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“I told you, I’m leaving and neither of you will stop me.”
I turn around and rush from the room. I need to leave and get to my brothers before it’s too late. I hear mom and dad yelling my name as I slip through the back door. I ignore them both. I don’t care what happens to them, as long as I get to my brothers and we all get to The Hill. Mae and Dale are supposed to help us leave Sweet Haven. The note they got yesterday said there was going to be a raid. Mae and Dale knew we would be separated if the cops found us. I can’t imagine not having my brothers around. The thought causes a weird feeling to form in my chest.
The back yard is dark as I sprint across the wet grass. I’m barefoot, so the blades stick to my feet. I was just getting out of the shower when I heard a loud bang outside. I rushed to put on my clothes and get downstairs. I’ve been anxious all day because we didn’t know when the town was going to be raided. I had hoped it would be before Hell Night began, so when it didn’t happen and we came back home, I thought something went wrong. Or the note was just some cruel joke.
I’ve never been more happy to be wrong. I hide behind a tree when I see a couple of shadowed figures sneak around the side of Mr. and Mrs. Moore’s house. I stiffen when I feel someone come up behind me.
“Where are the others?” I relax at JW’s whispered words.
I keep my eyes on the house and watch the dark figures move inside as I answer JW. “I’m not sure, but I’ve got a guess.” I reach back, grab his shirt, and pull him behind me.
The plan was for me and JW to meet up and go to The Hill together. Trouble and Emo were to do the same. That was the plan, but I’m changing it. I’m not going to The Hill without making sure Trouble and Emo go as well. Trouble I’m not worried about. It’s Emo who concerns me. He told us earlier today that he heard Rella, Trouble’s eight-year old sister, screaming. It’s ridiculous and impossible. Rella died a week ago from slitting her own wrists. When my brothers and I found her, she was already dead, the wood floor beneath her soaked with her deep red blood. Emo won’t leave until he looks for her. Trouble and Rella’s house is where we’re headed.
I stop us when Noah Vincent runs toward his car, only to be stopped by the cops.
“Halt! This is the FBI! Put your hands behind your head and get on your knees!”
I pull JW in another direction, away from the cops and Noah. I’m forced to stop again when JW digs in his heels. I turn and find him looking in the direction of his house. His mother’s screams pierce the night air.
“JW,” I hiss to grab is attention. “We gotta go.”
He turns back to me, a look of satisfaction on his face, and he nods.
We dodge a couple more dark figures slipping through the shadows when I bring us to a halt behind another tree. Someone’s on the ground up ahead, moaning in pain. I whip my head around when someone shouts behind us. I move us both to another tree. Thank goodness for all the big trees in town or we’d be shit out of luck.
We both stay real still, holding our breath as a man in dark clothes approaches the person, his hand raised with a gun.
“Sandra Milton, you are under arrest for child sexual assault and abuse.”
JW and I watch in fascination as he handcuffs Sandra and pulls her to her feet. She’s crying; the sound is pathetic. There’s not an ounce of pity I feel for her. She and her husband have both participated in the horrors of Hell Night. Tonight, they both forced their eleven-year-old daughter Regina to touch them in disgusting ways.
Once they are out of sight, JW and I are moving again. A couple of minutes later, we spot Trouble and Rella’s house. I want to slap both Trouble and Emo when I see them in the road facing the house, out in the open.
JW and I race over to them.
“We gotta go now,” I tell them, out of breath from all the running. “Shit’s going down fast and if we don’t want the Peterson’s to get caught in the crosshairs, we have to leave. They’re waiting on us behind The Hill.”
Trouble nods and turns back to Emo, whose attention is still held captive by the house in front of him.
Thankfully, it doesn’t take long for him to look away and say with a dark tone, “Let’s go.”
We dart through yards and across streets. I keep looking back to make sure the others are still behind me. There’s no way I’m leaving this horrible place without them.
I have to draw JW’s attention away when he stops at the Moore’s window and peers inside. We all hide behind a tree when shots are fired followed by more yelling.
“I wonder if that was Mr. or Mrs. Sanders,” JW comments.
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“Doesn’t matter. Either would be fine with me. Or better yet, both of them,” I say quietly. Once the figures are inside the Sanders’ house, I whisper, “It’s clear.”
Worry has me throwing looks all around us to make sure we’re still unseen. Any place would be better than the hell we’ve lived our whole lives, but I’m still scared that we’ll be caught.
It’s not until we round the corner of The Hill and see Mae and Dale’s van up ahead that I start to breathe easier again. Excitement replaces the worry, making my heart race for an entirely different reason.
I briefly wonder what happened with mom and dad, but the thought isn’t important. For all I care, they could be one of the people being shot. The only people I care about are my brothers, Mae, and Dale.
My brothers and I are finally going to be free of our living nightmare.
