Read Anastasia (The Bolton Series Book 1) for Free Online Page A

slowly walked down the dimly lit stairs.
    “Lock this door once I close it. Do not open it for anyone one. Your father has a copy and we will let you both out once everything is over.” She handed the key to Simon as he passed by her. She looked at us one more time before closing the door. Simon locked it. Once it was locked the basement flooded with light. There were two cots against the wall to my right and a door to my left. I sat down on one of the cots and watched Simon pace the room.
    “What is happening, Simon?” I whispered too afraid to talk normally.
    “Someone bad is coming.”
    “I’m nineteen years old. Stop talking to me like I’m five!” I harshly replied. I did not mean to say it but I had to. Everyone needed to stop treating me as if I could not handle my own.
    “I know.” He stopped pacing and looked over at me. His eyes traced my face searching for some sort of answer I did not have. “I just can’t really explain it. Not without scaring you.”
    His face turned back to the stairs. I knew what he wanted to do, but he would not because it would mean leaving me alone and he would not be able to handle that. He had never been able to leave my side until we moved to Bolton. It was something that annoyed the heck out of me but it was also something that I loved about my big brother. He would always be there for me, always doing what was best for me.
    “Go.” I told him when I made up my mind. I could not be the reason he did not do what he wanted.
    “Annie, you know I can’t.” His sad eyes pleaded with me not to persist but I had to.
    “Yes, you can. It’s what you want to do. I may not understand what is going on up there but you obviously do. If that means you still want to go up there and help our parents then do it.”
    He looked back and forth between the staircase and me. His mind was made up. I knew that, he was just trying to find a reason to stay. But there wasn’t one.
    “Don’t open the door to anyone,” he finally let out. “Whoever needs to get you will have a key. No matter what you hear do not open the door. Do you understand, Annie?”
    “Yes,” I whispered.
    He nodded and walked over to me. His arms wrapped around my shoulders into a hug. It felt nice to have his warmth surround me but I could not shake off the feeling that this was our last hug. “We all love you Annie. Always have, always will.”
    I could not bring myself to tell him that I loved him also. It felt too much like saying goodbye and it was not. I would see him in a few hours at the most. Right?
    He let me go and walked up the steps, unlocked the door, and exited the room. I heard him move the dresser over the door. I guess mom knew what I did too or else she would have put it back herself.
    I looked over the big room. It was too quite. It felt lonesome. My whole family was above me doing who knows what and I was just sitting around. My breath started to quicken at the thoughts popping into my mind. Them, fighting off some unknown assailant, dying at the hands of others. I wanted so badly to run up the steps after Simon and tell him to stay with me, to help calm me down like he always did. I pictured him next to me whispering calming words. Soon the small panic attack was over.
    Maybe, I should be up there with them. Even though I did not have much skills or training in anything, I could be of some use. I could distract whoever was there so my family could attack them. However, the more I thought about it the more I was convinced I would just hold them back. They would spend the entire time protecting me instead of themselves.
    I forced my heavy legs to move to the cot closer to the steps and sat down. My body must still have been tired as I fell asleep soon after.
    ~*~
    When I woke up, there was nothing to tell me how much time had passed. For all I knew it could have been mere minutes. I stopped to see if I could hear anything from above. But there was no sound. I knew it wasn’t sound proof because