“No reason. She was just part of my dream.” She disappeared into the bathroom.
Elena shook her head and hurried toward the kitchen. She had to get Cara on that bus and be at the restaurant where she worked as a waitress forty-five minutes later. It would be fine. She was good at multitasking. She put butter into the frying pan to melt as she turned on the TV to get the local weather. Then she opened the front door and picked up the newspaper and carried it back to the kitchen. She put the two pieces of bread in the frying pan and poured herself a cup of coffee.
“Cara,” she called. “How are you coming?”
“Almost there.”
“Five minutes, and you have to be out the door.” She flipped through the newspaper. Usual depressing stuff. North Korean threats, terrorists beheading people, politicians feathering their own nests. She didn’t know why she even paid to have a paper delivered.
Because it might be more dangerous to ignore the news than to have to put up with it.
Ignorance could be deadly.
And Elena had her own nightmares that she never told Cara about.
But maybe Cara was right, and everything was getting better … for both of them. Maybe it would be—
Dear God.
She was staring down at the face in the newspaper.
Cara’s face.
No, not Cara’s. Jenny’s face. But close enough. Those distinctive features … The two girls had always looked alike even though there was six years difference in age.
Now Jenny’s green eyes were staring out of this paper at her, and Elena was starting to shake as she remembered that last night.
Not my fault. I would have saved you if I could. You shouldn’t have run away. Then I had to choose.
Stop shaking and read the story. See how bad it was going to be for them.
She quickly scanned the article, then pushed the newspaper away.
“Something’s burning.”
Cara was standing in the doorway of the kitchen.
Elena glanced at the toast in the pan that was now smoking and blackened. She tried to gather her composure as she quickly took the pan off the burner. “Sorry, something distracted me. Grab a health bar and get out of here.” She pushed the newspaper aside. “I’ll see you this afternoon.”
“Right.” Cara grabbed her red book bag and a honey oat bar from the cabinet. “See you…”
“Wait.”
Cara stopped at the door and looked back at her.
Elena couldn’t let her go like this. She hadn’t been thinking straight. It might be okay, but having this skull out there for everyone to see could be a disaster. She couldn’t chance the connection to Cara. “We’re going to have to leave, Cara.”
Cara stiffened. “Again?”
“It’s best.” She moistened her lips. “I’ll pack up our suitcases and meet you at school. Do you have your phone in your backpack?”
“I always have it.” She stood there, stunned. “I like it here, Aunt Elena. My school … I’ve even started to make a few friends. Do we have to leave?”
Elena nodded. “Maybe we can come back someday. We just have to leave right now.”
“We won’t come back,” Cara said. “We never come back.”
No, they never went back. They’d had to go on the run several times in the past years, and they’d never returned. Elena was always afraid that they might have left some trace, some clue behind.
And there might be someone waiting for them.
“New places are good, too. You always do well.”
“You said the money had run out. How are we going to get settled again?”
“I’ll find a way.”
“I like it here.”
“Cara, go get on the bus. Don’t argue with me.”
Cara nodded and turned toward the door. “No, I won’t argue. It doesn’t do any good, does it?”
“Cara … I don’t want to do this.”
“I know. I’ll be waiting.” She left the apartment.