“Things were crazy inside. People, they have to do things—”

“The important thing right now,” Miig interrupted, staring straight at me, not even blinking, “is that we need to stay together, undivided, and get out of here. Any distraction, any rupture, could put all our lives at risk.”

The room fell silent for a minute. He was right. Now was not the time. I swallowed hard, pushing the bundle of grief and guilt and torment back inside. It was a painful relief. In the pause, we heard voices outside.

“I think we should start right away. Why sit around waiting?”

“Because we have to do this right. And we’ve already gotten into the celebratory chardonnay.”

“Damn right, we did.” There was the crash and tinkle of glass exploding on concrete. “Woo-hoo! That’s what happens when you leave us alone to stand guard all night with a cabinet full of good white wine. Ha!”

“Jesus, Kelsey. Elizabeth is gonna be pissed if she hears about this.”

“Ooooo, what’s Elizabeth going to do? Banish me? Strangle me with her mummified hands?” She groaned like a movie monster, then laughed. “Just because she’s old doesn’t make her god.”

“This is a bad idea…”

“Just shut up, Shirley-Rachel. And help me get the door.”

There was rustling just outside: grunting and the sounds of chains dropping and locks popping. Zheegwon sat up, and Tree shuffled back against the wall. Wab sat in the far corner of the cage. Everyone tensed. We waited.

The door creaked open, and flashlights shone in. One beam hit Chi Boy in the face, and he squinted hard but refused to look away, his mouth set in a hard line.

“Shit, the overhead light is still on.”

“So? What do they care about a light when they’re tied up in a damn pool shed?”

The flashlights went off, and two women entered. The first one in was dressed in a beige tracksuit and running shoes, her red hair in need of some new dye. She stumbled over the stack of life jackets not two steps in.

“Oh, shit.” The flashlight went rolling across the floor and stopped in front of Miig. No one had free hands to grab it. She recovered quickly and scooped up the light, glaring at Miig as if he had tried to take it, burying any embarrassment in anger. “That’s mine.”

The second woman stepped carefully over the pile of life jackets and kept her back to the door. She held her light tucked under an arm so both hands could hold a small .22. “No one get any ideas. This isn’t just purse candy,” she remarked, eyes moving around the space nervously. She wore pajamas in a soft mint color and flip-flops on her feet, each nail on her fingers and toes painted bright pink.

“Wow,” the first woman said. “Look at all this!” She held her hand out and looked back at the gunslinger. “So much meat!”

“Shirley-Rachel, don’t be crass,” the woman replied, her shiny bob (no grey here) bouncing at her shoulders. “You know what, let’s just get out of here before someone comes to check on us.”