Page 1 of Nathan
Prologue
The Snake
14 Years Ago
Nathan
Holding my breath, I pressed my back against the wall and whimpered low as death crept closer. With bulging eyes, I watched the snake’s body slither from side to side while its head aimed straight at me.
It was enormous with a skull larger than mine, and a body so long that I couldn’t see where its tail ended.
The bright yellow color of its skin lit up against the darkness, like a neon sign flashing a warning — Run!
I wanted to escape, but there were no doors or windows in this black box. With no recollection of how I got here, I had the eerie thought that someone had placed me here as food for this giant reptile.
Slow, sly, and terrifying, the gigantic snake slid closer, its round eyes yellow with vertical slits of black fixed on me. Rising from the ground, the snake’s head turned from side to side, sticking out its forked tongue like it was tasting the air to define what kind of prey I was.
Paralyzed by terror, my heart hammered like that of someone sprinting away, yet not a muscle moved in my body. I stood frozen to the ground, staring at the enormous predator in front of me, waiting for its next move, and hoping that by some miracle, it would let me live.
For seconds the beast did nothing but stare back at me. But then my deprived lungs sucked in a quick breath for survival, and the sound pushed the snake into action. With no concept of pity, the scaled reptile moved forward, now only an arm’s length away. Lifting its head higher, it bared its sharp fangs.
“Nooo…” I whimpered again and squeezed my eyes shut, preparing for the inevitable attack. Any second now, the snake would strike out and bury those long fangs in my body. My pulse raced, and my breath hitched in my throat from self-pity and fear. It felt unfair that I should die this young. I was only twelve and hadn’t fully lived yet.
Opening one eye, I saw the snake rise vertically in front of me as if analyzing how I would fit inside its belly.
More whimpers escaped me as I turned my head away, pressing my cheek to the hard, icy wall, and wishing with all my might that the wall would open up and let me through to safety.
My whole body jolted when the snake first touched my knee.
“Nooo…” I begged, but not even the tears that gushed out of my eyes or the warm urine that ran down my inner thighs could stop the determined animal from creeping higher. It snaked up my legs, hips, over my stomach, and around my ribcage to my back — the weight of it making it hard for me to keep upright.
I tried to push it off me, but in a fluid movement, the snake pinned my arms and continued its way across my chest, neck, and face before its jaw reached my hairline.
Tightening its muscles, the snake squeezed my body. The pressure on my neck, ribs, lungs, and stomach quickly made it impossible to breathe. My legs buckled under me, and like a wrapped mummy, I tumbled to the floor.
I opened my mouth to scream in despair, but there was no air left in my lungs, and only small desperate moans escaped me as I gasped for air while the yellow monster kept strangling me.
With my body jerking in resistance, my brain kept shouting that I was only a child and too young to die.
The excruciating pain of my ribs cracking was as brutal as the realization that once I took my last breath, this giant snake would swallow me whole.
“Nathan, wake up. You’re dreaming again.” River’s voice broke through to me.
Opening my eyes, I sat up in bed with a gasp.
“Was it the thousand snakes or the giant one?” River asked with a yawn.
“The giant one.”
“Wanna come sleep in my bed?”
“No.” It annoyed me that I couldn’t get past these stupid nightmares. I was too proud to admit that I was scared of going back to sleep, and I didn’t want River, who was almost three years younger, to comfort me.
“All right.” With a yawn, River turned and went back to sleep while I tried to shake off my horrible nightmare.
Curled up in a fetal position, I lay awake worried that something might be wrong with my head.
Think happy thoughts, Nathan. Happy thoughts!
