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Or else no one would

The as easy to open, but the screen was harder to rip than she’d expected Once she’d gotten a hole big enough for a couple of fingers, it got easier to pull it apart, but it still hurt her fingertips A little puff of dust cah that she could squeeze through it The empty water bottle slipped out of her pocket as the cli outside herShe didn’t go back for it She ran across the road to where the underbrush started getting thick High clouds interrupted the stars in streaks, as if giant claws had ripped strips out of the sky

The light in the house and the darkness of the world let her see her mother and father in theas his ar, but he didn’t wipe the tears away He wouldn’t put the weapon down long enough for that Her mother stood at the door, ready to usher the soldiers in when they came It would be soon Toasn’t far ahen you had military-transport vehicles

Cara started the tablet recording She took a deep, slow breath, waited fifteen seconds, and screamed

“Momma!”

Her mother’s head caht Cara tapped the playback and loop, threw the volu the tablet as hard as she could into the brush Herbut blind froain Momma!

“Cara?” her mother said “Where are you?”

Her father came to the door She heard him say, “What is it?”

Cara started running She heard her own voice again, behind her, and herfor her And her father now too She didn’t have much time She looped around the back of the house and in the back door, opening it carefully to keep fro noise Both her paren

ts had gone out the front to find her To save her Their voices reminded her of the search party that she’d avoided All the ways they wanted to help her, but never asked how she wanted to be helped

She kicked the stool away and hauled open the pantry door Xan was kneeling in the darkness, his legs folded under his Wet tracks of tears marked his cheeks His black eyes took her in She held out her hand

“Cos”

The front door stood open Across the road, the brush crackled and hushed as her parents crashed through it, calling her nahtened Cara felt sorry for them, but they’d made their choices She’d made hers Xan took her hand with his uninjured one, and she hauled him up

Then they were running out the back, into the night, toward the dogs, wherever they were Xan o of her hand Her parents’ voices faded behind her She didn’t know if they’d found her tablet or if she’d just gotten far enough away that the sound wouldn’t reach her

It didn’t matter