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Miracolina considers herself up for any challenge While she is a tithe, she has not lived the sah she’s not a girl from the hard streets, she considers herself street-sloved fist of the resistance will be a challenge, but not an insurmountable one

Early on Lev personally warned her of the futility of an escape attempt "There are sharpshooters with tranq rifles everywhere," he said,it sound hopeless Yet every bit of inforh there’s a fence, it isn’t electrified Good to know

She explores every corner of the hugespecial attention to the one to be restored Most of the s are boarded over, and all the doors to the outside are locked But the otten an area is, the less reliable those locks will be--and a padlock hasp is only as good as the wood it’s screwed into Such as the lock on the garden door, which has an unpleasant termite infestation Once she finds the door, she files the information away for future reference

The ex-tithes’ meals are usually served on chipped china that h collection in better days, but on Sundays, the finest stuff is brought out, including silver platters just large enough to fit beneath her shirt, like arain, she files the information away for future reference

Now all she needs is a diversion--not just inside the mansion, but outside as well Unfortunately, that’s not so she can create, so she bides her time, confident that an opportunity will present itself An opportunity such as a tornado watch on a Sunday night

- - -

The wind is already picking up at dinnertihout the crowd of kids Some are scared, some are excited Lev is notably absent Maybe he’s left to avoid the storreater safety When thewith her a couple of silver serving platters, presu to the kitchen

"You don’t have to do that, Miracolina," says one of her teachers

"It’s okay, I don’t lad to see her finally settling in

The store like heaven itself has ruptured Rain pours through holes in the roof into the areas that have yet to be repaired The ballrooreeted by Lev, is at least an inch deep ater Pans set up beneath leaks in bedroo ship The Weather Channel shows a grid of Michigan counties blinking angry red with tornado alerts

"Don’t worry," says one of the teachers, "there’s a storm cellar if they call a tornado alert in our area" Which they do, at exactly 8:43

Ihtning striking and agitated kids, it’s hard to keep track of everyone That’s when Miracolina slips aith several serving platters and disappears down a side passage, hurrying toward the ter in front of the door, she shoves the larger platters under her shirt, both front and back They’re cold and uncomfortable but very necessary She slips two s them into protectors for her rear She waits for a powerful burst of lightning to fill the sky in uneven, strobing flashes, and the moment the thunder rolls in a few seconds later, she sives on the second atte the sound of the door as it bursts open

There is still the rearden She races down the path, immediately drenched and alarden into the weedy clearing that leads to the woods, in clear view of any sharpshooter, and she wonders if infrared lenses can see through sheets of rain She knows metal is a conductor of electricity, and in the back of her ht seek her out--but she has to believe that won’t happen She has to believe that God has brought this storm for her, so she can escape--so she can do what she was , well, that would be a sign from above too, wouldn’t it? So she says a silent prayer

"Lord, if what I’, then by all means strike me down Otherwise setstrike is provided Not one to strike Miracolina down, but to illuminate her for all to see Or at least for anyone who happens to be looking

Most everyone is already in, or en route to the storm cellar, whichhow old it is Lev, however, who has always loved storms, and actually has ain his roo a few ust of wind rattles the old s al flash of lightning hits In that flash he sees sorass and into the woods It’s only a brief glih for him to know exactly who it is, even if he can’t see her face

33 - Miracolina

She doesn’t hear the first rifle fire, but she feels the tranq dart as it hits the silver platter strapped to her back, its barbed tip caught in the fabric of her sweatshirt She doesn’t knohere the shooter is, except that he’s behind her She was hoping that the sharpshooters had left their stations to shelter from the storm, but at least one,that a storht opportunity for any kids not yet deprogrammed

Another dart whizzes past her, inches away, and from a different direction There isafter her body because they wouldn’t risk a shot to the head, so she pulls in her aret Another dart hits one of the s her rear She almost didn’t put those there because they halad she did This time the dart doesn’t stick, it just bounces free

In aaround her If there are any sharpshooters here in the woods, she would be really surprised More than likely the shots came from the mansion itself She doubts even the most dedicated snipers would hold their positions in the woods in the middle of a tornado threat She has no idea in what direction she’s running, but any direction is the right one if it’s away from the mansion She knows that eventually she’ll coh to climb

The only view ahead of her co Her clothes are torn and her face scratched by whipping branches She stumbles into mud but picks herself up and continues Then, in a flash of light, she sees a chain-link fence up ahead It’s about eight feet high--not too hard to climb, but there’s barbed wire across the top More scrapes, more cuts, but she’ll deal with that She’s sure any injuries will heal before she’s unwound

Out of breath and near the end of her stamina, she hurls herself at the fence, but just before she reaches it, she’s hit by so her to the wet ground She catches only a gliolden child himself has co Lev, scratching at his it It connects with his head with a heavy bang He falls, but he’s right back up again

"I swear I will take your head off with this if I have to!" she says "Let o I don’t care if they worship you, I don’t care if you’re their patron saint I’, and you can’t stopheavily, and says, "Take me with you"

It’s not what she expected to hear