Chapter Three

Mare scowled in the boy's general direction, but kept her head down and her eyes averted.

"Come on," He smiled at her. He was around her age, if not a little older with ash blonde hair and a stature that much reminded Mare of a cat. She'd disliked him the moment she spotted him, and she'd grown to hate him all the more since the officer had left her alone with him. "At least tell me your name."

"Leave me alone." Mary- Lynnette growled, impatient with the boy's pestering.

"I'll tell you mine," He grinned at her. "My name is Ash. Now you tell me yours."

"Leave me alone."

"Is that all you ever say?" Ash asked. "Because if it is, you must be pretty boring."

"Now, Ash," The officer said, entering the room, "if you really believed that you wouldn't be talking to her."

"I wouldn't, would I," Ash grinned and scooted closer to Mare. She, in turn, slid farther down the couch as well (in the opposite direction of Ash).

"I'm actually quite a flat personality," Mare told him. "If you are looking for an interesting conversation I suggest you look elsewhere."

"I'm not leaving you alone until you tell me your name." Ash crowded her against the rail of the sofa. "Is it… Natalie? You look kind of like a Natalie. No? Not Natalie? Well, how about…"

"Mary- Lynnette," The officer said, flipping open the file he'd gone to fetch. "Resident of the Municipal Orphanage, Girls' Annex, reported missing by a Claudia Anderson early this morning."

Mary- Lynnette glared at him. "I'm not going back."

"How old are you? 11, 12?" He leaned down and looked her right in the eye. "You have to be 18 to live on your own. I'm sorry kid, I know you may not like life at the orphanage, but you'll be 18 soon enough," He clapped her on the arm. "You'll just have to wait this one out."

Mare shook her head but said nothing.

"So, you're like, a runaway?" Ash said from beside her. "How did you get out? Was it a 'just walk right out' kind of deal or did you have to be sneaky?" His eyes got a wicked glint in them, a glint Mare definitely didn't like.

The officer scolded Ash, "If you can't be quiet, I'm going to have to send you out."

Ash shut up. Finally.

"So, Mary- Lynnette, I'm afraid we've reached an impasse," The officer smiled apologetically, then grabbed the younger girl and proceeded to load her up in the police car.

"Let me go!" Mary- Lynnette bucked against the seatbelt, but nothing happened. The seatbelt had a lock on it, and the only key was probably stowed away on the officer's person. "You-" Mary- Lynnette then called him every foul name she'd ever heard Jez call Ms. Claudia when the orphanage mother wasn't looking.

Every once in a while Ash would mutter, "Interesting," or, "Why didn't I think of that," but other then that, she was left to curse the officer in peace.

When they finally reached the orphanage, Mare had exhausted her repertoire of rude language. She'd moved on to seething in silence and glaring at the officer, occasionally performing the odd, rude hand gesture.

This officer was everything she despised. She had finally gained freedom, she'd had a taste of what the world was really like, and he'd snatched it all away. And what was worse, he really believed he was doing her a favor. He thought he was keeping her from a life on the streets, he thought he was saving her.

He thought wrong.

Now, it would be even more impossible to escape from Claudia's chains.

He'd killed any hope she'd had, and she was angry. Who knew when a chance like the one she'd taken would arise again? Mr. Winfield would definitely be more cautious after this, and Claudia caught her every time she tried to escape through the front door. Climbing out the window and scaling the building was a feat best left to Morgead.

The one opportunity, the one golden opportunity in eleven years, and this man had spoiled it.

-0-

"Oh!" Claudia clutched Mare to her in an unbreakable embrace that reminded Mary- Lynnette more of shackles than a loving hug. "Thank you officer…"

"Quinn." The officer smiled. "Officer John Quinn."

"Well, thank you officer Quinn," Claudia smiled. "I had nearly gone crazy with worry."

Jez muttered under her breath, "She lost her marbles years ago. And the cause was more likely loneliness than worry."

"What was that, Jezebel?" Claudia turned toward Jez, who was standing near the front of the pack of girls that witnessed Mary- Lynnette's return.

"I was just praising the lord." Jez smiled. "Mary- Lynnette could have been murdered or raped or become a victim of some other crime. We owe you a big thanks." She said that to the officer.

"Ah, well…" Quinn didn't quite know what to say to that. His eyes shifted away from Jez, and landed on Rashel, a striking sixteen year old who'd been brought in at the age of five.

They stayed there, drinking her in. No, gulping her in.

Although Mare herself felt a bit disconcerted by the officer's intensity, Rashel didn't seem to mind. In fact, she stared back with that same look mirrored in her own eyes.

Claudia, realizing her babbled thank yous were falling on deaf ears, snapped her fingers. Quinn's head swiveled back to her and Claudia smiled.

"If there's anything else I can do, officer…" Claudia's eyebrow raised in inquisition.

"No." Quinn turned to face her, sneaking one last, hungry look at Rashel. "That will be all."

"Of course." Claudia's smile grew. "I suppose you'll be leaving now?"

"Yes," Quinn looked away from her and back at Rashel. "Well, likewise, if you need anything… you know how to reach me." He seemed to be speaking more to Rashel then Claudia, but Claudia blushed anyway.

Ash, who'd followed Quinn and Mary- Lynnette in, turned to Mare and grasped her shoulders. "I knew you weren't boring. I knew from the very beginning."

Mary- Lynnette rolled her eyes and brushed off his hands. "And I knew you were going to be an annoying pain in my already exceedingly horrid day."

"Mary- Lynnette!" Claudia cried out. "Please, excuse her."

"Yea, she's usually quite cheerful," Jez put in. "I guess that laundry truck hit one too many speed bumps, if you know what I mean."

"Eh, that's nothing compared to what she said on the ride over here," Ash said gleefully. "You would not know how many new words I-"

"Laundry truck?" Quinn interrupted.

"Yes," Ms. Claudia said reluctantly. "Mary- Lynnette snuck out in the laundry cart."

"Has the board of orphans been informed?" The officer asked.

"Oh, not yet, but never fear!" Claudia gave them a forced smile and scooted them toward the door. "I will make sure they hear of this and do what they will with the information."

With that, the officer and the boy were gone.

Yay! Finally, some Ash! He won't be coming in again for another few chapters, though.

Review, please!