The Gemini Escape

Hey everyone! Here is another short story. This was the first actual story I ever wrote. I hope y'all like it. Please vote and comment.

Bye!

~SG~

        Seven-year-old David Johnson watched his babysitter, Marissa, flip through the latest edition of Seventeen magazine as his younger twin brother, Riley, snuck into the kitchen to retrieve their father's tool kit. His job was to ensure that Marissa did not catch Riley; otherwise, they would be forced to suffer yet another time-out at the hands of the intolerable teenage warden. David glanced into the kitchen one last time, and saw his brother lift the tool kit out of the drawer. Just as Riley closed the drawer, Marissa put down her magazine. David had to think fast before they were caught red-handed. As Marissa stood up, he rushed toward her, purposefully tripping on the edge of the blue-green rug. She rushed over to make sure he was okay; meanwhile, Riley hoisted the kit onto his shoulder and soundlessly crept out of the kitchen then up the stairs.

            "Are you alright? Why were you running? And why aren't you in your room?" Marissa questioned as she picked him up from the carpet. She then proceeded to scan him for any bruises. Suddenly, her head shot up, causing her dark brown braid to whip back over her shoulder. Marissa narrowed her eyes at David suspiciously, then asked, "Which one are you, and where is your twin?"

            David inwardly sighed, resigned to the fact that she was unable to tell the two boys apart. After all, their parents were practically the only ones that could; besides, he wasn't going to let such a golden opportunity pass him by. Outwardly, he sniffled then said, "I'm Riley. I was getting bored from being in time-out, and I wanted to play with my toys. So, I came down to try to get out of the punishment."

            The eighteen-year-old pondered his statement for a bit. Marissa looked down at the blond-haired boy with watery ocean green eyes. The boys were identical twins, and the babysitter was unable to distinguish who was who. So, she generally relied on their differing personalities to tell the two apart. This time was no different.

            From what Marissa had noticed about the twins, Riley could be very impatient when it came to something he really wanted, while David was probably even more patient than she was. So, she reasoned that he must really be Riley. "Okay, but that still doesn't explain why you were running," she reminded him.

            "I really, really, really wanted to get out of time-out, so I ran to talk to you," David said reasonably.

            "Well, alright then. You can get out of time-out, but you have to behave," Marissa stated sternly. "Tell your brother that he can get out of time-out as well."

            He agreed to both conditions and headed upstairs. After he left, she went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator. As she swallowed the water, Marissa heard a faint noise. It almost sounded like a door clicking into place, more specifically the back door. She set her water down on the granite counter, and went to investigate the sound.

            As she rounded the corner into the hallway leading to the back door, Marissa had the thought that the twins might be trying to go outside. It would explain the noise, but it didn't really make sense.

            However, just to make sure, she called out, "Boys, you better not be trying to go outside. It's too late."

            When Marissa reached the door, she flipped on the back porch light and looked into the backyard. She didn't see the twins or anything unusual. So, she flipped the light off, turned around and started walking back to the kitchen. She was about to walk back into the kitchen when she heard a footfall to her right. When she turned in the direction of the noise, she was struck on the back of the head. As Marissa started to fall forward, she was able to make out the figures of two men, and then everything went dark.

            David and Riley were in David's room trying to take apart their Nintendo Wii when they heard a low thud. The brothers looked at each other with similar expressions of confusion on their faces. Before either of them could speak, they heard footsteps coming up the stairs. The footsteps sounded heavier than Marissa's, and it was too early for their parents to be home. The boys quickly reached the same conclusion. They didn't know who was coming up the stairs, so they needed to hide until they knew it was safe. The twins stealthily moved to the closet.

            On the left-hand side of the closet, there was a toy chest. David pushed it to the side, revealing a small panel that could be removed. As David moved the panel, Riley grabbed the two small flashlights that were sitting in a pair of boots near the toy chest. He had just handed one to David, when they heard a deep voice coming from the stairs. They looked at each other in confirmation that they didn't know whoever was trudging up the stairway. Riley crawled through the hole in the wall and David followed shortly after.

            Once they both passed through, Riley pulled the toy chest back into place and positioned the panel over the opening once again. David turned on his flashlight and made his way down the tunnel, while Riley followed close behind. They only used one flashlight at a time, because they didn't know how long they would have to hide in the passageway, and they needed to conserve the battery power.

            The tunnel was actually a mini stairwell hidden behind the walls. The boys had stumbled upon the intricate tunnel system three years prior. Ironically, they found it while playing hide-and-seek. The hidden walkways connected many of the rooms together, including the shed in the backyard. This made it a perfect system of transportation for the twins, who were constantly getting into mischief.

            They continued down the passage until they reached another panel on the left side of the tunnel. They knew this panel opened into Riley's closet, but they stopped because they could vaguely hear people talking.

            "We have to grab the kids. Orders from the boss," the first voice stated.

            The second voice replied in a lower, bored tone, "Yeah, I know," he sighed. "I just hope these brats are worth it."

            "Their parents are loaded," the emotionless voice reasoned, "so they should be."

            "You got a point. They aren't in this room. Let's check the next one." The twins listened intently as the two men started to walk away.

            David and Riley didn't know the men that were talking, but they knew they were in big trouble. They needed to get out of the house as fast as they could. The boys didn't know what had happened to Marissa, and they didn't have time to worry about her just yet. They continued on down the tunnel toward the shed's passage at the end. Once the boys reached the shed, they would be able to race to the neighbors for help.

            It took the boys about ten minutes to reach the end of the musty tunnel. They listened for a minute to make sure that no one was in or near the shed. David moved the panel, crawled through, and waited anxiously for Riley to follow. After Riley exited the opening, David replaced the panel. They crept out from under the desk, and they made their way to the unlocked window in the rear of the shed on their hands and knees. Once the boys reached their destination, Riley kept a watchful eye on the house while David crawled through the window. He landed in a crouch with a soft thud. He became the sentry as Riley exited the shed. When he landed, David grabbed his arm and yanked him toward the back gate.

            The twins ran to the back gate, and to their dismay, found it locked. They carefully unlatched the hook as soundlessly as they could, but it still gave a tiny squeak in protest. The two boys cast a quick, panicked glance to the house to see if anyone had spotted them. They soon noticed the shadows of the intruders in one of the second story rooms. The twins passed through the gate, then sped toward the midnight blue house to the right of theirs. Miss Angeline lived there. She often watched the boys if Marissa already had plans. They knew she would help them. They knew she would watch over them until their parents returned. As soon as they reached her porch, the two seven-year old boys gave a sigh of relief as they were engulfed in an aura of peace and safety. David and Riley knocked on Miss Angeline's door purposefully, and waited for her to usher them into their new found safe haven.