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What the hell?Minutes ago, he was shouting at us for being near his mailbox, and now he’s acting like everything’s fine. I stare at him in utter disbelief just as I hear Memphis shout.
“Lena!”
I turn my head to look for him.
“Mara!” Austin yells.
My eyes land on the two of them rushing toward us at breakneck speed, their dark figures zigzagging around trees and leaping over branches.
We could try to run, but I don’t know if we’d make it. If we run, we risk splitting up again when we only just found each other. If we run, he might reach the men first. Could I risk having to live with the fact that he caught one of us or something terrible happened to them? I’m not willing to sacrifice any of my friends to save myself.
At that moment, I decide it’s safer to try to convince him everything’s okay. If we can just get him to leave, we’ll be safe for the moment. He has no reason to suspect we know about Ethan or the Hawthornes and no reason to hurt us.
Yet.
“Sorry, we didn’t hear you.” I plaster a smile on my face. “We were just waiting for our ride.”
Austin and Memphis reach us seconds later, both panting and out of breath.
“We should go,” Memphis says firmly, moving to stand in front of Mara and me. “Now.” He takes a step back, trying to lead us backward up the road.
“Come on,” Austin agrees.
“But go where?” the man asks. He clicks his tongue at the tree. “You know, I saw a car try to turn down this road earlier.” He points behind him. “You said you were waiting for a ride? Maybe that was him. I just ran into town for a few minutes, and when I got back, this was down. No way in or out. Doesn’t look like you’ll be able to go anywhere except back to the house for a while. I was just pulled over on the shoulder to let my wife know what’s going on. Do you need a ride somewhere? I’m happy to take you since it doesn’t look like I’ll be getting home with this thing anytime soon.”
Staring at the car, I realize for the first time he’s right. It doesn’t look like there’s anyone in the passenger’s seat.Where is his wife?I check over my shoulder, half expecting her to jump out at us from behind.
Then, looking closer, I see what looks like a person sitting in the back seat. Could that be her? Why would she be in the back?
“That’s okay,” Memphis says. “Our ride should be here any minute.”
“Yeah, thanks, though.” Austin’s voice trembles as he speaks.
“No problem. Are you sure? I really don’t mind. Looks like we’re stuck here together otherwise. I can’t come through, and neither can you.”
“Like he said, our driver will be here soon.” I gesture down the road in the direction the imaginary car would be coming from. “And we’ll be leaving with him.”
“Unless he was the one who left earlier.” He puts up his hands in surrender. “I think I’ll just stick around and be sure he gets here safely. I couldn’t live with myself if something terrible happened to you kids. You can never be too safe out here. Lots of bad apples.”
I swallow, looking at Memphis. Something unspoken passes between us, and he nods his head.
“Run!” I shout, and we do. The four of us take off at lightning speed, dropping and discarding our bags as we go and darting down the street as fast as our legs will carry us.
When I glance back, the man has returned to his car. He whips it into the grass at the root of the tree, his tires spinning in the weeds, then lurches forward.
We’re not going to make it. We can’t outrun his car.
It’s impossible.
As soon as the thought crosses my mind, it’s over. He drives up ahead of us and hits his brakes. The taillights, their glowing red warning signs, tell us all that is to come…and none of it is good.
We stop in a line, arms slightly outstretched toward each other, like a mother trying to stop her child from crossing the street or slamming into the dashboard after she hits her brakes too hard.
Trying to protect each other and stay together all at once.
The man steps from the car, his face illuminated by the red glow. A thick, steady cloud of exhaust flows from the tailpipe. From where I stand, I can still see the silhouette in the back seat, though she hasn’t turned around.
What is she doing? Has he hurt her again?
