The Dangerfields

Chapter Twenty-Two

I stir, and slowly become conscious again. I frown at the clock on the satellite.

Why would I wake up so soon? I'm still tired, I only slept for twenty minutes.

I realize that everyone else in the room has frozen, and are silently listening to the loud piercing sound.

Sirens.

I freeze as well. Sirens. That's what woke me up. The police are in the neighbourhood and...

They could be here for us.

I lurch up off of Hudson's lap and run to the front door. I peer out one of the windows, and watch the glow of the flashing lights move through the suburbs, reflecting off the houses.

They're getting closer. "Hencerra visold," I whisper, and I can see the black SUVs in perfect detail when they begin to come around the corner. There's two, four, six, seven SUVs, all with lights flashing.

Government cars, making an undoubtable beeline to the West's house.

My enhanced sight lets me see into the vehicles, even in the full glow coming from the streetlights that reflects off the darkly tinted windows. There are ten government agents, eight men and two women. They all wear dark sunglasses, even though the sun had almost fully set when I drifted off.

In the leading car, a hand suddenly emerges from the backseat. A dirty hand with chewed up nails and fat, red fingers.

The owner of the hand leans forward and I focus on their face.

All I can do is gasp as I process the things I now know.

Rick.

He turned us in. After leaving in shame, he must have decided this was the last straw. He drove to the police station and turned us in. I vaguely remember him telling Emma that his pawn shop wasn't doing too well. It doesn't surprise me. When we sold him the ATVs, he didn't even bother to test them himself. If we had been lying he would've bought two crappy machines without knowing it. Not to mention his store was pretty gross, and not in a very busy part of town.

The money he would get from the government for turning is in would help him out, put him in a better place financially.

But that money would help anyone, and the Wests weren't about to turn us in. "That bastard," I say quietly, and Hudson turns to me, a question in his eyes.

Before I can reply, I see Rick move out of the corner of my eye. He points to the house, and locks eyes with me.

Crap.

"Rick turned us in!" I cry, stepping away from the door, then hurrying back into the kitchen.

"Quick! Turn invisible, or they'll take you away!" Hudson tells me.

I have a strange, upsetting feeling of déjà vu, but I do as he tells me.

I hear Mom and Ryder also whisper, "Invisio," and they disappear as well.

Hudson still stands next to me, although he doesn't know where I am at this point.

"Hudson," Shaun calls quietly, from where he sits, pretending to watch the news, "Act normal. Go help your mother with the dishes."

Hudson hurries into the kitchen, where Emma scrubs the large pizza tray. He picks up a towel and begins to dry the pizza slicer. Ryder's hand closes around my arm and drags me to the corner, where someone is unlikely to trip over one of us. I grasp one of his hands, and search until I find one of Mom's.

The sirens continue outside, but they don't seem to be getting any closer. They must have stopped in front of the house.

Just as I am thinking this, the front door is broken through, and the agents come in - quite unsubtly, if I do say so myself - with their guns in hand.