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." ……