Rose's parents tell her to hide in a cupboard in the dining room because, according to them, they're going to be playing a game of hide and seek. But this isn't the usual hide-and-seek game they play all the time.
This is more crucial, more than just a game a child plays. In this case, Rose is told to hide and not come out until the coast is clear. She doesn't question it because her mom looks serious, and she cast a spell on the cupboard, so that means she should take her mother's request very seriously.
Rose didn't know her existence was a threat until her parents sat her down and told her about her being extraordinary, not like the other kids.
Rose is part witch and part werewolf, which is something that should never happen. She's seen as an abomination, a force against nature, and there are many people, scared people, who are afraid and want her dead.
The person who's on his way doesn't want Rose dead, though; this man wants Rose to join the alliance because he's just like her. A hybrid. It would be nice for Rose to be with someone who is just like her, but this man is not the kind of man you leave little girls with.
He's evil.
And Rose's parents would rather die trying to protect Rose from this evil than to see him take away their baby.
So Rose's mother instructs her to stay put in the cupboard with her stuffed animal friend, Mr Ziggy the Zebra. She tells Rose not to make a single sound and she shouldn't come out until she says so or if it goes quiet.
Rose nods out of fear because she can sense the fear in her mother's eyes, in both parents, actually. She knows something evil is coming for her.
Rose has no choice but to obey her mother, but then again, she's not just scared for herself; she's scared for her parents, too. Because what if this man harms them? Then what will she do?
Rose goes into the cupboard. Rose takes a good look at her mother one last time.
A beautiful woman, she is, deep brown skin, full lips and long curly hair; she got more of her mother's looks than her father's, but while her mom's nose is bigger, her father's is much smaller, just like hers. That's the only thing she inherited from him.
She also inherited his werewolf abilities and her mother's witchy powers, which she's never learned how to perfect yet. But hopefully her mother will teach her after that evil man is dealt with.
Rose's mother closes the doors to the cupboards, and Rose squeezes Mr Ziggy and stays put when she hears what seems to be an explosion or a crash.
It sounded like the door got kicked down.
"Get out of my home!" She hears her father growl, and then there are more thuds and crashes. A fight is going on.
Rose wishes she could see the whole thing, but she has to obey her mother and stay still. She does look through the gaping hole in the cupboard to see if she can get a glimpse of what is happening.
She can, a little bit.
Her heart beats as fast as lightning as she hears what's going on. She hears her mother's screams, she sees the lights flicker and the dining table where they all eat together as a family is destroyed.
She hears her dad growl like a wolf; it feels like he's been the one doing all the heavy lifting. She doesn't know what to do; maybe if she had learned magic, she would have helped her parents.
There's more groaning, moaning, whimpering and screaming.
Her mother crashes into a glass table. Rose quickly, but quietly, tries to look for her dad, and she finally finds him. He's being lifted in the air by the person they're fighting, and her dad does his best to get down.
She can't see the man that they're fighting, but he's very tall.
"You think you can defeat me?" the man says, his voice icy, his accent foreign, and he's obviously not from around here.
He laughs, and that laughter sounds like someone who has won the battle. That laugh puts fear in her chest. If she makes a move, she's going to get killed.
But she doesn't just want to stay here; she doesn't want her dad to die.
"You silly mutt, you will never defeat me," the villain snaps her father's throat, and he falls to the ground.
A scream almost slips from Rose's mouth, but she closes it immediately. Tears roll down her cheeks.
"NO!" Her mother cries viciously and loudly, moving closer to the man she was never meant to fall in love with. She holds him close, and Rose just wants to get out of this closet and hold him close, too.
"YOU MONSTER!" Rose can see flashes of different colours, and she hears things getting destroyed. She's using magic, and Rose knows the man is using magic as well to defend himself.
Something is itching in her to do something about this, but what can she do? She doesn't have magic, and her werewolf abilities don't come in until she's thirteen years old, fourteen for boys.
She feels weak, useless. This man killed her dad, and he deserves to be punished. She no longer feels sad; she's angry and wants to get even.
A scream makes Rose flinch, and there's silence; there's no more screaming. Her mother's heart is ripped off her chest, and the heart glows a bright pink.
Rose watches as her mom falls to the ground through the space between the cupboards. She lies on top of her father.
That's it, both her parents are gone, she's officially an orphan, and this man has won; the only way to not make him win fully is to stay still and make sure he doesn't find her.
She cries, a lump in her throat, and her eyes sting. She doesn't want to make a sound; this is not the time to cry like a child. She closes her mouth and moves backwards, but she accidentally hits the board, and she gasps.
"Oh, someone is here," the man says, and Rose begins to tremble. How stupid can she be? She should never have moved. But now she stays still like a statue. "I know you're here, little one. Don't be afraid."
She has to be; this man murdered her parents. She's not going to give him the satisfaction of catching her.
"Ah, there you are," the evil man says and confused little Rose looks from left to right, wondering where the cupboard she was in disappeared to. Her parents did say that he is a witch and a vampire, and he probably used magic to make the cupboard disappear.
"There you are, little one," the man says, trying to sound innocent and approachable. Maybe if she didn't see him kill her parents, she would have fallen for his trick, but she saw him brutally murder them.
This man is viciously beautiful. His hair is long and white as snow, his nails long but not as long as her father's claws. His lips are full and pink, his cheekbones are high and fits the vibe he gives
It's his eyes that attract Rose the most, silver in colour, very striking and mesmerising.
He's beautiful, no doubt, but his beauty is cruel as hell.
"Don't be afraid, I can help you. All you have to do is stick by me, and you will be the most powerful being on this earth." his hand is stretched out waiting for her to grab it.
But she doesn't want to.
She doesn't want to be the most powerful being on this earth, even though, realistically, she is; she wants her parents.
But it does look tempting.
Right before she chooses to answer, something colourful blasts him to the side.
"STAY AWAY FROM HER!" A black man with claws and golden eyes just like her father's grits his teeth; he even looks like her dad, too.
A man stands next to him; he's younger, and he's a witch. He's the one who cast that spell. The two men lounge toward the evil hybrid man, and they deal with him. Rose watches them fight him.
"Hey." Another voice gets her attention. She looks to see a pretty, brown-skinned lady with long braids smiling at her.
"I'm your Aunt Megan, I'm family, and I'm here to get you out of here," she says in a soft, soothing voice.
Aunt? Family? She didn't know that she had other relatives; she had asked her parents if she had other relatives countlessly, and they never answered the question or they'd change the subject.
"Come, don't look at them, look at me, I'll get you out of here." Rose doesn't know why, but she trusts her. Her eyes glow a golden colour briefly, and suddenly, Rose can feel what she feels; she is to be trusted.
Rose spreads her arms for her to take her away from this house, and she goes along with Mr Ziggy as well.
"There you go. You're very heavy," she looks at her parents one last time, and then her eyes move to the evil hybrid. The werewolf who looks like her dad holds him, while his partner creates a ball of fire and destroys the hybrid. There's screaming, lots of screaming.
Rose doesn't cover her ears; she likes to hear the scream of the person who killed her parents.
And at this point, she would love to hear the screams of evil people who do wrong to good people.
Turns out the black man is her uncle Christian, her dad's older brother and Aunt Megan is his wife. They agree to take Rose in, and they take her to a town in New York called Cupid's Hollow.
That's where her parents were raised, and that's where she's going to be living.
The car drives past a neon sign.
Welcome To Cupid's Hollow.
Where everyone has their happily ever after.
The sign is surrounded by two cupids holding an arrow.
Her new home is a mansion in the woods, and she has a cousin, Derek, who is way older than her.
"Hi, I'm Derek," he says enthusiastically.
Rose says hi back.
"Welcome to your new home, Rose." Her uncle says.
Rose is damn well sure that she's not going to be weak ever again, and she's going to do her best to protect the innocent from monsters like the man who killed her parents.
This is the start of a new era for a girl who is scarred for life.