BANG.

The gun fires beside my ear, leaving a violent ringing in my head.

I grab on to Kara just as the gun fires but it is already too late. The bullet has struck her in the head. I cling on to her, pulling her close to my body as her big, loving eyes stare up at me.

Much of what is happening around me is a blur. For a moment, I forget that the other kids or my father even exist.

All that exists right now is me and Kara.

Kara was my best friend in this house from day one. She made it her personal mission to make sure I felt comfortable and was happy here. She put her whole life on hold in order to help me.

The sound of elephants running up the stairs isn't even enough to take my eyes off of Kara's

Peter drops down beside me with his cellphone in his hands. "I called for an ambulance. I think Leigh is dead." His voice is shaky. "Is-?" He is too afraid to ask.

I shake my head. She is still breathing. Her little chest rises and falls at a peaceful pace. Her heart is still beating. I can feel every pulse in her body go through mine.

Peter brushes her hair out of her face. Her thick, brown hair clumps together as it gets soaked with the blood from her head wound.

Peter shakes his head and grabs on to her tiny hand. "I'm so sorry Avery. We should have been here. We-"

"You didn't know." I say calmly, as if I am not holding Kara in my arms as she clings to her life. "You couldn't have known."

I think I am just numb right now.

Everything she did was to protect her siblings. She risked her life in an attempt to save theirs. She stood up to a scary man. She knew she could die and yet she did it anyways. Kara knew what she was doing and given the chance, I don't think she would have changed a thing. She is more selfless than I could ever be.

She wanted to be their hero.

Though she is younger, she really is my role model. Kara is everything I have always wanted to be.

Despite everything, and always had a smile on her face and could make anyone laugh. She was really able to light up a room every time she walked into it. She was the sunshine in everyone's lives.

Today, she took a risk for her family and wasn't going to let anything stand in her way of protecting them.

She is my hero

Author's note: what do you think?