Title: Escape

Hi. There's no need to yell 'You call that a story? Ha!', because I wrote this when I was nine, so yeah. Try not to comment on this

Mahzu frowned at Nurad angrily. She could be ugly sometimes.

THE END

Andy MacDonald stretched and put his book down on his bed. With his older brother gone, he had more time to read. Andy was what some people might call a nerd and was usually a target for the bullies at his school. His brother was the opposite. A tall, sturdy high schooler with an athletic body, his brother was one of the star players on his school basketball team. Andy woke from his thoughts when he heard his mother calling him for dinner. He stood up and called back to her. “Okay Mom! Be there in about five minutes!” He quickly put his book back on the shelf, made his bed and tromped down the stairs.

Andy slurped his spaghetti just as he heard his father turning the lock at the door. “What’s up Andy? Tyrone home yet?” his father inquired, stepping in. “Tyrone is spending the night at Joe’s house.” Andy answered, devouring another forkful of spaghetti while passing his dad’s bowl across the table. His father took the bowl and started eating. “Some peace and quiet then, today eh?” Andy answered between munches. “Yup.” His dad turned to Andy’s mother. “So what happened today at the office?” Andy’s mother was a news reporter and had information on just about everything. “Well, a man came and told us on I70 a boy was found driving a motorcycle at night. We found out that the boy just wanted to get away from his parents, who abused him. We called the police and arrested his father. We still don’t know what to do with the boy” Andy’s dad thoughtfully shoved another forkful of spaghetti into his mouth. After a few minutes of eating, Andy set down his fork with a clang, picked up his bowl and put it in the dishwasher.

He glanced at the clock for a second and climbed back up the stairs.

He went into the bathroom and started to brush his teeth. After he was done, he went to his bedroom and climbed into bed.

Marcus Tattles!

Andy yawned and sat up. Darn! I’m late! Andy groaned as he looked at the clock. I forgot to set the alarm! He thought as he reached over to his nightstand and grabbed his glasses so he could see better. He stood and walked to the bathroom. On the way, he checked his parents’ room. They had already left for work. He brushed, showered, and grabbed his backpack. He ran out the door and locked it behind him with his key. He unlocked his bike, suddenly hearing a voice behind him. “Hey Andy! You’re late!” He looked up to see his friend Ben waiting at the gate with his bike.” Okay Ben, let me get outta these roses.” With a few scratches and scrapes from the roses’ thorns, Andy was out as he reeled his bike out of the gate. Ben chuckled and said to Andy, “Why don’t you just pull ‘em up?” Andy replied with a grunt. They rode along and not long after, they heard a voice behind them. “Ben! Andy!” It was Chris ambling along on his BMX. As Chris pulled up next to them, Ben looked at him. “I have a feeling you didn’t study for the math test.”

“Ooops!” said Chris turning to look at Ben. They waited for a car to pass and in the distance they saw Marcus, the bully. “Ben! I see Marcus!” said Andy to Ben. “I know, be quiet, I have a plan” Ben said, keeping his eyes straight ahead. They crossed the road. “Pretend not to see him and we’ll force through him.” Andy glanced at Ben. He turned to see Marcus motioning Charlie, another school bully over. Ben looked around. “Ready guys?” Andy and Chris nodded in unison. “1.2.3 BLAST!!” they charged and Andy let a whoop of joy as they plowed through Charlie and Marcus. “Hey, Andy, Ben! Look!”  Andy turned to see Charlie and Marcus stumbling and bumping off the curb. BEEP! A car whizzed past the two bullies “Sorry!” yelled Marcus to the man. Charlie just reddened. After the car disappeared, Marcus shook his fist at Andy’s party who were watching and giggling. “I’m tellin’ on you Andy!” Marcus shouted as he bashed through the school doors. There was a shriek of pain as Marcus smashed his shoulder against the door. Andy stood listening to Marcus’s stomping steps as they faded away. “Uh-oh.” Andy said nervously as Marcus’ steps faded far away. “Yup. He’s going to Mr. Ray.” Ben said gravely. “Let’s go to class.” Chris said, walking inside. Ben followed. Andy groaned. Usually, schemes and pranks with Chris in them led to trouble. He glanced around over his shoulder and walked to his classroom. Ben and Chris were already seated. Chris winked. Andy looked at Ben. Ben looked sideways and nodded. Andy returned the nod. His eyes flickered to Marcus’s seat. Empty. His eyes rebounded to the seat next to Marcus’s. Charlie’s seat He thought. Also empty. Just then, the teacher, Ms. Franklin came in. “Hello class, good morning” She said. “Open your books to page twenty- six.” Amongst all the flapping of pages, the door creaked open. Marcus and Charlie came in, both with broad smiles on their faces. Marcus strutted across the room to his desk. Passing Andy’s desk, he smirked and tapped it. “You’re busted” he whispered to Andy who was turning grey and sweaty. Suddenly the loudspeaker crackled. Mrs. Fox’s voice crackled. “Chris Michaelson, Ben Johnson, and Andy Macdonald please report to Mr. Ray’s office.” Andy turned sickly green. This was his first trip to the principal’s office. Chris was the first to stand up without any hesitation. Ben slowly looked around and stood up. Andy stood with all the strength he could summon and followed his friends out the door. As they stepped out of their classroom, Chris tried to sound cheerful. “C’mon! For me it’ll be no TV for a week. Or even worse, no video games.” He looked around to see if anybody was smiling. He tried again “I know the way with my eyes closed. See?” he started walking with his eyes closed. “See? Just this way, and a left here and a rig-Whoa!” Chris tripped and banged his head on the water fountain. “Hehe, ahem yes, I wanted to drink.” he said nervously. Ben glanced at Chris, who was rubbing his head where there seemed to form a big bump. “Oh, I thought the principal was in the water fountain. huh?” Ben dully said. “Oh Yeah! Water fountain! I get it! Good jo-” Ben’s sharp nudge interrupted Chris as he turned to enter the principals office. Chris scratched his head confusedly and kept walking ahead. Ben nudged Andy and grinned. Andy could only weakly smile back as they entered the principal’s office. “Where is Chris?” was the first thing the principal asked as they entered his office. Ben nudged Andy. “He went for a walk down the hallway. Shall I go get him?” “No.” the principal said flatly. “I’ll get him” The principal left the room. As soon as he was gone, Andy groaned and shook his head. “It was all your idea Ben!” he snapped. Ben shook his head. His eyes flickered to the door. The principal was returning with Chris. “”Young man, you’re going to get detention for a week for that walk in the hall.” he opened the door and walked to his big desk chair. He waited for Chris to sit down. “Boys.” the principal looked at Chris. ”You know it is against the school rules to push children, bully or no bully.” Suddenly, Andy had a burst of anger as he realized what Marcus had done. “Mr. Ray, I know you’re maybe unaware, but that is not true.” he blurted. “Yes, Marcus told you a lie!” joined in Chris, angry at the injustice. ”Wait boys, wait,” the principal looked at each of them in the eye. “Tell me the real story.” Chris looked at Ben. Ben looked at Andy. Andy felt crushed with all that pressure on him. But he had no choice. He had to. He looked at the principal. “I hope you believe me sir.” He paused to look at Chris. Then he related to the principal all that had happened.

“Phew, that was close wasn’t it?” Andy said as he swung upside down on the Jungle Jim. “Yeah, if it was any other principal, he would be sure to tell our parents.” Chris climbed to the top. “We gotta be more careful with Marcus from now on.” said Ben, watching Chris. “Hey guys!” Andy turned around and looked. Their friend Mike was running towards them. Andy jumped down. “What’s up Mike?” Ben said to Mike as he jumped on the Jungle Jim. “Nothin’ much. Hey! What did Mr. Ray say to ya?” Ben told him what had happened. “Andy, are ya going anywhere after school today?” Chris asked after Ben was done speaking. “Naw, my brother is comin’ home and we’re just gonna order pizza for dinner.” Andy replied. Suddenly, the school bell rung. RrrrRRring!! Kids started shouting and scrambling inside. Mike jumped off the Jungle Jim followed by Ben, Andy, then Chris.

Tyrone goes bye-bye

Screech! Andy screeched to a halt at a stoplight. While cars drove past, he looked behind him. A wide open field with a big wood behind it. Not very far away, was his Uncle Samuels house. Just then, the big red hand turned into a big light green word. It read  WALK. Andy crossed the road and rode on. He glanced to his left seeing an old man with a grey beard, in tatters. He held up a sign. It said:

HUNGRY

NEED FOOD

GOD BLESS U

He watched the man briefly. A hobo He thought in horror. When he arrived home, he switched on the TV. “I heeeeeeeart looooove!” Andy stuck out his tongue and gagged at the singing opera. He changed the channel to the ABC news “We have allowed Michal Jeff to speak. Michal, what do you have to say?” “That boy is telling lies as far as I know, makin’ up stories about me and Suzie, my wife.” “We will come back to you later Michal. Suzie, what do you have to say?” “What Michal says sounds correct but since I’m already up here I may wonder why that boy used his fathers Honda.” “Yes, yes since you won’t admit anything, then we’ll ask the doctor to come up and check if these bruises on your boy are made with flat slaps. After that test is done, we’ll bring the police here to check fingerprints. Doctor, you may go check the boy now.” An advertisement came on and Andy switched off the TV. Andy wandered around for a while. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Andy went to open the door. He expected it to be his brother Tyrone, but it was Ben, looking very white. “Andy,” he said breathlessly. “Follow me.” Andy, confused at his friend’s strange behavior, followed him. Ben led him on his bike until they came to the big wood near his uncle’s house. Ben dropped his bike and started running toward the wood. Andy followed him. Suddenly, Ben whipped around. He faced Andy. “Your brother followed my brother, after school.” Ben stopped talking suddenly and looked like he was going to say something. Andy waited expectantly. Ben gulped, turned around and continued running. Andy, confused at this behavior, followed him once more. Wind whipped at Andy’s face as he ran. They ran all the way until they reached a cliff. Ben looked around and pointed downward. Andy looked, and what he saw took away his breath. Tyrone was lying down at the bottom of the cliff with bright red blood coming out of his head and face. Beside him was Ben’s brother, Joe lying with his bone sticking out of his skin. Andy whipped around “Dead?!” he asked Ben in panic. Ben looked at Andy in the eye. “Drugs.” he answered quietly. Andy’s heart swelled with surprise and anger. He whipped around and jumped off the cliff. “Don’t!!” Ben scrambled to catch Andy. “Oh my god!” Ben gasped as he was yanked forward by Andy’s weight. Andy’s eyes were wide open, with a wild look in them. “Andy!!” Ben grimaced. “COME BACK!!” he screamed as his arm started to stretch and buzz like crazy. “MY YARMS’ RIPPIN’!!!!!!!!!” Andy screamed and kicked the cliff with all his might. Bens arm started to give out. He blacked out. Andy’s weight rolled him off the cliff.

Ben sat up. He stretched out his right arm and grimaced. It wouldn’t even matter if he had caught Andy or not. Their fall was braced by Tyrone and Joe. Yow! He quickly pulled his arm back. He looked up at Andy. “You okay?” Andy nodded, staring at Tyrone and Joe under them. Ben stood up. “Um… I think we should call our parents, Andy.” Andy also stood and faced
Ben.  “Let’s go this way.” he said, pointing to a nearby road. “OK,” Ben replied. They started walking down the road. They walked until they reached a checkpoint. Up in front of them, there was a cabin. A man with a long gray scruffy beard and a thick moustache sat behind the open window, sleeping. There was a portable phone next to him. Ben shrugged and reached for the phone. He dialed 9-1-1. He heard ringing and the phone was picked up. “American Sheriff police here, what’s your problem?” a woman’s voice came on the phone. Ben answered. “Uh, I’m on Stuart Ave. and my brother and his friend was taking drugs, so he fell off a cliff, drunk. I-I-I’m here with my friend.” he heard a man’s voice shout something and the woman answering. “Oh sorry, I’m sending the police over there. One more thing. Is your brother still alive, or just unconscious?” Ben turned gray. “Both…. Dead.” He shuddered. The woman hung up. Andy elbowed him sharply. The man was waking up! Ben slammed the phone on the receiver and he and Andy took off. Gasping, they stopped at the bottom of the cliff where Tyrone’s blood was scabbing, making a hard, dark purple ski mask on his head and face. Joe’s bone was attracting flies and mosquitoes. Andy and Ben looked at the two dead high schoolers grieved and shocked. Suddenly, a police car swung down the road and two men came out in front of them. “Are you the boys that called us not so long ago?” one of them asked. “Yes.” Ben said to the man. “Me and my friend also fell off the cliff and our brothers,” he paused to point at the two dead bodies lying on the ground. “cushioned us.” he waved his right arm and winced. “I think I only stretched my ligament.” The man glanced at Tyrone and Joe and told them. “Okay, where are your parents? Call them and tell them to come on out here.” He handed Andy a cell phone. Andy dialed ABC (1 then 1 twice, quickly then three times)-456-8095. He spoke to his mother. “Mom! Are you there?” he said urgently “Yes, Andy, what’s wrong?” she knew something was wrong by the tone of his voice. 

“Mom! Tyrone… he’s…”

“Andy! What is wrong with your brother!?”

“He’s…Tyrone…. He’s dead!”

“Dead!? How can that be! What happened?! Andy Alfred Macdonald, you better tell me!”

“Tyrone! He’s…-Ben knows! Ben!” Ben walked over and Andy handed over the phone.

“Mrs. Macdonald, this is Ben. I went to the high school to look up my brother and I didn’t see him coming out of the school. I went out back and saw some ‘Friend’ of your sons’ giving boys drugs. He put them in old candy boxes, like Smarties, Whoppers, Milk duds, M&M’s, etc. His name was Wilfred James.”

“Wilfred James?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, go on.”

“Yes, so you see, your son and my brother bought some so called candy and became drunk and fell off a cliff. We went to a checkpoint and used the phone to call the police. They came and told us to call you. We are on Stuart Ave. 20 miles away from the south entrance.”

Silence.

“Okay, I’ll be there.” Mrs. Macdonald’s voice finally came on. After silence, Ben hung up. Ben also called Andy’s dad and his own parents.

The phone call

Andy gave the grave a pat. He read the stone

.R.I.P.

TYRONE MACDONALD

17 YRS

HIGH SCHOOL JUNIOR

BLESS HIS SOUL

He looked at Ben next to him. “Ready?” Ben spat on the stone and rubbed it. “Yes,” he scrunched his nose. “What is that smell?“ Andy laughed. “You just spat!” Ben punched Andy playfully. “No, not that, that muddy smell.” Andy grinned and pretended to think. “Hmm… maybe it’s MUD?!” Andy dodged another punch from Ben. “Malish, never mind, lets go, Dad’s starting to honk!” They both ran to the car. “Dad?” Ben said, winking to Andy. His dad started turned to look at the grinning boys. The gruesome twosome he thought as he looked at their wide grins. “What do you want now?” he asked in mock anger. “Sonic!” the two boys said in unison. “Yesiree, Master Ben.” His dad gave a little bow, causing the car to swerve. BEEP! A car behind them honked. Mr. Johnson looked started, and then he signaled and turned. When they arrived at Sonic, Mr. Johnson ushered them in. “Yar majesties farst.” he said. A man looked strangely at him. “Err… why thank you.” Mr. Johnson blushed Immensely. The two boys giggled, and entered the restaurant. They walked up to the desk. “One Iced Mocha and three large French fries each.” They took their order and sat down. They sat and ate for a while. “You know what, Andy?” Ben held up his cast. “I’m always thinking about that day we ran through that guy in Elementary school. What was his name again?” Andy munched a French fry. “Marcus.” he said in remembrance. “I ate him, e always ook my uff” Andy said between munches. “Yeah but now we’re older and we don’t get bullied anymore. ” Ben replied thoughtfully. “Eah but e still ook my uff” Andy stubbornly replied. He peeked in his bag of Fries “It’s finished.” he disappointedly stated. “Aha! So it is time to go right?” Mr. Johnson said slyly. “Okay.” said the boys, not realizing his trick. Andy looked at Mr. Johnson and thought. “Ever since Tyrone died, Dad started to drink and smoke more, I hope nothing happens to him.” But little did Andy know, what was going to happen to him.

Thud, thud, thud, Whoosh! Three points! Andy caught the ball and went for another layup. Nothing but net! Ring, Rrring! Ben eased into the driveway, ringing his bell. “Whatz up, Andy?” Andy shot another hoop. “Nothing.” he answered. “Say, you want to try? This layup is too easy, I’ll bring out some sandwiches and Limeade.” Andy handed Ben the ball and disappeared through the front door. “Hi there Ben, where is Andy?” Mike flew in the driveway, almost knocking Ben over. “Hey Mike, didn’t expect you to be coming!” “Yeah, yeah whatever, where is Andy?” Just then, Andy came, staggering under the weight of the plate he was holding. “Well lookee here!” Andy looked at Mike over the sandwiches. “Mike is here!” He set down the sandwiches. “Eat guys, I’ll go get the limeade and make my sandwich” Andy walked into the house once again. Once he stepped through the doorway, the phone started to ring. Andy walked over and picked it up. ”Andy Alfred Macdonald speaking, hello, and who is this?” a husky voice replied. “Andy, this is me, tell your mom I won’t be coming home tonight or tomorrow. For the rest of the week in fact.” Andy stared at the phone, wondering if this call was a hoax. “Dad, is that really you?” he heard a voice hesitate and then scrabbling. “Hello?” Andy asked again. He only heard buzzing. He had rung off!

Shocks for Andy

Andy was looking forward to the end of the week so he could go out with his dad. They could go swimming… maybe even the Arcade! He waited at the window after school, but no Dad! Hmm…maybe there is some bad traffic! He’ll probably come home tomorrow morning. Andy was disappointed and gloomy when his mom called him for dinner. They ate in silence, and any minute, Andy expected the door to open and dad to come inside. But no! He was interrupted when his mom called him from the top of the stairs. “Andy! Time for bed! ” He sighed. “Yeah mom, al be there in a sec!” He heard his moms footsteps fade away. He looked one more time out the window. He laughed bitterly. I just hope he’s nowhere bad. But he didn’t know what would happen on the television tomorrow!

Andy yawned. He sat up. He read his clock. 10:30. Good thing it was Saturday! He could go out with his friends, or watch TV or eat snacks too. He smiled. Poor Mom. She has to work even on weekends! But then again, I can do more stuff today without her hovering on me! He strutted down the stairs. He looked for the remote. It wasn’t in sight! How queer! “Aha!” Andy gave a yell and pounced under the couch. Bam! Andy cracked his head against something “YAIEEEE!!” He breathed quickly and calmed down by patting himself on the head and murmuring,”You’re a good head, don’t worry.” he grabbed the remote and switched on the TV. Today will be partly cloudy, maybe even rain. We will now go on to the next county’s news. “Thank you Jim. Well on Wednesday, we got some men drinking while driving, going drunk, and smashing cars and stealing from them. They have been sent to court and the case is closed. They will be in jail for nine years. Among them are Ted Russell, Frank Higgs, George Gregg, John Ganks, Freddy Mcalsiston, and Scott Macdonald.” Andy gasped at the last name. He craned his head so he could see better. “The worst attacks came from both John Ganks and Scott Macdonald. They weaved through the crowd at about 140 MPH, both killed 56 while the others only killed thirty. A bad sight they were, injuring eighty. We finally got them when we lined a thick brocade of cars in the middle of the highway. Their tires spun on the slick road, as they tried to push through. They ended up coming out and calling all the others. Tim?” “That is a very interesting report of yours and we should congratulate those police for stopping them. We could-Hahaha! HAHAHA! They would be promoted all to be chiefs-AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!” “Ah good-”

Andy flicked off the TV. He turned, very white faced. Why do these things only happen to ME!? First Tyrone, and then Dad?! He stood. He dug his knuckles into his eyes. MOM O MOM O MOOM!! he screamed in his head. He felt like crying. He slumped back onto the couch, blinking back tears. He looked up with all his might. Oh my god! What should I do now? He slouched on the couch, half dead with shock. Eyes peeked through the window, unseen.

Zarek had been living a hard life ever since his pa had passed away. He had guarded his ranch all by himself but the other ranchers had almost shot him. He had no choice but to flee and he began traveling around the states in order to survive. The ranchers were still searching for him. Now he went to a house, his deerskin bag slung over his shoulder, stolen rifle hung on the other. He had peeked in the window and saw a boy, looking very lost. Now don’t get the wrong idea about Zarek. He had a kind heart and only stole what he needed. He had hopped to the door and knocked. Andy peeked out. “Hey mate, lookin’ at loss an’ shock in that luxurious home of yrs.”

Andy flushed.

“Who are you?”

Zarek looked around “Well, mate, I’m Zarek! Who you?” Andy flushed again. “I’m Anderson Alfred Macdonald. But you can call me Andy.” “Right Yandy, say, ya got a nice home ‘ere. Andy sensed that the boy would do no harm. “You can come in, if you’d like.” Zarek looked at Andy and grinned, showing his yellow teeth. “Ya sure Andy?” Andy had one look at his grin before he answered. That grin was only on those who were friendly, and Zarek seemed friendly enough. “I’m sure.” Andy replied with a smile. He moved aside to make room for Zarek to come in. Zarek set down his gun on the coffee table and tossed his bag on the couch. He plopped on the couch across from Andy’s chair. “Would you like something to eat?” Zarek’s eyes shined. “Mate. You are so very kind. May god bless you.” Andy smiled and got up.

Andy set down his glass. ”So, Zarek. Where is you’re family and where are you staying?” Zareks mouth twitched and his face hardened as he thought of his father’s death. But he managed to answer quietly. “ I-I- Andy, I’m homeless and I’m a orphan.” This slammed Andy with great force as he thought of his own father. Andy shuddered and he turned pale. “Yeah, M-m-y f-f-father is-” Andy shuddered and said no more. Suddenly, the phone rung.

“You wanna go somewhere?” Uncle Sam asked. Andy looked into space and said nothing. The previous seven hours were a nightmare for him. The police called, reporting his mother had gotten crushed by cars and her heart had been crushed in all the struggle. Zarek had bounded out the back door when he heard Uncle Samuel was coming. He had yelled to Andy “Don’t worry! I’ll help you! Tomorrow at 4 mate!” And that had been it. Now Andy was sitting in Uncle Sam’s house staring into space. His uncle had told him he needed to be sent to an orphanage and had already made a few calls to them. His uncle came in. “Wednesday at 4:30 you can go and continue your life at an orphanage.” “Why can’t I just stay with you, uncle?” Andy asked, his face very hard. “Andy! You know I’m not home much! You surprise me!” Uncle Sam swung around. “ I’m not saying I don’t feel sorry for you.” he said quietly.

A Lot of Dirt and Tunnels

Andy hung out in the field after school, waiting for Zarek. 4 O-clock he said. I wonder what he wants to say. Andy had many support at school. They were sorry to hear what happened to his mom. But none of that made Andy feel better. His thoughts were interrupted by a friendly yell. “Hey Andy! Come on down here!” Zarek was standing in the ditch, waving. “Look what I found!” Andy rambled down. Beside Zarek was a large, slim female horse. It snorted and backed away when Andy came near. “What about ‘im? A beauty, eh? Caught ‘er last night. She was right down frightened but I rode ‘er up to ‘ere. Named ‘er Madge.” Andy looked at the horse and it huffed. “Er… what are you going to use her for?” Zarek grinned and leaned back on the side of the ditch. “Sit down a minute, Andy. I’ll tell you the whole thing.” So Andy sat down next to Zarek and Zarek told him how he’d been living on the ranch with his father and his father had been trampled. He had lived on the ranch and was forced to move out by the other ranchers who shot him in the shoulder while he’d been running away. He’d managed to get his fathers rifle and shoot a few down. He swiped up their ammo and took off. He learned to pickpocket and shoplift and that served him well, as he went to many different states; Nevada, Iowa, Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, etc. In Nevada he found a newspaper in a trash can that said something like the police had found out what had happened on the ranch and they were after him. He had run away and landed in Andy’s garden soon after. After Zarek had finished talking, he looked at Andy. “Now for the dangerous part.” Zarek’s face looked tight. “I’ve made a plan… we will run away.” Andy’s insides screamed. This was all going the wrong way! He told himself not to, but his intellect told him something and pushed him, so managed to force out a strangled answer “Where to?” Zareks answer came loud and clear. “Mexico.” What!!! As if running away wasn’t bad enough already?! Andy’s brain went bazooka as so many thoughts swam around it. “I’ll think about it. I’ll tell you my decision tomorrow right here at three.”

Andy climbed out of the ditch and disappeared out of sight. Zarek watched Andy and sighed. He climbed onto Madge and galloped down the ditch.

Andy felt depressed as he trudged to his uncle Samuel’s house. He grimaced. Why do all these things need to happen to ME?!  But he didn’t know something that would change the help’s direction soon enough!

That night Andy could not sleep. He stared at the ceiling blankly. He had a feeling. What was it? He felt something was terribly wrong. So so bad that…

Andy awoke with a jump. He looked at his clock. He had only been asleep for less than a minute! He switched on his light. Something was terribly wrong; the awful feeling was there. So he got up, grabbed his backpack and slipped on some clothes. Then, he wandered down the stairs and into the deep night.

Thankfully, the sky was clear as Andy walked down the road. He decided to wander around the ditch, circle around, and come back to the house. So he went on, passing the big gate and shuddered as he saw the dark, scary trees that looked that they would grab him any second with their gnarled branches. Suddenly, he stopped. What was that ahead of him at the edge of the ditch? He jumped as he heard an owl and sensing danger, he dropped down and started crawling toward the ditch. As he came closer, he saw a light, possibly a torch. He crawled closer and jumped as he heard a voice. “…No good putting ‘im there, he knows too much.” The voice sounded rough and had a bit of twang to it. “Yeah, but where else can we put ‘im?” There was a slight rustle of sound in the ditch. A light appeared. The men crouched, trying to see who it was. Then, after a quick look, they grabbed their guns and one man grabbed a rope. Andy racked his brain. Who could be in the ditch? Then, he leaned a bit farther, and was surprised who he saw! It was Zarek!

Andy frantically thought of a way to tell Zarek. He didn’t want to shout, because surely the men would catch him! All Andy had in his bag was a pocketknife and a piece of rope. He quickly fished the pocketknife out. Then his head snapped up as he heard a yell! The men were running into the ditch! Andy snapped open his pocketknife and peered down the ditch. The men were tying up Zarek and Madge was whinnying. One of the men took out another rope and a piece of leather. He tied the leather around Madge’s nose, with a little help from the third man. Then, he tied the rope around her neck. Andy gasped as they flung Zarek into a large sack and started tying him onto the horse. Then, the first man climbed on and the other two gathered their supplies. The man on horseback yelled at the other two. “Remember, meet me at the shop!” Then he galloped away down to the woods. Andy knew he had to do something so he ran after the man, hiding behind trees as he ran through the woods.

Andy almost fell as the man stopped. Andy barely had time to hide behind a tree as he whirled around to see if anyone was following him. Then, he got down, tied the horse to a tree, and looked around before looking at the ground and saying something to himself. Then he started digging with a spade from his sack. Andy didn’t dare to try and get Zarek now. It was too risky. So he settled down behind the tree and watched the man carefully. The man stopped digging and reached into the hole he had dug and carefully lifted out a board. The hole he had dug was about four feet across. He looked in the hole and seemed to be checking something. Then, he jerked his body and to Andy’s surprise, the horse and Zarek fell into the ground!

The man laughed to himself and checked a few more things in the hole. Then, he climbed in. Andy waited for a minute, then he looked around and cautiously and climbed in the hole. Then, it happened.

“Hey you!” Andy froze as he heard a yell. He was still falling full speed through the tunnel. Suddenly, he heard a whir and a bang and a door opened to his side. He heard an evil laugh. He was whooshed into the side door and landed on the ground with an awful bump. When he looked up, he saw five evil faces staring down at him. It was a good thing he hid the pocketknife. Among them was the horse man. “Followin’ me warn’t you?” Andy didn’t reply, but stared at a fascinating rock on the ground. “Cat got your tongue?” asked another man. “Well that’s all right, we can tie you up” Lying in the corner was a coil of rope. One of the men went and picked it up. Then Andy looked next to it. His eyes almost bugged out. Zarek was there, in this room!

 Andy was glad that Zarek was there. It gave some comfort to this problem. Then the men started tying him up, a bit too hastily. Then, they tossed him in the corner, right next to Zarek! Andy grinned to himself as the men left and locked the side door behind them. Andy looked at Zarek. He was staring into space. Andy remembered what the man had said earlier that night. He turned to Zarek. “Zarek, one of the men said that you know too much. Who were those men?” Zarek blinked. Without looking at Andy he replied. “The ranchers that tried to shoot me.” He looked at Andy. “Took my fathers ranch, they did.” Andy was surprised. “But why?” Zarek stared at the ground. “Also took my fathers life, they did.” he muttered. Andy realized why. “Why did they?” Zarek looked at Andy. “Lets get rescued first, you have anything sharp?” Andy let the knife slide out of his pocket. Then, with some difficulty, popped it open. The he grabbed it carefully with his teeth, and wiggled over to Zarek. Then, he started cutting. It took some effort, but soon Zarek was free. Then, he cut through Andy’s ropes. They stood up and stretched. Zarek started telling Andy about his father. “Father was a good rancher, and knew how to keep the ranch nice. The others, you know, Ray, Dom, Bez, Zig, Zom, and little servant Hanjo. They all got crammed into one messy ranch and they sure couldn’t take care of it well. They were jealous of Father every single second of their lives. One day they came and their jealousy grew as they saw pa’s magnificent crops. So they chopped down most of their corn, and brought it to their ranch to cook for supper. Father was hoppin’ mad and he took off straight to their house. He went and climbed into their basement. He set a fire there and ran out. It wasn’t long before they smelled the smoke! They all ran out, but Hanjo, alas! He died, frozen with fear! Well the whole house burned down and the men were really mad. For revenge they killed pa. I tried to defend the ranch but they chased me off.” Andy squinted. “Where are we now?” Zarek hesitated. “Their underground hideout.” He hesitated again.“…In Mexico”. Andy’s eyes bugged out. He had run all the way from Texas to Mexico! After Andy’s shock was over, he stood. “Now its time to find a way out.” They both stood up and examined the room. “Hey, what’s thi-AAH!!” Andy had stepped on a trapdoor which made him fall in. Zarek peered down the hole. “You alright?” “I’ve never been more all right in my life! We could escape just up this ladder,” Came the answer. “Get down here!” Zarek slipped down the hole. He landed on bare cement and squinted at a ladder. His eyes went up and he saw another trapdoor in the ceiling! Soon both him and Andy were in a warm, good smelling shop. Andy looked around. “We better get out of here before the store opens.” They started walking to the door, but to their dismay a loud voice called. “Hey, get over here!” Andy and Zarek turned around and saw a jolly woman wearing an apron and holding a rag. “What are you young ‘uns doin’ in my store so early in the morning?” None of them answered. “Hey I won’t bite you or tell your secret or whatever you have in that head of yours. Let’s go to the back and get comfortable.” Andy decided to trust the woman, so he and Zarek went and followed her to the back. She sat down on a chair and motioned for them to sit also. “So what do you have to tell me ‘m?” Andy poured out their story, leaving out some parts about Zarek that he felt he must leave out. When he was finished talking, the woman stood up “Well you must be hungry! I’ll go and get some of my best buns for you.” Zarek looked up. “Thanks Ma’am, we sure are” The woman laughed and went out of the room.

After they ate hot buns and drank hot cocoa, they left the store. The woman stood in the doorway, waving “Be careful boys!” Soon they were at the end of the road. They both leapt behind a hedge. “Okay, now what should we do now?” Andy asked. Zarek scratched his head. “We ain’t have Madge anymore so the first thing we wanna do is get a source of transportation. Lets move on to the west.” Andy had no problem with the plan, so they set off. It wasn’t long before they saw a ranch with lots of cattle and a horse which was running around like lightning. Zarek leaned on the gate to watch it. He slowly unlatched the gate. Andy was shocked. “What are we doing?” he asked. Zarek answered “Stealing, gotta do it sometimes. Anyway, we need it more than this guy over here, he seems pretty well-off.” Andy looked and saw a burly man wearing new, spotless clothes. Andy knew they had to take it, so he didn’t say anything. Zarek slowly approached the horse, which had stopped to watch him. Zarek crept up close to it. Andy, sweating, watched to see what the man would do. The man didn’t seem to see anything yet. Then, a voice inside the house called him. He whipped around, his eyes flashing. He was staring right at Zarek!

At that moment, Zarek ran back to Andy and dragged them both onto the horse. Then, he dug his heels into the horses sides, making it whinny and blast off. The man ran to a stable and brought out another horse and galloped after them, waving his gun in the air. Zarek sped up, and stopped. He had seen something on the ground. He picked it up. It was a gun. He checked the magazine. Full. He was interrupted as Andy whispered urgently to him. “Zarek, buck up! He’s coming!” Zarek leapt up on the horse. The man was less than five feet away! Andy and Zarek both hit the horse with their heels at the same time and the horse shot away, leaving the man in the dust, coughing. Then, he let a shot out. It missed. He let out another shot and the last thing Andy knew was a stab of pain and his head banging against Zarek’s back as he passed out.

Andy woke up leaning against a warm rock. Then he remembered the stab of pain. He looked at his arm, which was neatly bandaged. It was already sunset. He wondered how far they went. “You all right?” Zarek was coming up with a hollowed trunk of a cactus branch in his hand. Andy nodded. “Where are we?” Zarek looked at the horse nearby. “She’s a fast horse, so I named her Spast, y’know, speedy, mixed with fast. She’s fast enough to bring us more than four hundred miles a day. We’re in Chihuahua. Had to tie us to the horse with all the speed.” “What about the man?” Andy asked. “Just a bit of self defense, you know, like shooting a horse’s two front legs. Painful for me and the horse. People in the town started yellin’ and chasing. I dunno why they thought they could catch me on this horse.” Andy was sure if he had been in the experience himself he would be caught. “Where are we heading tomorrow?” “We should be in Los Angeles by midnight tomorrow. So we’d better catch up on sleep now. Don’t worry, we’re in a safe area.” Andy soon drifted off to sleep.

Zarek and Andy woke up at noon. “Aw, now we’ll be there at six in the mornin’.’” They both, feeling hungry but not being able to help it, zipped off. They had been galloping for at least two hours when Andy saw something. He stopped Zarek. “What’s that?” he asked. Zarek looked closely. The object was coming closer. Zarek’s eyes narrowed. He slowed the horse. Then he ripped out his gun and aimed. The shot went out loud, followed by a series of shots as the object agilely dodged the bullets. Zarek gave a final shot and galloped forward once more. “What was that?” Andy asked. Zarek didn’t answer, for there was no need to. Right in front of them was a mountain lion with blood seeping out from its side. “Strange to see a mountain lion here.” Zarek said. Andy was relieved to see it killed. They went on until they were in San Luis Rio Colorado. They trotted on and Andy and Zarek were surprised to see a man in black running to them. It was a policeman! Zarek just switched to a gallop. But there were more policemen in front of them! Zarek took a look at them and turned his horse into the bushes. Then, he stopped his horse, swung himself onto a tree, bent a branch out and put it as a barrier between them and the policemen. By this time it was already dark. But the moon was full so it gave them enough light. On the way they stopped at Salton sea and the horse gulped water so much that it grew a bit slower than it was before. Soon, they were in Los Angeles. “Where will we sleep?” Andy asked, yawning. Zarek answered by going into a clump of thick trees and stopping. “Here” he said as he lay down on the ground.

Andy woke up. He wondered why Zarek wanted to go to Mexico in the first place. So he asked Zarek, who was just nearby. For the first time in a long time, Zarek grinned. “I got a rich uncle living here. Was on my way when I stopped by your house.” Andy was glad. He resolved to thank Zarek’s uncle. Then he had a worry. “What is he like?” Zarek laughed. “Oh, he’s a fine man.” They both climbed on the horse. They galloped off. “I sent a letter to him and he gave me the address. Here, you look for the house.” Zarek handed a piece of paper to Andy. Soon, they found the house. They both went up. Andy knocked. A young man opened the door. “Hello young men! Why, if it isn’t Zarek! And you have a friend with you! How pleasant!” They both went in and sat down. He listened to their story and laughed. “You can stay here, young men!” Andy looked inside. This house wouldn’t be so bad. He didn’t know what would happen next though!