the ending

"I-I-"
He was right. What was there left to do? There was no time. I knew they'd be here any minute now...
After wasting a couple moments just staring into the distance, lost in hopeless thought and silent panic, Dr. Grant interrupted-
"Now, what did you see, Cassandra?"
Immediately, my heart began racing uncontrollably fast. My shrill, desperate shrieks of terror rang through out the room; I thrashed my legs out as far as I could, throwing my fists in the air violently, like a trapped animal.
"Cassandra!"
"NOOOOOOOO!"
"Cassandra! Cassandra!"
"NO! NO! They're coming, they are coming!"
Already I could hear the planes soaring ahead over the hospital, above a sleepy little unexpectant town. With adrenaline overflowing my veins,  I kicked free of the nurses' choke hold grip and raced for the door.
"Cassandra-"

"Mother!" M-Mother," I coughed. The air was so thick and smokey I might as well have been swimming through it.
"Mooother," I called, choking on my words. "D-Dad-dy!" 
Behind my bedroom door I could hear a faint call echoing.
"Cassandra..." I could feel my heart shattering like broken glass when I realized it was my sister's voice fading away out there.
"Kandra!" I pounded on the door, shouting through violent fits of uncontrollable coughing and gagging. Through the blinding, eye watering smoke i couldn't find the door knob; I was forced to close my eyes, it burned so fiercely. 


"Mother... Kandra... Daddy..."
"There, there Cassandra," Dr. Grant comforted. He sat on his knees beside the crying girl, who was crouched into a little ball, squeezing her knees to her chest and bawling her eyes out. Slowly she rested her head on his shoulder and let him stroke her hair, like and old dog. While she soaked his shoulder with her warm salty tears, she moaned sorrowfully, "I told you they'd come. I told you... Now look at what they've done."
"It'll be alright, Cassandra." He hugged her even closer.
The old man was pretty close to crying him self; this was his patient's third panic attack since the catastrophe she'd been rescued from almost a month ago.
"Horrible tragedy," he'd explained to the press only a few weeks before. "Of course we expect this to be difficult; what a traumatizing experience for an eight year old! But I'm sure she'll show signs of improvement soon enough."
"Daddy," Cassandra whispered. "Help me, Daddy... Where are you, Mother?... and Kandra..."
"We're trying our hardest, dear," the weary doctor responded.