red hill - jamie mcguire

I bolted from the house and let the screen door slam as I ran into the street. Tobin was standing on
Tavia’s steps, holding himself up with her door.
I stared at him, and he stared back. She wasn’t home, either, and neither was little Tobin. “I’ll try
to come back and get you.”
Tobin offered a small, understanding smile. “No you won’t. And you shouldn’t, anyway. I’d just
slow you down.”
I watched him for a moment, seeing no judgment in his eyes. “My grandparents have a lot of meds
in their bathroom. Ibuprofen, painkillers, Ex-Lax. The door is open. You’re welcome to it.”
Tobin managed a small laugh. “Thank you. I hope you find your girls.”
“I will,” I said, turning and breaking into a sprint. The next block was Main Street. It was well lit,
the main road of Anderson, and boasted the only four stoplights in town. A four lane with room to
spare on each side for parking, the road was wide, and didn’t offer much in the way of cover. I had so
much momentum going when the streetlamp on the corner revealed my presence like an escaped
convict, I just kept going, hoping I was lucky enough that no one would see. I flew across the street
and the sidewalk, and cut across the funeral parlor’s back parking lot, shooting down the alley. A
broken chair was right around the corner, and before I even thought to jump, my legs were already
pushing me up and over.
My tennis shoes and scrubs were wet and weighed down with mud, but knowing my girls were just
a few miles away, my legs carried me like I was weightless.
Tobin called to me from blocks away. “Go, Scarlet! You will find them! You will! Go!”
My legs ran faster than they ever had before, even in high school when I attempted track and
wanted to please my mother so much that I ran until my lungs felt they would burst. Still, I was always
the slowest, always the one left behind. But not that night. That night, I could fly.
The old railroad station came into view, and I skipped over the rails, and then surged past the
remnants of the brick and mortar that displayed the word ANDERSON. The letters were dirty and rusted
like my hometown had become. I glanced back just once before crossing the street. Even though sweat
poured into my eyes, and my lungs could barely keep up, I wouldn’t stop. Three more blocks to my
babies. They would be there. They would.
I cut down an alleyway, getting a second wind when I felt the familiar gravel crunch under my feet.
A dog barked, and I smiled. Not a single dog could be heard on the other side of town. The soldiers
hadn’t reached this side yet. Jenna and Halle would be waiting for me and I would take them into my
arms and squeeze them so tight that nothing else would matter. The craziness outside the city limits
would disappear.
I reached the end of the alley, across from Andrew’s house. His detached garage and drive were
directly in front of me, but his white Tahoe was absent. My chest heaved, and my guts lurched,
purging the rattled remnants in my stomach.