One gasp. One scream. One hitch in Redโs chest.โ
There were two of them out there, in the wide-open nothing. Two of them. Two guns. Two red dots. No, this couldnโt be happening. This wasnโt supposed to happen.
โGet back inside, Oliver!โ Reyna was screaming now. โGet in!โ A race between her voice and a ๏ฌnger on a trigger.
Oliver tucked his head and rolled back inside, falling against Maddy on the driverโs seat, and Reyna just behind. Reyna stumbled, pushing into Red. She tripped over Arthurโs feet but he caught her, arms under hers, solid and strong.
โClose the curtains,โ Reyna was still screaming, the sound cutting through Red. โClose them!โ
Oliver righted himself, reaching up and snatching at the curtains, pulling them together. No gap. Shutting the outside away, splitting them into two separate worlds again: the RV and out there. Only a border of thin black material between them.
โItโs not fair,โ Maddy cried, mouth bared, eyes clouded. โWe were almost out. We were almost free.โ Fat tears broke away, rolling to her chin.
โFUCK!โ Oliver roared, tendons sticking out across the length of his neck, red and raw, like the puppet strings that worked his head. โFuck, fuck, fuck!โ He beat his ๏ฌsts against the steering wheel, against the dashboard, over and over.
โOliver, stop!โ Reyna lurched forward to take his hands away from him, holding them to her chest. โThat doesnโt help anyone.โ
โTwo of them.โ Simon walked backward over a large shard of mirror, doubling the sole of his shoe before it cracked. โTwo fucking snipers. You know what this night didnโt need?โ he called. โAnother fucking sniper!โ
Oliver was standing again, pushing Reyna out of his way as he stormed through. One of his feet caught on a can of beer, sending it spinning. He roared again, an ugly, scratching sound, as he bent down and wrapped his hands around the closet door. He lifted it up and smashed it back down, the wood splintering, a clean break, clattering back down in two unequal halves.
โOliver, stop!โ Maddy cried. โYouโre scaring me!โ
โIโm scaring you?!โ He rounded on her, eyes wild, a ๏ฌeck of spit foaming in the corner of his mouth. โItโs not me you should be scared of right now, Madeline. Itโs the men with the fucking guns!โ
โOliver, please.โ Reyna pushed him toward the booth, the side not blocked by the broken mirror. โPlease just sit down and calm down.โ
โWe were out,โ he said to himself, sliding his legs under the dining table, staring at the walkie-talkie. โWe were out. I was so close.โ
Redโs eyes shifted to Arthur as he dropped back against the sofa, his eyes on her but not here at all, glazed, far away.
His head fell to his hands and he buried his face in them, whitening halos of skin where his ๏ฌngers pressed in.
Red reached, stretching out her ๏ฌngers, each one too aware of itself and of what she was making them do. She rested her hand on Arthurโs head just for a moment, near the back of his neck. Mom used to do that to her when she was upset, and Red didnโt even realize until right now that she missed it. She shouldnโt think of her, why did she keep thinking of her tonight?
Arthur glanced up, her hand sliding o๏ฌ. He caught it in one of his waiting hands, squeezed, his ๏ฌngers warm against the cool of her knuckles.
Too much.
Redโs arm dropped to her side.
She looked around at all of them, at their faces, and there was something new in the air of the RV. Not fear or confusion, theyโd had plenty of those. It was despair, plain as sheโd ever seen it. And she was an expert in despair.
Reyna was the ๏ฌrst to come through it, bending to her knees to pick up the shattered halves of the closet door.
โWhat are you doing?โ Oliver asked her sharply, his ๏ฌnger balanced on the antenna of the walkie-talkie.
โIโm cleaning up,โ Reyna said, carrying the pieces of wood toward the back bedroom. โLooks like weโre going to be here awhile.โ
Red watched her as she crossed the threshold into the bedroom, chucking the broken door into the gap on the far side of the bed. She returned, making a start on the mirror.
โMaddy?โ she asked, gently. โCan you please help me with this? Pick up those larger shards and put them in the trash?โ
โSure.โ Maddy sni๏ฌed, wiping her nose on her sleeve.
โWeโre never getting out of here.โ Simon slid down on the sofa, next to Arthur. โThis is the worst day of my life.โ
It wasnโt Redโs, though, was it? No, she didnโt think so, sheโd never replace hers. February 6, 2017. It wasnโt enough just to lose her mom that way, was it? No, there had to be that last phone call too, still hurting from their argument in the kitchen the day before, about Red not concentrating in school, about her grades slipping. Mom called the home phone at 7:06 p.m., to say sheโd be late for dinner. Red was the one who picked up. Red didnโt want to talk to her.ย Fine,ย sheโd replied, thinkingย Goodย instead. Maybe she could go to bed without even seeing her mom tonight, without restarting the ๏ฌght. But Red restarted it then, she couldnโt help it, bristling when her mom called herย sweetie.
โDonโt call me that. I thought I was a disappointment.โ
Mom never said that, she wouldnโt. Red was putting words in her mouth. Theyโd talk about it when Mom got home, that was what she said. But her voice wasnโt normal, and Red thought she must still be angry at her.
Disappointed. Did part of her wish Red had never been born? Something interrupted them, a two-tone sound, trilling somewhere in the background behind her mom. A doorbell. Twice.
โHello,โ her mom said to someone else, not Red, because she could never just concentrate on Red for one fucking second, could she? Couldnโt turn the police captain o๏ฌ and just be Mom. That wasnโt fair but Red hadnโt felt like being fair.
โSweetie. Before I go, I need to ask you something. Can you tell Dad to
โโ
And then it came, the worst part.
โNo,โ Red cut her o๏ฌ. โStop telling me what to do all the time.โ And worse still.
โI hate you.โ
Red hung up the phone, cutting o๏ฌ her momโs voice as she repeated her
name.
And guess what? Mom was dead within ten minutes of that phone call. โRed?โ Oliver said, saving her from the memory, but not from the guilt.
That always stayed.
She looked up, just as Oliver reached her, dropping the walkie-talkie into her hand. โKeep cycling through the channels, looking for interference. Itโs the only plan we have left now,โ he said, darkly, turning away.
Back to hoping for outside help, because the escape plan had gone out the window, which was a funny way to think of it because that was exactly what the plan had been. Red pushed the + button, skipping to the empty static of channel four, then ๏ฌve.
Channel six. She stopped, waiting there. Momโs channel, from their Cops and Cops game. Stop it, stop thinking about her, Red had no right to be thinking about her. It was her fault Mom was dead, and nothing would ๏ฌx that, not even the plan. What was it, what was it Mom needed Red to tell her dad? Theyโd never know, but maybe it would have saved her. It would have saved her and Red said no. Red hung up. Mom was killed, executed, and it was Redโs fault. Only her fault, because the police never found out who shot
her. Twice. In the back of the head. On her knees. Thinking about how her daughter hated her and how she hated her back just as hard.
Up and up through the channels, the walkie-talkie ๏ฌzzing in her hands, holding it too tight.
Reyna and Maddy had ๏ฌnished clearing up the broken mirror, and now Reyna was in the kitchen, taking down six glasses from the cupboard. She ๏ฌlled them with water, one after the other, the running faucet ๏ฌlling the RV with a new kind of music, blocking the static for a few moments.
โHere.โ She passed one glass to Maddy, and another to Oliver at the table, sliding it over. โWe need to stay hydrated, itโs been a long night already.โ The next two to Arthur and Simon, who needed it most. The last one to Red, a defeated smile on Reynaโs face as Redโs ๏ฌngers cupped the glass.
โThank you,โ Red said, taking a sip, and then a long draw, raising the glass, eyes on the overhead lights. She hadnโt realized how thirsty she was, and something else too, that yawning feeling back in her gut. Hungry, again. But she couldnโt eat. She drained the rest of the water and came up for air.
They couldnโt escape. So, what were they going to do now? Red couldnโt remember exactlyโwhat was it the sniper had said about that secret he wanted? Would they just wait here, trapped, until Catherine Lavoy gave up the name? She looked to Oliver; he should know what to do, he was the leader.
โWeโre fucked,โ Oliver was saying, speaking into his half-empty glass, lending his voice a hollow echo. โWeโre completely fucked.โ
Or maybe not.
Arthur took Redโs empty glass from her, carrying it back to the counter with his. Two dull thuds as he placed them down. And there must have been something wrong with Redโs ears, because now she was hearing an echo of those too, which couldnโt be right.
Arthur sighed. โMaybe we should think about the seโโ he began.
โShh,โ Oliver spat, holding his arms up to silence them all. โI can hear something. I hearโฆโ
He drew o๏ฌ, tilting his head to raise one ear.
Red heard it too, a low, clicking, rumbling sound. It was growing, growing, overtaking the static.
โWhat isโฆโ Maddyโs voice faded with one sharp look from her brother.
Red looked up, ears straining beyond the ceiling. It was coming from up there, from the sky.
โItโs a helicopter,โ Oliver said, jumping up from his seat. โItโs a helicopter!โ
Moving closer and closer, like a mechanical roar of thunder. They couldnโt see it, but they could hear it.
โItโs getting nearer!โ Oliver shouted, his eyes glittering, replacing the despair. โWe have to signal it somehow. Let them know we need help!โ
โThe horn!โ Maddy said.
โThey wonโt hear that,โ Reyna told her.
โThe lights!โ Simon crashed up to his feet. โWe can signal SOS, I know how to do it.โ He jumped across to the light panel, ๏ฌicking the main switch o๏ฌ and then on again in three short bursts.
โThey wonโt see, the windows are covered!โ Reyna shook her head, looking around frantically.
The helicopter must be right above them now, the mechanical drone slicing through the sky.
โHeadlights,โ Red said.
โHeadlights!โ Maddy screamed. โSimon, go, go, go!โ
Simon sprinted to the front of the RV, crashing into the driverโs seat as he launched himself into it. Red stood behind him, one hand gripping the passenger seat, the other wrapped hard around the walkie-talkie, the edges biting into her skin.
Simon reached for the lever behind the steering wheel and ๏ฌicked the headlights on.
A glow ๏ฌlled the covered windshield, around the edges of the pulled-down shade.
โDot-dot-dot,โ Simon muttered to himself and he ๏ฌicked the lever three times quickly. โDash-dash-dash.โ He moved the control, leaving the high beams on for a longer stretch between the darkness. โDot-dot-dot.โ
โKeep going,โ Oliver ordered him, leaning past the driverโs seat, pulling the shade up so they could see the high beams through the windshield, carving up the night.
The motorized whine of the helicopter was fading, moving away from them into other skies.
โItโs leaving,โ Reyna said, the urgency all but gone from her voice. โKeep going, Simon!โ But not from Oliverโs.
The headlights ๏ฌicked o๏ฌ and on, following the pattern as Simon whispered it to himself. โDot-dot-dot-dash-dash-dash-dot-dot-dot.โ
Save our souls. Save us. Please save us. Headlights on, headlights o๏ฌ.
An idea stolen from another memory. Redโs mom used to ๏ฌash the headlights when she got home from work late, into the windows of the living room. She didnโt, though, on the night it mattered most. Red was waiting, angry and hurt, but she was waiting all the same.
โItโs leaving, Oliver,โ Reyna said, placing one hand on his shoulder. He shrugged it o๏ฌ.
โKeep going!โ
Simon ๏ฌicked the lever, back and forward, the world in front of them ๏ฌickering in and out of existence as the headlights ๏ฌashed. And Red too, ๏ฌickering between here and then.
In seconds, the sound faded to a low drone, then a faint hum, until the night swallowed it whole, leaving not a trace behind.
โGone,โ Red said.
Simon let the headlights click o๏ฌ, sitting back in his seat. He exhaled, long and hard.
โMaybe it will come back,โ Maddy said, looking at the back of Oliverโs head.
โMaybe,โ he said. โIf it was a rescue helicopter for us.โ
That was when Red knew for certain that she and Oliver Lavoy did not live in the same world. She could never hear a helicopter and think it was sent for her. No one loved her enough for that.
โNobody knows to rescue us,โ Arthur said, looking up at the ceiling as though he could summon it back with the pull of his eyes.
โMy mom, maybe.โ Oliverโs voice almost failed him.
โI think it was just passing over,โ Reyna added, her hand moving to Oliverโs shoulder, staying there this time.
โMaybe they saw. Maybe they saw the headlights,โ he continued. โMaybe,โ she said, gently.
โHow do you know Morse code?โ Arthur was looking at Simon now.
โI mean I donโt, obviously,โ he replied. โJust SOS. I got it from a ๏ฌlm.
Panic Room,ย I think it was.โ
โRed, keep going.โ Oliver turned back to her, mouth tensed in a grim line.
If she was their only hope, then the rest of them really were fucked. Red wasnโt getting them out of here. She raised the walkie-talkie and started skipping through the empty channels again.
Oliver sighed, rallying himself, shaking out his shoulders. Red was watching, saw the exact moment an idea hit him, lighting up his eyes.
โMaybe it wasnโt all for nothing,โ he said. โMaybe thereโs an idea in there, to make some kind of light signal. Here.โ He darted forward, snatching his Zippo lighter up from the resource pile on the table. โHe shot out the tank and the gas has leaked all over the road, right?โ
โRight,โ Maddy answered.
โIf I light thisโโhe ๏ฌicked up the ๏ฌame to demonstrate, ๏ฌre dancing in his too-wide eyesโโand I drop it out the window, it would set ๏ฌre to that pool of gas. A ๏ฌre. A signal ๏ฌre. And maybe someone will see the smoke. Light travels farther than sound, right?โ
โNot in the middle of the night,โ Reyna told him. โNo one will see the smoke.โ
โAnd youโd set ๏ฌre to the RV,โ Arthur said, burying his ๏ฌngers in his pocket, like he was hiding them from Oliver as he confronted him. โBurn us inside with it.โ
Oliver was getting desperate now, careless. Maybe Maddy was right, they should be afraid of him after all. Reyna could control him, though, couldnโt
she? Calm him down, make him see sense.
โThe RV is our only cover,โ she said. โWe canโt set ๏ฌre to it.โ
Oliver ignored her, staring into the ๏ฌame for one more second before ๏ฌicking it away, dropping the lighter on the table.
Simon followed him to the table, reaching over the ๏ฌashlights and duct tape and masking tape and kitchen knife and scissors and lighter, past the pad of paper and pens Maddy had been using earlier, to the bag of still-open chips resting against the side.
He scooped out a handful and placed them in his mouth. โHow can you eat?โ Maddy asked him, not really a question.
โLike this,โ he showed her, opening his mouth in an exaggerated chew so she could see the mulched-up orange coating his tongue.
She didnโt react.
โWhatโs our next plan?โ She looked at her brother. โWhat do we do now?โ
Silence, other than the sound of static as Red skipped back to channel three and left it there. And a muted crunch from inside Simonโs mouth.
โGu-ys,โ Reyna said, strangely, the word coming out in two uneven halves, like sheโd had to force it through.
Red glanced up. Reyna was staring past her shoulder, out the front of the RV. Something new and unknown in her eyes.
โGuys!โ she said in one this time. And then: โSomeoneโs here.โ
She pointed and Red whipped around, her eyes following the line of Reynaโs shaking ๏ฌnger. Out through the windshield into the world beyond. And there, scattered by the dark bodies of the trees up ahead, were two small lights passing through the night. Winking in and out as branches blocked the way.
The lights curved around with the road, breaking free from the trees, two clean white beams, pointing right at them. Coming this way.
Headlights. โSomeoneโs here.โ
