...And Home Before Dark

[umop-ap!sdn†]

((Jaquilyn Locke and Joachim Lovelace continued from The Fox, the Wolf, and the Lamb))

Running again. They were always running. They'd killed two people now, and there was no going back. The clubhouse base attracted way too many people. They needed to stay hidden. The living quarters were safe. The doors locked, and there were enough rooms that hiding would be easy. A change of clothes would be appreciated, too. Especially with the slash Joachim had recieved earlier.

Jaquilyn's run slowed to a jog, then to a walk, and finally to a tip-toe. She signaled for Joachim to be quiet, she wanted to make sure nobody was around before they left the safety of the woods.

Dead silence. There only students around here were probably corpses. Carmina and Adonis weren't making any sounds. Even if their bodies made Jaq squirm with horror, they were just bodies now. Lifeless, empty, and harmless.

Before the horrible feelings could paralyze her again, she took off towards the town houses. She didn't take the time to signal for Joachim. She just wanted to get there before he noticed her trembling.

She couldn't stop.

Jaq recognized her building by the spiderweb crack in the window. She threw open the door and sprinted up the stairs, not even waiting for her partner. He'd follow. Down the hallway she went, just a few steps before she froze again.

This building was the perfect hiding place. The doors locked, and there were enough rooms to make people hard to find. What if somebody else had figured that out? The hallway stretched out longer and imaginary murderers began banging on every door. The sounds of sharp, metal weapons against the aged wood filled her ears. The laughing of the freaks whose trap she'd run into. She backed up and felt one of her captors standing menacingly behind her.

She turned and screamed in Joachim's face.

...

...

...

"I'm sorry...... I- I just need sleep."

She took back to her room and found her bag just as she'd left it. She flooped her heavy body onto the dusty mattress and sighed. Not even a change in clothes could fix her mood. The door shut behind her and she heard the bolt lock slide into place. Jaq put the gun down next to the bed and allowed herself to close her eyes. Whatever nightmares came would be better than this one.

((Jaquilyn Locke and Joachim Lovelace continued in Rendezvous.)