𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐠𝐢𝐫𝐥 | 𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐳

𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫

Claire and her grandsons sprint down the stairs to Stephen's room. They find the elder man trapped underneath a cabinet as Cherry tries to lift it off him.

"Get this goddamn thing off me!" Stephen groans.

"Help me!" Cherry exclaims, moving the boys into action. Sean does his best to help Cherry lift the heavy piece as Claire and Daniel try to pull him out from under.

"NO!!" Stephen yells. "Stop! My legs!" he cries in agony. Despite the effort the teens make in lifting the cabinet it's no use.

"Sean? Can I...?" Sean glances behind him and spots the look on his brother's face immediately.

"Do it, Daniel!" Sean yells. As soon as he does, Daniel holds his hand out, and a concentrated look forms on his face. The cupboard rattles for a moment before it's lifted into the air, giving Cherry and Sean the chance to drag Stephen out from underneath. As soon as Stephen is out of the way, Daniel drops the cupboard with a bang, before falling to his knees in utter exhaustion. As Claire moves towards Stephen, the teens move to Daniel. Cherry holds him while Sean asks, "Are you okay, enano?"

"Yeah. I'm just tired."

"You did good, mi amor," Cherry tells him, giving him a quick squeeze.

"What in the name of God was that all about?" The three look over, finally noticing the look of disbelief on Claire's face. "That's impossible. What are you, Daniel?!"

"They saved me, Claire. That's all that matters," Stephen says. Claire's expression goes from disbelief to disbelief with a dash of gratitude.

"Maybe... it was a miracle. Thank you, Lord."

"Maybe thank Daniel-" A doorbell cuts off Cherry's words. Claire gets up to look out the window, a small gasp leaving her lips.

"It's the sheriff!" As soon as the words leave her lips, they hear the sheriff through the door.

"Stephen? Claire?" the sheriff calls for them. "It's about your grandsons and some friend of theirs."

"Sean... I didn't-" She takes a moment to gather herself. "We didn't call them, I swear."

"Someone called us. We know they've been here. They were spotted at the Christmas market earlier today." The two teens curse under their breaths.

"What are we going to do?!" Daniel asks, looking at the two.

"Go hide in the garage!" Stephen orders.

"What if the police search the house?" Cherry questions.

"If they do, that makes you two accomplices," Sean adds. The two pause before looking at each other. "You got the bags?"

"I'll be down in a minute. You just get ready."

"Go through the back door. I'll distract them," Claire tells them. Cherry nods her head before leaving the room and sprinting up the stairs. She stuffs everything into their bags as quickly as possible. She places her own on her back and carries the boy's. She moves as quietly as possible down the stairs. Her body tenses as she spots Claire talking to the sheriff and prays she doesn't step on a rickety board. Luckily, she doesn't, and she's able to slip through the kitchen to the backdoor. She tosses the boys their bags and forces her feet into her shoes. As the three step outside, they spot another cop car rolling down the hill towards their house.

"Shit! This way!" Sean yells. The three run towards Chris' yard and climb over the fence before a voice interrupts them.

"Daniel!" Chris exclaims from his tree house swing. "What's going on? You okay?"