IF I FELL | STEVE HARRINGTON

six | baby demogorgon

AS SOON AS THEIR MOTHER WOKE UP, the Henderson siblings got to work. They had to play it cool for a little while, just long enough for Claudia to come to the realization that Mews was missing. It didn't take long; for after Mews didn't respond to her many calls about her food being ready, Claudia began freaking out as she tore through the house looking for her. When she couldn't find her, she went outside and started calling for her.

While this was going on, Rachel lingered in the upstairs hallway to make sure their mother didn't make it past Dustin and attempt to look in his room for Mews. Dustin was downstairs, pretending to call a bunch of their neighbors asking if they had seen the cat.

When Rachel heard the front door open and close again, she moved closer to the stairs to eavesdrop. "Dusty, baby, are you sure she's not in your room?" Claudia asked worriedly. There was no response, for Dustin was pretending to be speaking to Mr. McCorkle, so the woman huffed and started to make her way to the stairs. "I'll go look myself."

Rachel quickly double-checked to make sure Dustin's door was locked before hurrying down the stairs, intercepting her mother just as she was about to take the first step. "I checked all the rooms upstairs, even the closets," she said, breathless from running so fast. "Mews isn't up there. Did you check the back yard?"

"Yes," Claudia answered sadly. "No sign of her."

"Alright!" Dustin said cheerfully as he hung up the phone and turned to look at them. "Great news!"

"They found her?" Rachel's heart hurt at the hopefulness displayed across her mother's face.

"No, but they saw her wandering around Loch Nora."

"How did the poor baby get all the way out there?" Claudia asked, worried tears brimming in her eyes.

"I don't know. Lost, I guess," Dustin told her, attempting to console her. "But they're gonna look for her. And we'll stay here, just in case they call again―" He gestured between he and Rachel, "―and you're gonna go help look, yeah? Yeah? Give me a hug." Rachel crossed her arms and stood their awkwardly as Dustin hugged their mother and assured her that she would find Mews as she walked out the door.

It was only once they heard the car's engine roar to life did Rachel speak. "We're going to hell for this," she said decidedly. "Aren't we?"

"Most likely," her brother responded nonchalantly as he peeked out the window to watch their mother drive down the street. "She's gone! Let's move."

Springing into action, the two siblings went separate ways. Rachel went outside through the back door, swinging open the basement doors as well as the shed's door, too. Then she hurried back inside, grabbing two packs of bologna from the fridge. Dustin came into the kitchen then, waddling due to all the hockey gear he had put on. "Really?" Rachel asked when she looked over and saw him. "Did you leave anything for me to put on?"

"Uh..." He shrugged. "Do you want my baseball helmet?"

She sighed and shook her head. "Forget it." Opening up one of the packages, Rachel slid it across the breakfast bar so he could reach it before opening the other one for herself. "Get to work, punk."

The two of them split up again, each setting to work making a trail of bologna going from Dustin's bedroom door, all the way outside and into the basement. Once they were finished, they headed into the house and toward the stairs when the house phone rang. Instantly freezing, Rachel and Dustin looked at each other. "Should we answer it?" Dustin asked.

"It could be Mom," Rachel pointed out, thinking maybe Claudia had stopped at one of their neighbors to call and ask if they'd heard anything about Mews. However, when she picked up the phone to answer the call, it was someone else entirely. "Hello?"