Page 7 of Ensnared

I pick up Sammy, and I grab Jade’s hand, and I run.

3

It’s an awful thing to think, but all the idiots who stopped to get in their cars might have been what saved us. They kept the beast busy while we escaped.

I make the kids keep their eyes trained ahead of us, but I turn back around and watch as the creature fries car after car full of people. It doesn’t even stop to eat them or anything. It just keeps on flying, attacking, and killing.

In cartoons, dragons look regal. They look majestic. They look inspirationally beautiful. The cartoons have it all wrong. As we’re racing for our lives, I can’t help thinking about this fluffy grey stuffed animal I got as a kid. It made hippos look adorable, like they’d be your pal. The first time I saw one up close at a zoo, I realized that real hippos weren’t cute or fluffy, and they would destroy me for fun. Hippos are horrifying, and by comparison to this nightmare, a hippo’s a frothy beachside drink. The dragon looks almost maniacal as it massacres every man, woman, and child who took the time to unlock and climb into their car.

I wish I had a spear. I’d head back there right now and try to stop it.

Or maybe not.

I do have three siblings to protect.

The second we’ve put some space between us and the beast, I whip out my phone and start tapping as we move. I type in dragon attack, and then I hit search. We’re still moving, but I’m exhausted, and I’m sure Coral and Jade are even worse off. It’s a miracle they aren’t crying or complaining. I guess fear’s an exceptional motivator.

I wait, but my phone just spins and spins.

I try dialing my dad next. He’s out of town—business trip to New York City this time, I think—but the call won’t connect. I’m assuming that means the cell towers are down.

That probably means there’s more than one dragon. Our house is about two miles from the school, and I think we’ve gone at least a half mile, so I’m hoping we can make it there without being discovered. It’s not like it’s super safe or anything, but at least we might have access to the internet. There should be some kind of directions from the government about what to do in situations like this. We have a generator, so we should have power if we have a connection, and if there’s any information out there, I’m going to get it.

That’s when I see something so bone-numbingly horrifying that it stops me dead in my tracks.

An enormous red dragon, much, much larger than the silver creature from the school, is flying through the clouds overhead. He roars, and the sound makes me want to curl up into a fetal position and cry. His wings beat steadily as he sweeps past, and then he swoops downward, toward the massive neighborhood right behind the school.

A river of fire pours from his mouth and engulfs the tiny, cookie-cutter homes in an ocean of flames.

Jade shrieks.

I clap a hand over her face and push them to move faster. Heading for our house still doesn’t feel like much of a plan, but I’m not sure what else to do. We need to get out of Houston and quick, and our home must be the best place to get provisions. I start making plans in my head for what to pack. The girls can’t carry much, and Sammy won’t be able to carry anything at all. Socks. Shoes. A blanket. Maybe some photos.

I think about Mom then, and I want to sit down and cry.

What’s happening? In my wildest nightmares, dragons never played a part. My breathing picks up as I think of all the people burning. All the people who were electrocuted. My mother who was taken.

There’s no way to know what the next five minutes hold, let alone tomorrow, and no matter how tough a fighter I am, I can’t fight something that size that creates torrents of lava. I glance upward again, but I don’t see him. The massive red beast is gone for now, at least.

Although, I suppose that means he could be anywhere at all.

Fear grips me, slowing my steps and freezing my limbs. Jade starts to whimper. Sammy’s crying, and even Coral has tears streaming silently down her cheeks.

I mentally slap myself.

They can’t afford for me to fall apart. I have to hold it together, because I’m all they have. A strange sort of peace steals over me then. I’ll either navigate a way through this, or we’ll all perish. But by golly, it won’t be because I didn’t try my hardest. If any human on earth is going to survive this, it should be me.

I may look fluffy, but I pack a punch.

“We’ll get home soon, guys,” I say. “We’ll pack bags, and we’ll get somewhere safe.”

“Where are we going?” Coral asks.

“Why can’t we just stay at home?” Jade whimpers. “We can lock the doors, and I think that’s where Mom will come. Right?”

I can’t think about Mom. Not right now.

“Did you see that dragon?” Coral says. “It burned all those houses up.”