Page 8 of Ensnared

“Ellie lives there.” Jade’s bawling again, loudly.

“Who’s making that noise?” It’s a man’s voice. It doesn’t sound friendly.

We’re nearly to the intersection with the Shell gas station—the halfway point on our route home. I think about all the times I picked up milk here when we ran out. Or bread. There’s not a soul in sight now, though. Two abandoned cars, but no drivers. One glance at the station itself tells me the attendant has already fled. I don’t blame him one bit.

But who’s shouting at us?

“You kids, get out of here before I feel threatened.” This time, I can tell it’s coming from inside the store. Only, it’s not the attendant. This man has a gun, and he’s looting the register.

I hold up my hands. “We’re not looking for trouble.”

The man scowls, but he motions with his gun for us to keep going. Normally something like this would be horrifying, but today? It doesn’t even rate.

Jade grips my hand tighter, and Sammy tucks his face against the juncture of my shoulder and my neck. He’s shivering, and it fills me with even more rage-fueled resolve.

I remember how it felt to be terrified and helpless at his age. I’m not going to let them face it alone. Not ever.

I start jogging again, but as we move farther from the elementary school, I see more and more signs of life. People are packing up cars. They’re arguing in the front yard. They’re hiding behind closed blinds. We pass all the different people doing all the things.

None of us know what’s the right move.

“Where can we even go?” Jade’s voice is small, but it’s a good question. It’s the same thing Coral asked earlier, but I still haven’t answered.

I make up my mind. Even if we can’t get there, it’s good to have a goal in mind. “We’re heading up north, to Grandma’s.”

“In a car?” Coral asks.

I don’t mention that my car and Mom’s are both at the Boo Bash. I’m not above stealing a neighbor’s, if I have the chance. “I’m not sure yet,” I say. “Maybe.”

“Mom dropped Dad off at the airport,” Coral says. “We could take his car, and it’s fast.”

Brilliant. I start reworking my plan. “We’ll need to be able to hop out of the car and run at a moment’s notice. We need bags that are packed and handy to grab if that happens, with essentials in them.” And I don’t want to delay our departure. I have no idea how Dallas is doing right now, but Houston’s clearly not safe.

If we have gas cans, I should put them in the trunk. Ours won’t be the only gas station left unattended.

“What about Mom?” Jade asks, in the softest, saddest tone ever. “Are we just leaving her?”

A knot forms in my throat. I can’t think about Mom. I can’t talk about her, either.

“She’s fighting too,” Coral says. “Just like us. Once she wins, we’ll see her again.”

Now I’m spending way too much energy fighting back tears. My little warrior sister’s stronger than I am. “Yes,” I finally say. “She’s fighting too. I’m sure of it.”

I can’t stop seeing Mom’s silver hair. I hope I didn’t just lie, because I can’t think why a dragon would want Mom, and I can’t bring myself to think about what it means that I could hear the dragon just like she could.

“Alright, we’ve been jogging, but I think we should run for a bit,” I say. “We’ve had a break, and I don’t see any sign of more dragons right here, but our tree cover’s about to end.” We have half a mile to go, and it’s all wide open.

It’s the worst part of our two-mile route home.

Jade nods. Coral inhales slowly. Sammy wriggles. “You can put me down. I’m wearing my fast shoes.”

My heart contracts. “It’s alright, buddy. I’ve got you.” What else did I train for? Suddenly, my upcoming fight seems stupid. Trivial. Like another life.

Even in my crop top and lycra UFC shorts, I’m sweating like a pig by the time we reach the edge of our neighborhood. At least my heart rate has been steadier, since we haven’t seen any dragons in almost ten minutes. In fact, our neighborhood looks practically normal. The people out here must have made their decisions and either locked down or packed up and moved out already.

Part of me wonders whether I could have had a complete mental break. Did I imagine every insane thing that I remember happening? But I look at the still-wide-eyed Coral and Jade, and I hear Sammy’s heaving breathing in my ear, and I know it’s more than a dream. We’re jogging through the neighborhood park when a group of three men comes into view. They’re jostling one another, and they’re arguing in a language I’ve never heard.

“Let’s go around the back,” I mouthe.