I woke up the next morning sore and groaning. The fresh bandages I put on last night folded in the most uncomfortable of places. Rolling onto my side I pulled at them in hopes of evening them properly. But it was no use. I rolled over and pushed myself up to a sitting position and started unraveling them. The stain was pinker than yesterday, but I definitely was still bleeding. I heard a soft groan next to me and the sheets curled up around the pillows.

"Morning sleepyhead," I rubbed Speck's back as she held the sheets over her. She moved from me, and I reached to nudge her but she flinched away. I sighed and stood up, holding the used bandages and heading to the bathroom. "We have until noon," I breathed, closing the door behind me.

I came out with fresh bandages, not too thick as I wasn't bleeding too much, and semi-controlled hair. I grabbed a brush to take this time in order to at least somewhat tame it. I was struggling to put it all up in a pony tail when I heard the TV blare on. I jumped and looked towards the newscaster speaking to us, then looked over to see Speck sitting up with the remote in hand. She didn't look at me as I sat down next to her. Her eyes were glued to it but I could tell her focus wasn't entirely on the politics. As much as I wanted to embrace her and tell her everything will be okay, I knew it wouldn't do much. I leaned back on my arms and stretched my wings, watching intently with her.

Minutes passed, then half and hour passed, and my stomach was rumbling louder after every story. I gazed over at Speck who was still watching the screen. I sighed. She didn't look my way. I let out a deep sigh and still nothing. I pinched the bridge of my nose, "I'm going to get some breakfast. It's free, if you want any."

I waited for a response, but still, nothing. I grabbed my shoes and slipped on my dark windbreaker, grabbed a key, and got up to leave. I paused at the door in hopes she'll tell me she wants all the pancakes they have. She didn't look at me. My heart sank as I closed the door.

With four bags filled with food stuffs and two large orange juices in hand, I scrambled with the door key. I had to kick the door to keep it open and nearly dropped a juice. Catching it at the last second, I narrowed my eyes at Speck still glued to the TV. She laid on her belly and her head rested on her arms. I saw her nose twitch at the smell of food and I huffed.

"Here," I dropped one bag next to her and put two of them on the desk. I took one and sat down next to her, where she tore into the bag feverishly. Oh sure, now you're hungry. She took a bite of the eggs and kept her eyes on the screen. I rolled my eyes and opened my bag, the smell of bacon drifting up and sending chills through me. I bit into the warm, buttery toast and opened my second box of bacon and sausage when a scream caught me off guard. My toast bounced off my knee and onto the floor as my ears focused on where it came from. My eyes turned towards the TV.

It was a video of the accident.

A shop's camera pointed at the street, capturing the back up of cars. It was in monochrome and not in the best quality, but I could see the frustrated drivers' faces. Then the screen rattled, pixelating at the edges until it came to a stop. People stepped out of their vehicles, their attention in front of them, black smoke now crawling towards the area. Then a person turned tail and ran, a few of their mouths widening in shouts of terror, scrambling for their belongings and other passengers and tearing away just as a large furred creature leaps into frame, freezing. I swallowed.

"A horrid monster was reported on scene and is assumed to be the cause of this horrible crash," a female newscaster spoke as the camera honed in on the pixelated Eraser. "Storefront cameras caught the creature in action, lunging after bystanders as they attempted to flee."

A bearded man showed up on screen, eyes wide and microphone pointed to his mouth. "It was terrifying. I thought I was going to die."

A woman holding a child then appeared, "What it was? I have no idea, but it was horrible. Tearing car doors off hinges, ripping into cars, oh, it was horrible."

Another person was interviewed, then another, then another. My head hung at their horror. How the Erasers came back just to do this, just to get to us. I wish I could've done something more, something... better. I clenched my fork, the end snapping off as I stared down at my eggs. It was infuriating that I couldn't do more to stop this. If I did, all I would do is put more people at risk. I couldn't do that; I had to keep on running.

"We now have new insight on the school bus full of kids that was destroyed by these monsters."

I glanced up to see that girl that sat next to us on screen. Her name, Alisha, appeared below her. She was struggling with her words, "I was scared. I saw it get in through the bus driver's window. Then more came and started banging up the bus. I was really scared. I hid under the seats and covered my eyes."

A clip rolled as she talked, showing the defeated bus and kids stumbling off with their hands up over their heads, government officials pointing at the bus with guns. Their expressions, their faces, the horror in their eyes. Some had been crying or still were. An ambulance sat nearby with what looked like Tess being rolled towards it in a stretcher. My stomach churned as I analyzed the scene, the audio muffling as I felt my heart beating in my ears.

"Wait- hold on, yes, we have breaking new information on this story."

I blinked and stared at the gal. Her hand was to her earpiece and she nodded, "We're turning to Gordon with new updates."

The screen flashed quicker than she imagined and Gordon was there, talking up a storm. "We have breaking new information that may trump all previous thoughts on this story. I am reporting live from Bayview Park where witnesses say they heard breaking glass and shots fired at a house just down the block."

When the screen panned to the house, both Speck and I gasped. It was our house. All the windows were shattered, the front door on its hinges, the shingles on the roof uneven and missing from my crash landing; it was in ruins. I scrambled forward towards the screen, as it changed to show the inside. The house was ransacked. The living room was looted, the TV on its side and couches ripped to shreds, pictures and vases cracked or missing; the dining room was overturned, chairs splintered and the table smashed in two; the kitchen all open and cabinet doors barely hanging on its hinges, crushed glassware and plates scattered the area, large claw marks on the wood. I had to put a hand to my mouth. It was horrific. The upstairs was even worse. The steps were clawed and the carpet ripped at each step, and the walls were littered with even more marks. Speck's mattress was torn to shreds, the bed frame flipped and the closet searched. The claw marks on my bed frame and the flurries of feathers on the floor made my blood run cold.

Mom! Dad!

My eyes darted back to my phone on the bedside table. No, they could be dead for all I know. But... I glanced back at the screen. No, they would've said if there were fatalities. But even trying to contact them made me even more sick. Opening up a call made us vulnerable to whoever was tracking us. I hugged myself and stared at my food. What if they were kidnapped? Taken to ITex? Being tortured? What if they did kill them? What if they escaped? What if-

"No, I never felt safe."

Wait- I know that voice.

I glanced up and my eyes widened. The girl from the park. The reporter asked her to elaborate more. "Well, ever since those two new girls moved in, something just felt off about them. It was different with them here. I mean, they have these weird spots on their skin. The older one said they were birthmarks, and that she was adopted, but I never trusted her."

My skin crawled and I clenched my fists; my eyes glued to the screen. My blood boiled.

"Yeah I called the police. When I heard about the accident, and those weird creatures, I just knew those two had something to do with it."

I stood and swiftly kicked the dresser beneath it. The TV rattled, the screen fuzzed around the edges and the wall shook. I gritted my teeth. How dare she! She did this! She did this! I wanted to fly back there and murder that girl. She put my parents' lives in danger for contacting the police. She thought from the beginning we were different- hell we can't stay anywhere can we? It's her fault she did this. It's her damn fault! If it weren't for her, they wouldn't have found my house, they wouldn't have destroyed the place, they wouldn't have even shown up there at all!

"I was just thinking about my family," she spoke into the microphone.

"Bullshit!" I screamed at the TV. I pulled my arm back to punch it but felt small hands wrap around me. I whipped my head around to see Speck with tears in her eyes. She shook her head at me and I lowered my arm. My body shook and I grabbed my head. I wanted to explode. I wanted to rip her into pieces. I wanted her to feel how I felt.

Both Speck and I jumped when the phone rang. I leapt towards it and flipped it open, my voice wavering, "Mom?"

"Amber! Oh sweetie, honey, I'm so glad you're all right," her voice trembled over the line.

"Mom!" I breathed and Speck copied me. "What happened? Are you okay? We saw the news, where's dad? Is he okay? What happened?"

"Please honey, slow down- is Speck with you?"

"Yes, yes, we're in a hotel room, here," I pressed the speaker button and put the phone between us. Speck turned and crossed her legs.

"Mom?" she asked and Mom cried happily.

"Speck- oh gosh I'm so glad you two are okay," Mom said.

"Is that them?" I heard Dad faintly.

"Yes! Oh Tom- they're right here."

The phone fumbled then I heard Dad's voice break through, "Girls?"

"Dad!" we cried in unison.

"Oh thank god you're fine, we were so worried about you," he said, sniffling.

"We're okay, but what happened? The house is in ruins!" I exclaimed.

"We know," they said. I heard Mom sigh. My mind scrambled for an explanation just as Dad stated, "We were out when it happened, thank god. When I pulled up I couldn't believe my eyes. I had to keep your mom from going in."

"I wanted to save the pictures of you two, but the door was ripped open and- oh-" she sobbed and Dad shushed to comfort her. I wanted to reach through and hug them both, my heart ached. I glanced at the TV screen to see our faces up there, side by side with the words "WANTED" in a red banner. I faintly heard the reporter alarming the public to be on the lookout for the dangerous kids.

"What are you going to do now?" I asked them. They couldn't go back home, they'd be questioned on what happened and why they weren't there and everything they knew about us. My stomach knotted. They couldn't- they wouldn't.

"We're going to head somewhere far and lay low for a while, until things blow over," Dad etched through.

"Yeah, that's smart," I sighed, hoping that would work. But somewhere it felt like it might not.

"We won't tell them anything sweetheart, don't worry about us."

"I'll try," my voice caught a bit. "We miss you."

"We miss you too girls."

The TV flashed to an infomercial with its phone number flashing on screen. I glanced up and added, "You guys need to delete this number."

"What? Why?" Mom sounded confused.

"You have to, for your safety and ours," Speck chimed in, her face solemn. I knew she didn't want to, but it was important to cut all ties. We had to protect them. "I'm smashing the phone because we can't carry it with us," I added.

"Are you sure? What if you need something?"

"We can handle ourselves," I said.

There was a pause before Mom said, "We love you girls."

"Love you too," I blinked at an incoming tear.

"Love you!" Speck cried back, letting her tears fall.

"Be safe," Dad said before I hesitantly pressed End.

I shakily set the phone down and stared at it, in hopes they would call back. But nothing. My muscles clenched. I wanted to cry, I wanted to punch something, I wanted to do so much but... I didn't know what to feel. I felt betrayed that the girl ratted us out, but I also felt relieved to hear that Mom and Dad were fine. Yet on the other hand I was scared to think that the Erasers got so close to us without us knowing. Were they planning for us to settle to attack? What were they thinking? What should I be thinking? They were on us, I had to think they were tracking us this entire time, scoping us out and waiting for the kill. They were hunters, that's how they were trained.

"What do we do now?" Speck finally said to me.

I stared at her, wondering what to do next. We did have to keep out of their radar, but how? It's not like we could stop them, we weren't built for that. Not only that, but they were tracking us. The more we ran, the more they would follow our trail however close or far behind. There had to be something we could do, but my brain couldn't think of one. Then it dawned on me. But I paused, thinking, Well, is that a good idea? It definitely was risky, but I couldn't think of anything else.

"Hand me the laptop."

"Hey are you seeing this?"

The dark-haired wonder turned around and matched eyes with the TV. His expression didn't change, of course, but she could tell he was really thinking. Once the story aired and the pictures were glued into his brain he looked at her. What was he thinking about? Of course, it was unheard of, but it did smell of ITex. She adjusted her position on the floor, waiting for his response.

"Well?" she probed.

The laptop beeped and both their heads swiveled towards it. A white envelope appeared with the words, "You Got Mail!" above it. He walked over and opened it, reading.