Chapter Two

We walked out of the school quickly.

I looked around. The green grass was covered with kids. The outside of Perdido Beach School was filled with kids. Children were everywhere. Most were crying. Some walked in odd ways as if they were scared the sky would fall on them. I looked away.

"What about all these little kids?" Sam said. "They'll wander into the street and get run over."

They wouldn't get run over, I thought to myself as I moved my gaze to the streets. The streets by the school were usually full of cars moving but right now I couldn't see a car moving in sight. The stoplight turned from red to green and yet no cars came. I could hear the car alarms louder now, ringing in my ears.

"You see any cars moving?" Quinn asked.

"First we see about our parents," I said. "It's not like there aren't any adults anywhere." I stopped, thinking over what I had just said before amending it. "I mean, it's unlikely there are no adults."

"Yeah," I heard Sam say. "There must be adults. Right?"

"My mom will most likely be either home or playing tennis," I informed the boys. "Unless she has an appointment or something. My mom or dad will have my little brother. My dad's at work. He works at PBNP."

Sam nodded slightly, thinking over what I had just said. Quinn began to walk down the road quickly, his long legs moving fast. Sam and I followed him as fast as we could.

Together the three of us walked down Sheridan Avenue and then turned right on Alameda.

A car had smashed into a Toyota SUV at the corner of Sheridan Avenue. The engine was left running. An alarm went on from the Toyota for a moment then suddenly the car went silent. Steam came shooting up from the broken hood.

I looked at the car closely, my eyes keen on ever y detail of the scene. There was nobody inside the car. I also noticed something else. The doors were still locked. I looked at Sam and checked if he had noticed. Judging by his facial expression, he did.

"The doors are still locked. See the knobs?" I said. "If anyone had been inside and gotten out, the doors would be unlocked."

Sam nodded, his eyes showing he already knew but didn't want it confirmed. Quinn mentioned how the driver blinked out. I nodded.

We walked toward Quinn's house. I watched the surfer boy as we walked down the street. His eyes were normal, his face calm. But I could see through him. He wasn't calm. My suspicions were proven correct when suddenly the boy started running.

I was caught almost by surprise and Sam and I ran to catch up. I noticed that in Quinn haste his ridiculous looking hat had fallen off of his head. I was going to say something but Sam picked it up as he ran beside me.

Quinn had already busted open the door and was inside his house by the time Sam and I had caught up to him.

"Mom. Dad. Hey!" Quinn yelled.

I didn't like to listen to his voice. It sounded desperate and frightened, so much unlike the cool surfer boy Quinn I was used to hearing. Quinn's voice seemed to gradually become louder and louder and more desperate. His sobbing became louder also. I tried to zone it out but I could not.

Quinn ran down the stairs, tears staining his cheeks. He still had his shades on so it blocked out having to see his puffed-up eyes. I was thankful.

Sam and I stood in the kitchen watching Quinn, who was breathing harder than usual. "She's not here, man. She's not here. The phones are dead. Did she leave a note or anything? Do you see a note? Look for a note."

I felt sorry for Quinn and I moved toward the light switch, flipping it on. "The power is still on."

"What if they're dead?" Quinn sobbed. "This can't be happening. This is just some kinds of nightmare or something. This…this isn't even possible." Quinn desperately picked up the phone and clicked a button as he held it to his ear. He babbled to himself as he pushed buttons over and over again.

I looked away from Quinn. I didn't want to see him anymore. He was taking it worse and either of us. I heard Quinn say, "I had a fight with my dad last night."

I said, "Don't start thinking that way. One thing we know: you didn't cause this. None of us caused this."

I looked at both of the boys' eyes. Quinn's was covered by his shades but from what I could see when I squinted his eyes were still puffy and red. Sam's eyes got my attention. They were glazed over, almost guilty. I wondered why.

I moved and put my hand on Quinn's shoulder. He sobbed openly and pulled his shades off. He dropped to the floor.

"It's going to be okay," I lied. I said it because I was trying to convince and help Quinn. But I also needed to be convinced myself. I repeated the words over and over in my head.

"Yeah," I heard Sam say. "Of course it is. This is just some…." He trailed off.

"Maybe it was God," Quinn said suddenly. "It was God." He looked suddenly hopeful.

"Maybe," Sam said. I noticed a trail of doubt on his voice. I wondered if he was a Christian. I looked at him.

"What else could it be?" Quinn babbled on and on. He said it would be okay. He kept repeating it.

"Astrid's house next," Sam said suddenly as if he was trying to make up for Quinn's babbling. "She's closest."

I narrowed my eyes, surprised. "You know where I live?"

He looked suddenly awkward and slightly embarrassed. I was so confused today. I hated it. I usually knew everything. I usually knew what was going on. Sam simply said, "I probably saw you sometime."

In my head I knew he was lying. I could see through bluffing very easily. I let it go though.

The walk to my house took ten minutes. I looked around. I kept seeing more and more cars along the sides of the streets with nobody in them. I lawn mower was smashed against the side of a house. I saw a dog running along the sidewalk with his leash being dragged behind him, his eyes wild.

We arrived at my house. I've lived here all my life. There was a pool outback, two stories, four bedrooms, and three bathrooms. I saw Sam looked at my house in mild surprise. I wondered what his house looked like. I'd wondered that for a while now. My house wasn't fully fancy but it was very clean. It had to be clean because Petey was around. We didn't want him getting into things. The electrical sockets had childproof covers and there were kid-proof knobs on the stove to stop Petey from hurting himself.

I noticed Sam looking at them and felt a rush of embarrassment. I hoped he didn't think they were for me.

"It's not for me," I said to make sure. "It's for Little Pete."

Sam nodded. "I know. He's…." Sam stopped talking as if he was unsure of what to say.

"He's autistic," I said like it was no big deal because I was trying to reassure myself that it wasn't. "Well, no one here,"

"Where's your brother?" Sam asked me.

I found myself yelling. I was scared. "I don't know, alright? I don't know where he is." I shivered and covered my mouth with one of my hands.

"Call to him," Quinn suggested. His voice had changed. It was almost like he was embarrassed for freaking out earlier.

"Call to him? He won't answer." I said, my teeth gritted together. "He's autistic. Severly. He doesn't..he doesn't relate. He won't answer, all right? I can yell his name all day."

I felt horrible. I was scared. Where was my brother? I could not call for him. What I said was true. I was fighting back tears already.

"It's okay, Astrid. We're going to make sure," Sam was already trying to calm me down. "If he's here, we'll find him."

I nodded and closed my eyes, fighting tears. I didn't want to break down like Quinn did. Especially in front of Sam.

We searched the house. I looked in the kitchen, under beds, in closets, and the bathrooms. Petey was nowhere to be seen. I was taking deep breaths.

"We should check Mrs. Johnsons' house," I said. "She takes care of him in the daytime sometimes. Mom and Dad could have dropped him off there."

Sam nodded and was already out the door in a second. I followed him, almost tripping on the steps outside my house. We then ran across the street, still looking both ways and checked every inch of her house for my brother. He wasn't there. Nobody was there.

"He must be with my mom, or maybe my dad took him to the plant with him. He does that when there's no one else to babysit." I said desperately as if trying to convince myself.

I was falling apart.

"Let's keep moving," Sam said. "Don't worry about Little Pete. We'll find him."

I sniffed. "Is that mean to be a pro forma reassurance or a specific commitment?"

Sam looked confused, his bright eyes blank. "Sorry?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm sorry. I meant, you'll help me find Petey?"

"Sure."

I smiled a watery smile at him and he lead us toward his house.

I'm sorry this chapter is so short. I'm trying to write the chapters in actual way the story was written and going by chapters.

Please review.