to the back of her head and she was flat on the ground. In her left hand she could feel the gravel of the road. In her right hand she felt something warm and sticky. She tried to lift her head to have a look but couldn’t. The pain made her eyes ache so she lay still.
Footsteps whirled around her but none of them stopped to check on her. Instead she saw one pair of footsteps grab Kayla out of the backseat so hard that she screamed. Gina tried to lift her hand to stop them but she couldn’t find the strength to move or yell. Another set of footsteps rushed to the first’s assistance something dark in his hands. Before taking hold of Kayla he raised the thing in his hands and two large noises sounded in the backseat of the BMW.
Gina pushed her left hand into the gravel and tried to push herself up. Her children needed her but her right hand was getting stickier. Another small sting in the side of her head and her whole world faded to black.