Incessant Calling

~Chapter One: Escape~

          The cool November air whipped my long brown ponytail in my face. Thanksgiving break had officially started, and I had been wanting to ride my bike for ages. The geese in their "V"s squawked loudly and the wind sent a shower of dry, rustling leaves falling towards me. Almost home, my phone rang and I stopped to answer it. I turned to look at our house, but the sight paralyzed me. I was in the one spot where you can see our house from the street, and there were black trucks lined up on the lawn in front of it. Dozens of armored people in black outfits surrounded the house with their guns raised, ready to shoot. One officer took the American flag off our porch and burned it. The phone nearly dropped from my hand, but then I heard my mom's voice.

Tensely she spoke. "Brooke? Honey, don't answer me. You are not, under any circumstances, to come back home, okay?"

All I could do was nod, even though she couldn't see me.

"Hide! Destroy the phone and hide! Now!" She exclaimed hurriedly.

I understood. If I had the phone, then the people in black could track the signal and find me. I heard a loud clatter and a fist pounding on the door. Suddenly, two men came out of the woods with my brother and sister! The guy who burned our flag yelled something indistinctly, then Dad came out with his hands up followed by the rest of the kids and Mom. The same head guy lined everyone up and seemed to be counting them.

Uh oh, he'll notice I'm missing!

I biked away cautiously, then threw the phone into the neighbor's creek. For fun once, I had planned an escape route from the area, but had never thought I would need to use it. Going recklessly fast, I headed down an A.T.V. trail that leads to a lower neighborhood. I skid precariously down the steep incline.

Who are those people, and what are they doing to my family?

I wanted to cry, but reminded myself that would be weak. I need to be strong now.

My thoughts shift to Where am I going to hide? My best friend left for college a few months ago, and my closest relatives live eight hours away. Besides, if the people in black are looking for me, those would be the most obvious places.

Okay, who do I trust? I wondered. Hmm, not many people.

I wiped a tear from my chin. Don't cry. I chided myself. Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry...

I hear branches cracking above me, and someone yells something I can't hear. Panic turns to adrenaline and I speed up.

Finally, I came up with a plan. The last place they'll want to go is a public one, so first I'll leave my bike at the supermarket, then cross the school grounds to the library.

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           That's done, I say to myself as I open the big glass library doors. Now I need to find Mrs. Carroll.

My favorite librarian is a sweet lady, who's hair is a silvery gray with streaks of brown in it here and there.

"Why hello there Brooke," she said with her pretty smile, "is something wrong? You look so worn out."

Oh no, why did she have to work front desk today? It would be hard to get her alone, so I change my plan slightly.

"Brooke," she asked again, "are you okay?" I had been standing there too long.

"Oh, yeah. I was at the store waiting for Mom to come pick me up, when she called and told me the van broke down with everyone else in Mayport," I lied, "so, she told me to call a friend and have them take me home, but I tripped in the parking lot and my phone got run over." I felt bad lying to Mrs. Carroll, but it was necessary. "I never got to call my friend, could I please borrow your phone?" I asked.

"Sure dear," she answered and handed me her cell phone. I sighed.

She doesn't suspect I was lying to her. Said a little voice inside my head, I feel a pang of guilt.

"Thank you, it won't take more than ten minutes," I tell her.

"Bring it right back," she reminds me.

"I will," I call softly over my shoulder.

My destination is one of the study rooms, by the front desk. I close the door and walk towards the magazine rack in the rear corner of the room. The library always keeps a phone book there. I've decided to hide with a new friend of mine. We just recently met about a year ago, so it's not the first place the people in black would look, I hope. Flipping through the pages, I slow down at the R's.

"Richardson, Richardson, ah, here it is!" I say a little too loudly. Turning around, I see no one there behind the stained glass wall. "Focus." I tell myself, softly this time. I dial the number and listen to the ring. My heart beats as loudly as the dial tone.

Please pick up.

The phone seems to ring for hours. "Come on Kitty, please be home," I am quietly pleading. Finally, after several tense seconds, I hear someone answer.

"Richardson's house, this is Cole speaking." Says the voice on the other end.

It's her brother. What if the phones are being taped? How do I let him know who I am without saying it out loud? Okay, maybe I've watched too many thrillers. Call me paranoid, but it's better to be safe than sorry right?

 "Hello? Is anyone there?" Cole asks.

 "Hi Cole!" I reply, still thinking of what to say.

 "Who is this?" he says.

I've got it! "Don't say my name out loud," I say, "hide-and-seek, laser tag, pumpkin spice cake, the gift was a steel watch." I am describing my birthday party, both Cole and Kitty were there.

I hope he understands.

"You're funny." He says. "What's up?"

"I'm stuck at the library, I've got a stalker, and I need help." I say.

"Wait, for real?" He asks.

"Mhm, ask the librarian at the front desk where to find books on Astronomy, I don't have much time," I say, trying not to sound too urgent.

"Be there in twenty," Cole says, then he hangs up.

I go to the front desk and return Mrs. Carroll's phone to her.

"Did you get everything sorted out?" She asks.

"Yup, thanks again for letting me borrow your phone Mrs. Carroll," I say smiling, "I'll just look around while I wait for my friend."

"You're welcome dear, go right ahead," she smiles back.

I head up the wide, wooden staircase to the second floor where they keep all the Nonfiction books. I grab a random one about the Grand Canyon and pretend to read. It reminds me of our family vacation there. I tap the table nervously.

Where are they now? Why were they kidnapped? How will I find them?

About twenty minutes later, my thoughts are interrupted when I hear a voice asking where to find books on Astronomy. Peeking through the railing, I can see Cole at the front desk, and through the glass wall at the front of the library I notice Kitty at the wheel of her dad's truck.

Cole comes up the stairs and I motion him to the back of the Science section.

"What's going on, who's following you?" He asks me.

"Sh," I say, "not here." I grab a few books about the Aurora Borealis and hand them to Cole. "Wait until I have left the building by the side door, check these out, then rendezvous with Kitty and I by the fountain, just behind the library," I say in a hurried whisper.

"You know, you're kind of making me nervous." He says with a slight chuckle.

"You'll know why soon." I say a bit to seriously.

Cole salutes, "Yes Captain."

"At ease." I say smirking, then head downstairs.