The devil went down to
Georgia; he was lookin for a soul to steal…. I lied in the back of
blue pick up truck, listening to that song. The radio must have
played it one thousand times, so I knew it by heart and this point I
was lip syncing. But that's the one thing about hitchhiking; you
have to listen to other people's music. I had been traveling for
several days making my way back across the country on highway 40 , a
long strip of road that goes from the west coast to the east coast
and vice versa. It kind of sucked, me not having a car or anything
fancy like that. All I had was the clothes on my back, a will to
live, Bree's feather and an assortment of credit cards, which I
lifted from several people. Hitchhiking is not the safest thing to do
in the world, but it is better than walking. I didn't know exactly
what I would do when I got to the east coast. But one thing was for
sure, I would need to call a meeting and clean up this little mess I
had made in the Network as well as collecting my sister so that my
parents don't turn her into a freak like me. Finding her wouldn't
be as hard as I once thought. My mom told me that she was attending
the same high school I was. So there was at least a starting point.
I turned on my side and tried to sleep but couldn't because I
could feel every bump in the road. Next time, I'll try to hitch a
ride with someone that has a limo or maybe a min van. I heard the
breaks screech as we turned into a Seven Eleven. I yawned drowsily
and sat up. The station was bright with lots of trucks and their
truckers.
I stretched and asked the driver as he came out. "Where
are we?"
"Oklahoma, son. Where'd you say you were headed?"
"East," I replied, I couldn't get anymore specific than
that because I really hadn't decided on a destination yet.
"You
can't tell me more than that?"
"You needn't worry," I
said, crawling out of the bed of the truck. "I can manage from
here."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, thanks for the ride," I
said patting the truck.
"You're welcome, take care." I
nodded and walked inside the Seven Eleven for a snack. By the time I
came out the pickup truck was gone.
I sighed and stretched again,
"Now what?" I said to myself. It was late and I really wasn't
in the mood for traveling through the night. I had done that to get
this far and let me tell you I regretted it in the morning. I walked
back inside the store and approached the cashier, a short thirty year
old Caucasian, who obliviously hated his job. I could sense his
irritability, but I had to ask.
"Excuse me, how far is it to
the nearest town?" I asked.
He looked up at me from his
wrinkled copy of Sports Illustrated, probably out dated. " 200
miles, not far." Not Far? In what age is that "NOT FAR"? Maybe
by car…
"Thank you," I said, pushing off the counter.
"You
look a little young to be out this late," a voice said from behind.
I whirled around. I hadn't been in contact with any erasers lately
and I was hoping that the person wasn't one. A cop stood in my way,
who looked down his nose at me.
"I'm old enough," I said.
"Really? Where you're folks?"
"Outside," I said
convincingly. I crossed my arms and gave him an irritated stare. "Now
if you don't mind I'd like to get back to them." I pushed
passed the cop and headed for the exit. Told you I was a good lair.
He watched me like a hawk, but didn't stop me. As I got farther
away he ventured down an aisle in the store. I sighed; I knew I
couldn't stay here now and began to trudge down the road. Oklahoma
was nothing special, it had beautiful starry skies, but the land was
as flat as a pancake and dull. Walking in the dark is a little
foreboding, but I didn't mind, I had been in more terrifying
situations. As I walked I thought about Jeb's warning. I hadn't
taken it seriously thus far, since I hadn't been stopped by any
eraser squads. Maybe I was just getting lucky. An occasional car
zipped by me and I almost got hit by one. After the close encounter I
decided to call it quits for the night. I pitched camp in a corn
field and curled up amongst the stiff stocks and went to sleep….
The piercing sound of
my alarm clock woke me from my usual sweet dreams. It was seven in
the morning and another boring school day. High school is not as
great as I was once told. But I didn't mind, I had a great circle
of friends and I had good positioning on the social ladder. By the
way, my name is Ana Skynard. I'm your average teenager, sapphire
eyes and long black straight hair. In middle school they used to call
me Ana the banana, mostly because it rhymed. Fortunately my favorite
fruit isn't a banana…its cherries.
I slid out of bed and got
ready for school. My blinds were drawn, preventing any sunlight from
coming in. Getting up in the morning was the hardest part of the day,
as I am sure it is for everyone. The major hurdle I had was picking
out what to wear. In high school, or at least the one I attend, you
are what you wear, and I had a good rep for staying in style. After
picking out a suitable outfit I hurried down stairs to throw some
breakfast together. My Maine coon cat, Pogo, was sitting on the
counter watching me. He was a very big, and very lazy cat. I had
gotten him when I was about 10 or 8 I don't remember; I just
remember I was young. Pogo was a present for me, from my parents, who
at the moment were off on business. So I had to take care of myself,
which was no biggie. I had done this before. My parents, they're
great, nice people and I don't think they have a mean bone in their
bodies. They're pharmacists. I tossed two pieces of bread into the
toaster and poured some apple juice. One of my best friends told me
that apple juice is good for the soul. Pogo bounded off the counter
and rubbed himself against my leg, purring. I sighed and looked
around the kitchen. Things couldn't be any better, I was living the
American dream and loving it I might add. A few seconds later the
toast popped up and breakfast was served. After that I was off….
Hunger! FOOOD! …that was all I could think about as I
continued to travel on foot. Today was really…REEEEALLLY HOT and
the fact that I was traveling on an empty stomach didn't help. The
last time I had eaten was in the corn field I slept in and that was a
week ago. Now my stomach was full of…nothing and I was panting like
crazy…yeah, panting…I don't have sweat glands… My feet ached
and I longed for some shade. I had lost track of where I was in terms
of states, but I knew that I had left Oklahoma and Arkansas behind
me. Suddenly in the distance, a large green sign appeared, that said
"WELCOME TO TENNESSEE". To a driver it was just another sign…to
me…it provided SHADE! Not a lot, but a little. I ran up and hugged
the sign and then collapsed underneath it.
"Rest a bit," I
said to myself and lied there. Darn country roads. Suddenly a strange
but tasty scent filled the air…it was oily and warm kind of smelt
like fried chicken? I sat up and sniffed the air, good thing there
was no one around. Following the scent, I arrived in the middle of
the road, where a opossum carcass laid festering in the sun. I looked
at it, repulsed at its appearance and myself for thinking that this
thing's scent even remotely resembled fried chicken. Then I
remembered what my dad had told me about my anatomy. He told me I had
the intestinal fortitude of a hyena, which was not only a hunter but
a scavenger as well. I licked my lips…I was really hungry…and
there appeared to be nothing for miles. I kneeled down next to the
thing then…NO WAY! I stormed back to the sign and stood beside it.
"What am I thinking?" I said. I began to pace back and forth.
Don't look at it...Just don't look at it…I snuck a glance…NO!
I'm not doin' it…I can't sink to that level…but if I don't
I could wind up rotting in the sun along with it. I sat on the
ground, tired and annoyed and pulled out Bree's feather, which had
been ruffled do to travel. I sniffed it…it still had her scent. At
this point in my journey I had decided to return to my home, to get
my sister. She was in the greatest danger of all and I had to get to
her or die trying. My former home, where was I was born was a town in
Rhode Island. I would have to change routes soon. I had no map so I
going with my gut, which was surprisingly accurate. I owe it all to
my pigeon DNA. Suddenly the rumble of an engine reached my ears…a
car. If I can get the driver to stop…than I could get a ride and
then get some REAL fried chicken! I relished the thought and
instantly held out my hand, thumb up and waited. The car that
approached was red, Ford Mustang convertible…filled with very
appealing young ladies, probably the rich type. What more could a guy
ask for…I know a bucket of chicken!...FOCUS!. I didn't expect
them to stop, but to my surprise they did. There was one blonde,
brunette and a red head, she being the driver.
"Hey there, you
need a ride?" Why does everyone ask that? Isn't it obvious? No
I'm standing here on the side of the road half starved because I
thought it would be fun.
"Yeah," I said. "If you don't
mind."
"Aww, aren't you cute," the blonde said.
Cute?…I've been traveling for a week and I'm cute…well I
didn't really know what I looked like, I hadn't looked in the
mirror for a while.
"Where you headed?" the brunette asked,
being the first of the three to look at me suspiciously.
"Rhode
Island," I said. "I've got family up there. Where are you
headed?"
"Richmond," the red head said. "If that's
alright with you, there's room in the back next to Jessica." She
gestured at the brunette, she kind of reminded me of Kane.
"That's
fine," I said shortly and got inside…..
A week had passed by
since PC and Storm's disappearance and the personnel at the School
were still cleaning up the mess. Jeb spent long nights in his office
and since I was his secretary, I was up late too. I think I saw PC's
escape coming, but I refused to see it. Maybe it was good thing that
I didn't or I might have been tempted to tell Jeb. I don't know
what I would have done if I knew. Raf finally recovered and he was
back on his feet. Unlike PC he spent most of his time in his room and
didn't bother to wander the halls like his partner often did. I
guess that was a good thing, because everyone, especially security,
was on edge.
This particular night was long and I had gone
through my third cup of caffeinated coffee. "Kane," Jeb said to
me through the door that led to his office.
"Yes sir?"
"Come
to my office, I'm having a meeting and I need someone to document
it." I nodded and pulled out a pen and notepad, then followed Jeb
too his office, where PC's parents sat comfortably. I sat down
towards the back of the room and waited for the talking to begin.
Documenting a meeting was fairly easy; you didn't need to write
word for word what people had said. All you needed to do was
paraphrase.
"I appreciate you coming down here, Mr and Mrs.
Skynard," Jeb said.
"Let's cut the pleasantries short, Mr.
Batchelder, Where is our son?" Mr. Skynard asked. "That is what I
and my security team are trying to figure out."
"What has
happened?" Mrs. Skynard asked she looked worried. It was hard to
believe that these two-faced people actually raised PC from infancy.
"Not to long ago, we suffered a power failure, during which
time, your son, Seth, escaped," Jeb explained his laced fingers
tightening.
"How could you let such a thing happen?" John
Skynard cried.
"I assure you we didn't let such a thing
happen. It just did. But believe me when I say this. We are doing
everything in our power to find him. But tracking him has been, need
I say, difficult. Every tracking device we've had on him has been
disabled somehow."
"Even the chip we gave you?" Mrs.
Skynard asked.
Jeb nodded gravely. "Yes even that one.
Something has been going on without my knowledge. I think this escape
was planned well in advance and somehow, Seth was able to get around
our security."
John sighed and shook his head "If I know Seth
well, he didn't get around the security system… he manipulated
it. Ever since he was little he never tried to get around a problem.
He always found a way to make something work to his advantage… How
do you plan to find him?"
"We're not sure, we've put all
our Eraser squads on full alert. The problem with the United States
is that it is a BIG country, PC could be anywhere. For all we know he
could be hiding in a hole in Nashville Tennessee and we not even know
it."
"May I make a suggestion?" Mrs. Skynard asked.
Jeb
nodded. "By all means."
Lee Ann smiled and said, "I suggest
that we not even bother looking for him."
"Lee Ann!" John
exclaimed.
She looked at him cunningly. "You see, Seth didn't
leave here because just because he could. He has an objective. I
think he's going back home to get his sister. There is where you
need to set the trap. She's the bait that will draw him out. When
Seth comes for Ana - and he WILL - we will have them both."
"Ah,
I see," Jeb said leaning back in his chair. "Kill two birds with
one stone, yes?"
Lee Ann nodded "Exactly."……
I worked diligently, as I cleaned one of my guns. I kept them in good condition because of the heightened Eraser activity in my territory. I never heard from Mercy and I was beginning to think that maybe she was all talk and no action. Who knows; I could never figure her out anyhow. Roc and I talked yesterday, it was the first time I had in months every since the Ghost meeting. It went well, I guess, but Roc had been acting differently lately. It was very subtle, but it was the way he said and did things around me. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was up. He would leave town for days at a time and then return. When I asked where he had gone, he had said that it was part of his job. As for what that was he would never tell. I let it slide, of course. If something was going on, I couldn't let on that I had a suspicion. Suddenly, there was a tapping at my window. Out of instinct I loaded the gun and pointed it at the window. Standing on the sill was on of my birds. Sighing deeply I went and opened it. The bird fluttered inside and perched itself on the arm of my couch. I whistled to it and waddled onto my lap. From there I took the note that was attached to its leg. The note had a single ink line in the right hand corner, it was from Olga. I read the message and my eyes widened: "Bree, PC has been spotted in the east."….
"Welcome to Rhode Island" gotta love those signs. I'm surprised that I was able to reach this state with little resistance from Erasers and other agents that the School had prowling around. The great thing about cars is that they cover a lot of distance and I was unnoticeable to any Eraser, who was looking for me. This little journey was by far the most interesting; I had never traveled across the states before, even when I was normal. I met very interesting people, some of which I hope I never see again. The time I spent with the girls in the red mustang was alright. I did get that bucket of chicken I wanted and I never had to gaze at another animal carcass hungrily again. I felt safe for the most part, but I couldn't shake the feeling that this was the calm before the storm. But I didn't really care, whatever they could dish out I would be ready for. I only had one thing in mind, the safety of my sister and the Network. Nothing else mattered to me more. My mind was made up. If the Whitecoats or Erasers came, I was not going to play along or go quietly, like I had done many times before….
Fridays
are the best; it's the symbol of the end of another week of school,
which is always bliss. I was busily wandering around the house
getting ready to go out with my friends for pizza and a movie. This
was a tradition me and my friends had, but tonight was a little
different. Tonight my social status would change from Ana the singe
girl to Ana girlfriend of Matthew Fields, one of the coolest guys in
school. All the girls in my group were bringing their boyfriends
tonight. They hadn't done this before, because they didn't want
me to feel left out. Pogo watched me with curious eyes as I put on my
make up in the bathroom. Suddenly, the phone rang.
"Why now,"
I said frustrated. I picked up the phone "Hello?"
"Hey
sweetie, it's mom."
"Hey."
"How are you doing,
honey?"
"I'm okay, me and my friends are going out
tonight," I replied putting on some lipstick. "How are you? When
are you coming home?"
"Soon, very soon, we should be there
tomorrow. So where are you going tonight?"
"Movie and pizza,
the usual."
"Will there be any boys?" I rolled my eyes, my
mom was pretty protective and she was always very critical about
boys.
"Yes mom, their will be boys, they exist on the same
planet as we do."
There was silence on the line. "I just
worry about you, sweetie."
"Mom you've got nothing to worry
about. I'll be fine and besides, the boys I'm with are really
nice," I reassured her.
My mom sighed. "You're right; I
forget you're developing so quickly."
"Developing, mom, you
make me sound a like a tadpole."
She chuckled. "Okay, I'm
going to go, you be safe now, honey, and be back at the house by ten
okay?"
"Yes, mom."
"Bye bye."
"Bye." I hung
up the phone and finished doing my make up and headed to my room.
Pogo followed behind me and I got dressed. "How does this look?"
I asked striking a pose for the cat. "Oh what am I doing? You can't
understand me." Lights flashed through my window as Matt's car
pulled into the drive. Cursing I made sure I had everything, keys,
pepper spray, a gift my mom gave me when I started dating and money,
okay that's everything. I ran down the stairs and hurried to the
door. "Be good Pogo, I'll be back later."……
Outside,
sitting in a white van on the corner, Erasers were hard at work. One
of them had just listened to the entire conversation that transpired
between Ana and her mother. "Ain't that sweet," he said. "Too
bad this night isn't endin' like usual."
"Yeah, a real
shame," a female Eraser said, looking at her nails. "This should
a pretty easy assignment; the only tough part will be waiting for her
to return home. When it's ten…It'll show time boys."
"Yeah,
but what about her brother?" the male Eraser asked.
The female
smiled "That's no biggie. Why do you think I brought the
Howlers?"….
"Did you have a good
time?" Matt asked me as he drove.
I nodded timidly. "Yeah, it
was lots of fun. What about you…d-did you have good time?" I
asked.
Matt smiled "Yeah." I hated curfew…I wanted to spend
more time with my friends and Matt of course. I knew I shouldn't
disobey my parents. I had in the past and they cracked down on me
pretty bad. I looked at me watch, we were making good time. My house
appeared on the horizon. It was big and old, with dark blue shudders
and black shingles. I always left a light on in the house to make it
look like someone was home. Matt walked me to the front door.
"Thank
you, I had a wonderful time," I said to him.
"I'm glad .We
should do this again sometime," he commented, holding my hands
gently in his.
"Yeah I would like that."
"But do you
think we could just go? You know just the two of us?" I nodded
vigorously. SCORE! Matt smiled, broadly and kissed me on the cheek.
"See you later, Ana."
"Bye," I said softly. I waved to
him and watched his car zip off. Afterwards I walked back inside and
screamed. I was so HAPPY! I had dated a little before Matt
came along. He was perfect! I ran up stairs to my room and began to
change. Pogo was sitting on the window sill looking outside. "Hey,
Pogo, were you good?" I asked the cat. He ignored me, which was
odd, he was always happy to see me and when I spoke to him, he seemed
to pay attention. "What're you looking at?" I looked outside
and followed the cat's gaze to the bushes across the street. "I
don't see anything, Pogo." The cat meowed and then continued to
watch. I sighed and took off my earrings, then began to day dream
about Matt. Every time I thought of him, my heart raced faster and I
couldn't stop smiling. The idea of future dates with him sounded
great! The evening had gone perfectly so far and I didn't think it
could get any better. Then the door bell rang. Pogo yowled and darted
off the window sill and hid under my bed. "Pogo?" I knelt down
and stared at the cat, crouched, arms and legs tucked to his sides.
"Come on out, it's just the door bell," I said reaching for
him. Pogo flattened his ears and hissed at me. "What's wrong with
you?" I reached again and this time Pogo lashed out with one of his
paws, his claws hooking into my hand. "OW!" I said recoiling
"Fine stay there!" I got to my feet and walked down stairs to
answer the door. "Stupid cat," I muttered. Unfortunately for me,
I didn't heed the cat's warning, to hide. As I got closer to the
door, I began to get a little nervous. The clock in the living room
began to chime as it struck ten. Who could it be? Filled with my
wondrous daydream of Matt, I figured it was him. But why? My
nervousness heightening, I grabbed my pepper spray and put it in my
pocket. I opened the door slightly and poked my head out.
"Hello?
"Hi there." The voice came from a woman dressed in nice
clothes. Her voice was soothing and nice to listen too. "I know it
is an awkward time , but can we use your phone?" she asked.
"We?"
"Yes," the woman said gesturing to two men that were with
her. Now I was wishing I had just ignored the knocking, but it was
too late to be rude and the woman seemed harmless enough.
"Sure,"
I said pleasantly. "Come on in."
"Thank you dear," the
woman said. I guided them to the living room. "The phone is in the
kitchen," I said. The woman left and I was alone in the living room
with the two men. They were a little weird, they watched me very
closely. Every move I made their eyes followed. The woman's chatter
could be heard from the kitchen and a few moments later she returned.
"Thank you…Ana," the woman said, there was a slight change
in her voice and my heart started racing.
I stood up quickly, my
pepper spray held up. "How do you know my name?" I slowly backed
away from the two men that were closest to me. The woman smiled
devilishly "We know everything about you Ana Skynard."
"I
think it is time for you to leave," I said sternly. The woman
laughed and so did the two men.
"We'll leave and you're
coming with us. Now be a good girl and put that mace down. It won't
stop us, trust me on that." The woman reached for me. I screamed
and unloaded the pepper spray into her eyes. She screamed and rubbed
her eyes. I threw it at one of the men and made a break for the door
and opened it. But backed away as another man stood in the door way.
I missed his reach by inches and headed up the stair staircase.
"Get
her!" the woman screamed. One of the men followed close behind me.
I had made it to the top of the staircase and threw a lamp down at
him. It was one we kept in the hall. It broke over his head.
"GRAH!
You'll pay for that you little witch!" I ran to my room and
locked the door. Think fast! I pushed my bed towards the door; I knew
it couldn't hold the man that pursued me. I picked up the phone and
dialed 911, but the line was dead. I threw down the phone and ran for
the window to open it. I heard the man shouting outside my door. The
bed jiggled as he pushed on the door get in the room. I fought
ferociously with the window.
"Come on! Come on!" I said tears
pouring down my cheeks. CRASH! A fist burst threw the door and the
bed was forced backward and knocked into me.
"There you are!"
The man said. I began to reach for anything I could use as a weapon.
Suddenly a furry bullet darted passed me and attacked the man.
"POGO!" I shouted. The cat fought the man like a lion, meowing,
hissing and clawing as if he were scratching post. Then, just as
suddenly as the scrimmage between the man and Pogo began, it ended.
The man wrenched Pogo off of him and threw the poor animal into the
wall, where he laid limp. I screamed and attacked then man angrily to
avenge my cat and save myself. But he overpowered me and began to
drag me back down stairs.
"Stop your squirming and sniffling,
you'll be lucky if I don't do that to you," he said.
Downstairs, the woman and the other men were waiting. I punched,
kicked, and screamed my lungs out. But it was useless.
"Let's
get this over with. The sooner she's out the sooner we can leave,"
the woman said still rubbing her eyes occasionally. The other men had
me pinned down on the carpet.
"You're brave; girl, but that
pepper spray only delayed the inevitable." The woman reached into
her pocket and pulled out a syringe.
"Who are you? What do you
want?" I said full of rage and sadness. I hated this feeling. The
feeling of being pinned down. Screaming and writhing, hoping against
all hope that something or someone would come and in reality nothing
would.
"What do we want? You ask? Ana…we want you." ……
