The Twenty Five Percent Rayanna

Lou

           I slip back out of the building and then move as quickly as I can, hiding behind buildings, doing my best to stay in the shadows and not be spotted. It takes me two hours to make a journey that should have only taken thirty minutes. But I absolutely must not be spotted, anywhere near where I think Lou is being kept. I make it to the apple orchard and hiding becomes a lot simpler, as there isn't hardly anyone in sight. I easily slip from tree to tree, looking for the house that's rumored to be somewhere near the middle. After another thirty minutes, I finally find it. A child's voice carries, I can't hear what's being said, but I'm fairly sure the voice belongs to Lou. I hear giggling and laughter, as I approach.

          "Let's play hide-n-seek!" a child says.

          "I love that game!" another shouts.

           "Me too!" Lou says.

               I peek out from behind a tree and see two little girls beside Lou. They look like they are a couple of years older than she is.

           "You two hide, and I will seek." One of the little girls says.

            I'm only a few feet from Lou and the other little girl, and I'm considering just stepping out and snatching her up when I hear something that is concerning. The slamming of a door, and another person. An adult. A woman who appears to be a few years older than me. I fade back behind the apple tree and hold my breath. Please tell me this woman didn't see me. I was right there, in the open, easy to spot.

                "Hey kids, what are you guys doing out here?" the adult says.

             "We are playing hide-n-seek." One of the kids says.

            "What's that over there?" the adult asks.

             Oh, no. Please no. 

             "What's what?" one of the girl's asks.

                "That right there. By that tree."

             I'm found. We will never get to sneak out of here, now.

             "Oh, that. We made a pretend friend. We needed one extra person because finding two people is no fun." A little girl says.

              "Are those your good clothes?"

                 "No momma. They are the ones you threw away. I rescued them from the burn pile." Says the other girl.

              I can hear the woman sigh. "All right. Have fun, and make sure Lou doesn't get lost. Mr. Altair would not be happy if something happens to her. You have about twenty minutes until dinner time. When I come back you have to stop playing, okay?"

            "Okay, mommy." The other little girl says.

             "Bye, mommy." The first little girl says.

              I don't move, I don't even breathe until I hear the sound of a door slamming shut. I let out a sigh of relief that is covered by the sound of all three girls giggling. I thought for sure I was caught.

              "Okay, Lou, you hold my hand, and we will go hide, together." One of the girls says.

              "No! I want to hide by myself! I am not a baby!" Lou shouts.

                 That's my girl! Much easier to sneak you away from here if you hide by yourself.

                I hear one of the little girls counting. "One... two... three..."