How Many Heroes

15- Maps

As much as I hated to lie to my parents, there was no other way around it. If I told them that I was trying to stop the gang that murdered Zach from burning down a building in the middle of the night, they would literally chain me to my room. I couldn't let that happen , not when we were so close to stopping Amy. I was scared out of my mind, but I knew I couldn't just let the gang win. This was something I had to do. So I probably didn't feel as guilty as I should when I told mom that me and my friends were having a sleepover at Hathaway's house. I just hope she didn't asked why I was dressed in all-black.

"The mayor's house? Isn't that where the chief of police got shot?" My mom said, worry creasing her eyebrows.

She got me there. "Yes," I said. "But that was different. It was during a party, and there were so many people that the gang managed to slip in. Now there's more security and less people. Right now, it's the safest place in Greendale."

Maybe I was exaggerating a little, but I was on a time limit. Hathaway' s red Bentley would be in my driveway in five minutes, and we had to be at Luke's house in fifteen.

"I know, honey, it's just that..." She looked at me with shiny brown eyes. "After what happened to Zach, I feel like I can't let you out of my sight."

A week ago, if she brought up Zach like that I would be a trembling ball of anxiety. While I had made my peace with him at the funeral, the fear of Amy's gang made me scared even in my own house. But now his name gave me strength. It was my inner battle cry that reminded me why I let myself get in this mess in the first place.

"Mom, I'll be fine." She didn't budge. Time to bring on the guilt. "And I haven't went out in so long..."

Mom pursed her lips. She knew that ever since Zach died, I'd been cooped up in the house for an unhealthy amount of time, barely even going out with Maria. I did feel kind of guilty about using that against her, but the clock was ticking.

"Alright," she said.

I gave her a hug and opened the door just a soon as Hathaway's car pulled up. Grabbing my drawstring bag, I ran to the car. I took a deep breath. I was really doing this.

"Bye, Beth!" My mom called after me. "Stay safe!"

I turned around and looked at her, barely managing a smile as I realized that there was a chance that I might never see her again. "I love you," I said, my voice sounding strange to my in my ears. I didn't know if she responded, or if she even heard me, but I went inside the car anyway. The fear was beginning to set in; if I looked back at my mother's arms, I would never leave.

Hathaway was behind the wheel and Jesse in the shotgun seat, as usual. Hathaway drove us into Pennies, stopping first at Maria's house. Backpack over her shoulder, Maria waved goodbye to her brother and mother in the doorway, then got into a seat beside me.

"Hey," Maria said. She had a wild smile on her face, and her dark hair was pulled into a messy ponytail, like she was rushing. "Are you ready?"

"As I'll ever be," I said, taking a deep breath and smiling. We'll be okay. We'll be okay.

"Are we even allowed to drive here?" Maria asked as Hathaway rolled his car over a grassy, roadless area.

Hathaway snorted. "If you have any other ideas where I can park, you can drive."

"Or maybe you shouldn't bring a Bentley to a place called Pennies. Ever think that we might be getting some unwanted attention?"

"When you get your license, Maria, you can pick the car. Until then..." He let the sentence trail off.