โWait!โ Arthur shouted back, shifting his position, wiping his spare hand down the front of his jeans.
โArthur, now!โ Oliver screamed. โOpen the door!โ โFuck!โ
Arthur reached forward, slamming his hand down on the handle and pushing hard.
The door to the RV swung open, the darkness waiting for them there, gaping and black. It must be a rectangle of light, looking from the other side.
Simon raised his knees like he was running, hurrying down the steps, his teeth gritted, eyes wild and afraid andโ
Crack.
The mirror shattered.
โFuck!โ Arthur screamed as the mirror jumped out of his hands, crashing back against the counter.
โClose the door!โ Oliverโs frantic voice ๏ฌlled Redโs ears. โSimon, pull the rope!โ
Simon scrabbled with it, the rope almost sliding through his hands. He fell back against the closet and he pulled.
The door slammed shut with a thump, lock clicking into place, sealing them inside once more.
โHoly fuck!โ Simon said, sinking to the ๏ฌoor, laughing or crying Red couldnโt quite tell. โWe did it.โ
Arthur was bent double, breathing hard. His hands were pressed against his thighs, head hanging upside down. Was he all right?
โWhoโs got it?โ Oliver was standing now. โHe shot! Who got the muzzle ๏ฌash on their phone?โ
Red pulled hers inside, slotting the mattress back into position. There was a bead of blood there on the see-through skin of her wrist, where the glass had pierced through. Her very own red dot.
She stopped the recording, phone twittering at her, the same sound from Maddy and Reyna. She navigated to the video ๏ฌle and pressed play.
โGet intoโโ โโGet into posiโโ
โโGet into position,โ Oliverโs voice said three times, overlapping.
Reynaโs video was playing half a second before hers, Maddyโs just after.
The sound of Redโs breath from the speaker at the bottom of her phone. Rustling as the image on-screen went from light to pitch-black, inside to out.
โIs everyโโ
โโIs everyone rโโ โโIs everyone ready?โ
Red brought the screen closer, studying the pixelated darkness. โNโโ
โโNOWโโ
โโNOW!โ
Red didnโt blink. โWaiโโ
โโWaitโโ
โโWait!โ
The three layers of Arthurโs voice in a frenetic rush, splicing together. โArthurโโ
โโArthur, nowโโ
โโArthur, now! Open the door!โ โFuโโ
โโFuckโโ
โโFuck!โ
The Arthur from here and now turned; Red felt his eyes on her, but she didnโt look away from the screen because it was coming, it wasโ
Crโ
โCraโ
โCrack.
A tiny ๏ฌash of light in all that black as the three shots split the air. But it had only been one, and she had it, right here. Red had it. She paused the video, spooled it back.
โIโve got it,โ she said, looking up at Arthur. His eyes looked drawn, mouth tight. โIโve got it.โ Louder now.
โLet me see.โ Oliver rushed over, leaning to watch behind her shoulder. โPlay it again.โ
Red pressed the play button.
โFuck!โ Arthurโs voice said one more time. โItโs there,โ Red said. โWait one second.โย Crack.
A pinprick ๏ฌash of white light in the dark background of her screen. Small, tiny. Like the little ๏ฌrework in her head. She dragged back through the frames again to play it one more time. There, a quick burst of light, just right of the center.
The muscles in Oliverโs mouth twitched.
โWhich way were you pointing the phone, Red? Exactly.โ His eyes ๏ฌxed on hers, so hard that she had to look away, and yet she could still feel them when she blinked, like theyโd marked her.
โThis way.โ Red pointed at a diagonal, out to the right toward the back of the RV.
Oliver straightened up, his eyes following the direction of her arm.
โSo, heโs over there still,โ he said. โHard to say, but maybe a few hundred yards that way. Likely where he was when he ๏ฌrst shot out the tires and the
windows. He must have gone back to the same position after planting the walkie-talkie.โ
The walkie-talkie ๏ฌzzed, hissing in silent agreement. Red was surprised, almost, that the sniper had nothing to say after what just happened.
The muscles in Oliverโs mouth shuddered again, but this time they broke into a wide smile that cracked his face in two.
โWe did it, guys,โ he said, looking around. The others didnโt react. โI said we did it!โ Oliver laughed, hitting Red on the shoulder, moving to do the same to Arthur. Arthur still didnโt look right, eyes unfocused, picking at the pocket of his jeans. He was a ๏ฌddler, like Red, but maybe only when he was nervous, scared. Simon still didnโt look right either, puddled there on the ๏ฌoor, legs outstretched among large shards of broken mirror, staring up at the ceiling, breath heavy in his chest.
โCome on, guys! We did it, weโre getting out of here. Alive!โ
Oliver pulled Reyna into a hug, burying a kiss in her thick black hair. He wrapped an arm around Maddy and then o๏ฌered a hand to Simon, to pull him up o๏ฌ the ๏ฌoor.
Maddy was smiling now, hugging her own arms.
โWoohoo, spring break!โ Simon said again, stumbling to his feet. Oliver stood in the middle, grinning at them all.
Delegate. Motivate. Celebrate.ย All the qualities of a natural leader, which made Red more than an unnatural one.
Oliver clapped his hands, somewhere between an applause and to get their attention. He already had it. โRight, the sniper is back that way.โ He pointed. โSo, if we climb out the driverโs-side window and run in that directionโโhe pointed with the other arm, the exact opposite wayโโthe sniper wonโt see us, because the RV will cover us. He wonโt even know weโre gone. He wonโt. And even if he does, heโs not going to be able to catch us. We have a head start, and heโs carrying a ri๏ฌe.โ
โYou canโt shoot a ri๏ฌe like that while running,โ Red agreed.
โWe did it,โ Reyna said now, nodding, like she could only believe it if she heard it out of her own mouth.
โFuck yeah we did!โ Simon answered, a ๏ฌst raised as pieces of mirror crunched under his shoes. โAlthough thatโs seven yearsโ bad luck, isnโt it? Broken mirror?โ
โWell, itโs good luck for us now,โ Maddy replied.
Behind Simon, there was a splintered hole in the wooden base of the dining booth, where the bullet had struck through after the mirror, probably out the other side of the RV back into the dark night. Through glass and wood and wood and plastic and metal. Skin and bone would be nothing in its path.
โRight then.โ Oliver rubbed his hands together, the sound grating. โLetโs get the fuck out of this RV! Donโt bring anything with you. Just essentials. Just your phones. Hopefully we will run into some service at some point so we can call the police to catch this fucker before he runs o๏ฌ. And call our mom to let her know we escaped.โ
Would Catherine have given up the name they were looking for by now, Red wondered, mind already leaving the RV, skipping away to the next part.
Her ears ๏ฌzzed, but was that just the static?
โShall we take this?โ she asked, stepping across the broken mirror to grab the walkie-talkie from the table.
โNo, leave it,โ Oliver said, looking over his shoulder. โWe donโt need it.
Weโre not playing his game anymore.โ
He walked over to the driverโs seat, leaning across it to rip o๏ฌ the duct tape securing Redโs gutted suitcase across the window. With one hard jerk he pulled it all down, dropping it in the footwell. He ripped the curtains aside, baring the pitch black of outside, waiting for them with open arms.
One windowpane was already open, smashed to pieces, but Oliver ๏ฌicked the catch and slid the other panel across, uncovering that side instead. Easier to climb out of when standing on the driverโs seat.
โWill be a bit tight,โ Oliver observed, rolling his shoulders. โEveryone got their phones? Yes? Okay.โ He stood up on the driverโs seat, ducking as his head grazed the ceiling. โIโll go ๏ฌrst. Then Maddy, then Reyna, Red, Arthur, Simon.โ He looked at them in order. โGet in line, get ready. No ๏ฌashlights on yet, we donโt want him to be able to see anything. You drop down and just
run as fast as you can in this direction.โ He pointed out beyond the driverโs-side mirror. โThrough the trees there. Keep going, donโt wait for anyone. Weโll regroup on that road and then get the fuck out of here. Got it?โ
Red nodded, taking her place between Reyna and Arthur, Maddy shu๏ฌing to the front. Lavoys ๏ฌrst.
โI tell you what,โ Simon said, from the back of the line. โI never want to see another fucking RV again as long as I live.โ
โTell me about it,โ Reyna sni๏ฌed, almost a laugh. Fiddling, nervous energy, in front and behind Red.
โIโm going,โ Oliver said, bending down and lowering one leg out the window, coming to sit on the frame, exactly halfway inside and halfway outside. He dipped his head under and out.
The static cut o๏ฌ, silence taking its place. Before:
โHello.โ The voice crackled to life behind them. Oliver paused, looking back inside the RV, listening.
โCute trick with the mirror,โ it said, a bark of laughter in his dark, metallic voice. โBut thereโs one thing I should tell you before you make the mistake of climbing out that driverโs-side window, Oliver. I probably should have told you sooner, thatโs my fault.โ
Static.
Redโs chest constricted, ribs folding in one by one like ๏ฌngers as she turned to look back at the walkie-talkie, glaring at them from where sheโd left it on the table. Her eyes crossed each other, the bright green display doubling itself, ๏ฌlling her head.
โHow could heโโ Reyna began.
โOliver, donโt move!โ Maddy shouted as he shifted out there on the window frame, staring down at the road just below him.
Silence, prickly and heavy.
โI should have told you,โ the voice cut back in, sputtering at the edges. โThere are two of us.โ
