vehement

20

• ARCHER •

We drive for fifteen minutes before I hear someone scream, and it isn't Frankie. It's a high pitched, deafening noise.

     "What's that?" I ask.

     I roll my window down, and the sound becomes louder. In the distance, I see a small figure running, flaring its hands, screaming and sobbing.

     "Is that—"

Mr. Romano stops the car and gets out, running over to the figure. To Enzo.

     "Grandpa help!" I hear Enzo screech, right has Mr. Romano lifts him up into his arms. Enzo says something to him, and he begins to take off in the other direction.

We all rush to follow him.

• AMALIA •

Eventually my jumper and Enzo's shirt are dyed crimson red.

     I no longer have the strength to put pressure on the wound, so I allow myself to bleed out.

     My last thought is that I'm not keeping my promise to Enzo. I try to lift my hand up, to rectify my mistake by almost letting my little boy down, but I fall to the side and blood pours out beside me.

     Then my eyes shut of their own will.

• LORENZO •

"Grandpa." Enzo sobs as I carry him, running in the direction he told me to. "I want my mama!"

"We're gonna get her." I promise him.

He looks down at the floor and gasps. "Bowl! Close, Grandpa!"

I quicken my pace, and when he shouts for us to stop I look over at the small box. "Mama here! He kept me there!" He points to the other one across from it, and anger flames inside of me but I push it down for the time being and pull the door open all the way.

I hide Enzo's innocent eyes from the sight of his mother bleeding out on the floor. Archer gets here, and I pass my grandson to him quickly and take my jacket off, lifting Amalia up in my arms and sitting back down with her. I wrap my jacket around the already wrapped wound. She lays her head on my chest limply, and I check her for a pulse, finding only a weak one, but it means we have a chance to save her.

I lift Amalia up, turning around to see that Mason brought the car over. I let out a sigh of relief and rush to the back seat. I sit down and lay her over the back seats. Archer gets into the passenger seat with Enzo, who sobs even louder now, and Cole gets in the back with me, moving over so he's in the middle seat, right beside me. He applies pressure to her wound as I lean down and delight, for one short, selfish moment, that I'm looking at my little girl and grandson.

• AMALIA •

Everything surrounding me is white.

Am I in Heaven?

• MASON •

Enzo doesn't fall asleep like we expect him to. Before they were taken, Enzo used to be tired on cue. But he just stares at the door they took Amalia into around four hours ago.