Run(4)

37 5 2
                                    

I quickly duck back into the shed and leap through the trap door.

"Their here!" I whisper shout. Luke who was pulling water from a shelf stops suddenly to listen. We can hear muffled voices above us.

"Their going into the shed," Luke whispers looking up at the roof, "We need to hide." We look around trying to find somewhere to hide ourselves. I spot a gap between a shelf and the wall big enough for two people.

"There." I whisper. Luke runs over and slips into the gap. I begin to follow but a string on my T-shirt gets caught on a nail on the shelf. I pull at it in a desperate last minuet attempt to free myself. I hear the trap door open. Luckily the string is long enough for me to get just out of sight so I slip behind the shelf where Luke is. He stands close to me with his hand protectively around my waist ready to pull me away any minuet. I can hear the people climbing down the ladder into the cellar. Their voices are loud and every time they speak I jump slightly. And every time I jump Luke's grip tightens.

The people rattle around the shelves knocking things over angrily. Someone gets to the shelf we are behind. I hear them pause right in front of where we are standing. I hold my breath as the room goes silent. Then I feel the person tugging on the string from my T-shirt that is still caught on the shelf.

"On three you have to yank the string then we are going to run. OK?" Luke whispers into my red hair. I nod.

"One........two..........Three." I hear luke say and I grab the string and yank it. I feel it come loose and I leap into action. Me and Luke sprint out from behind the shelf. Taken off guard the man falls. We leap boxes and swerve around shelves. I get to the ladder and begin to climb. Yelling could be heard below me and I climb faster. I scramble out of the trap door and look down. Luke isn't far behind and soon enough he is climbing out. he grabs my hand and we sprint out of the shed and into the forest. The men aren't far behind and we hear their heavy breathing and loud footsteps.

"Stop or i'll shoot!" I hear one of them say and shortly after there is a loud bang and a bullet hits the ground just feet away from me. Luke pulls me closer and we run into thicker bush. The men crash through the forest for a short time, but soon give up. We don't stop running until we reach a small clearing that is a long way from the cottage. We are panting and gasping for breath from our long sprint. once I have calmed my breathing a bit, I look down and realise he is still holding my hand.

"You can let go of my hand now," I say amused. He looks at our linked hands and let's go, his face turning crimson red with embarrassment.

"Sorry," He mumbles looking down at his feet. I chuckle at his reaction.

"Where to now?" I ask gazing along the horizon.

"To my place." He says glumly as if he didn't want me to see it. He begins to walk through the forest again and I follow. We reach the edge of the trees, and see an old shack on a hill. Beyond the shack it is nothing but mountains, and rolling treeless hills for miles with no paddocks, or fences to tame it. I furrow my eyebrows at the sight. Why did Luke take me here? He carries on walking ignoring my questioning looks. I jog after him and he walks to the shack and stands in front of it.

"Home sweet home." He chirps staring at it. I look at him then back at the old rundown shack with weatherboards that were coming of, and a fallen tree that had smashed one side of it.

"You live here?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Our parents died when I was thirteen. We didn't have anywhere else to go." He says looking down at his feet.

"I'm so sorry I-I didn't realise-" I stutter.

"Its fine it was a long time ago," He reassures, "Me and my sister Laurel were coping fine until they came. After they took her I promised myself that I would get her out." We go quiet and he walks to the shack. As soon as I enter I smell the musty scent of rotting wood. it is a very cold dark place and parts of the roof are dripping water. It has a small old fireplace and two ripped chairs sitting in front of it. Luke slumps onto one and pats the chair next to him motioning for me to sit down. I sit with him.

"How long have you lived here?" I ask staring at the worn fabric of the chair.

"Since the day my parents died." He says looking down at his thighs.

"How old are you?" I ask curiously.

"Sixteen, and I'm guessing you're the same age." He suggests. I nod.

"So you lived here for three years?!" I raise my eyebrows at him. I cant even imagine how awful it would be to live here. They would get sick regularly, and their food supply-

"Actually did you take any of those cans from the cellar?" I ask suddenly remembering. Luke reaches into his pockets and pulls put two cans of soup.

"I had more but they must have fallen out of my pocket when we were running." He says passing the cans to me I get up and take them into the kitchen and put them on the bench. I gaze out the window and look at the sun sparkling across a nearby stream. I suddenly feel claustrophobic from the small shack.

"I'm going to get some fresh air." I say before I head out the door. I breath in the smell of mint grass and pine. The dew had evaporated and the grass is soft under my bare feet. I walk around to where a large oak tree was growing bright green leaves. I lay down under its canopy of leaves where the sunlight danced the through the small gaps and dusted over my face. I close my eyes but pictures of my family comes back to my mind. I open my eyes again and just stare at the clouds...

----------------------------------------------

Hey guys if you aren't already you should read my other book 'Lost Hope' I would appreciate it heaps thanks :)

RunWhere stories live. Discover now