"Thanks, Ryan." Sarah climbed off the motor bike. She was freezing. The thin wispy fabric of her fairy costume had provided no protection from the wind that blew past them while on the bike. Sarah's teeth chattered. "Do you want to come in?" she asked, looking anxiously toward the house, and rubbing her arms to keep warm. She was worried about Toby.
"Nope." Ryan got off the bike, and started toward the neighbor's house. "I've got to get back to Lisa, babe. She's my responsibility until I get her home safe." Ryan stole Sarah's neighbor's Jack o' lantern. "You should get inside. You're going to freeze to death," he told her. "I'll just set up the lanterns for you before I go."
Sarah thanked Ryan, and ran into the house. She bound up the stairs, and into her brother's room. She stepped into the room and froze. For one long moment she stared at Toby asleep in his toddler's bed. He was safe. Toby was safe. Sarah wiped a stray tear from under her eye, and slowly crept into her brothers room. She breathed a sigh of relief. All the emotion she'd been holding seemed to drip off her shoulders. She wanted to hug him, pick him up, shout for joy, and squeeze him tight. But he was sleeping. So, Sarah settled with giving her brother a gentle kiss on his forehead. Her body shook with emotion. After several long seconds, the Labyrinth Champion shifted her attention back to necessities.
Sarah raced over to Toby's window. She made sure it was locked, and closed the curtains. Then she quickly moved from room to room, checking the locks, and closing curtains and blinds.
"Sarah," Karen called as Sarah tried to sneak past the master bedroom.
Sarah stopped, pushed open the door, and took a half step in.
"How was the dance?" Karen asked.
Sarah glanced at her stepmother's window. "Fine," she answered. She moved into the room, and as nonchalantly as she could, checked the window lock. She closed the blind.
"Good." Karen unpaused her movie. "I'm glad you made it home so quickly," she added, letting Sarah know she knew she hadn't walked home.
Sarah looked at the TV and frowned. Her stepmother was still awake. She stayed up to watch a movie, after saying she was too tired to stay up for Sarah over the phone. That hurt.
"Good night," Karen dismissed Sarah.
Sarah didn't wait. She left the room, quickly closing the door. "Good night," she muttered to herself. It had been a long night, but she would definitely not call it good. She was so tired, she just wanted to climb into bed, and forget the day. But she couldn't. She knew this wasn't over yet. She still needed to find out what was going on. She needed to find out if there was anything she could do not just to keep her family safe, but all the other people being affected as well.
Sarah walked into her dark room, and turned on the dim lamp next to her bed. She heard the motor cycle start up outside, and moved to her window to see Ryan driving away. Sarah blew out a breath, and sat on her window seat. She reached down, and quickly took off her shoes, rubbing her sore feet for just a minute. After another second, she shimmied out of her tight black leggings, and hastily moved to her mirror. She didn't have time for foot massages, she thought, reprimanding herself for taking that quick minute. The difference of a minute would have decided a different ending to her trek through the Labyrinth after all. Minutes could be precious.
Sarah was shocked when she saw her reflection. She was stunned where she stood. She'd taken great pride in making her Halloween costume herself. It resembled something like a cross between Tinkerbell's outfit and the fairies she'd seen in the Labyrinth. The top of her dress resembled a pastel version of what Tinkerbell wore, but Sarah had added wispy sleeves to meet the school's dress code. The skirt was made up of what looked like sheer flower petals, layered to create some modesty. But now that Sarah could see herself, her heart sank. The once dainty dress was torn and tattered. There were huge holes and rips in the fabric. One of her wire wings was completely bent over. And she looked more like a fairy who'd been caught in a rain storm than the dainty little thing she'd been trying to portray. All her hard work was ruined. She frowned.
"Hello, Sarah." A voice resonated through the room, and all thoughts of the Halloween dance, all thoughts of costumes and fun, all thoughts of keeping the goblins out of the house disappeared. She knew that voice. As long as Sarah lived she'd never forget that voice, HIS voice.
"Precious."