The only true light came from the sole outdoor lamp above the front door to the house, and it barely penetrated the night’s gloom. But it was enough to see the shapes of two guards rushing quickly past, heading in the direction of another gunshot.

“What’s going on?” Roxy asked.

“I don’t know—”

A loud rapping sound came from the bathroom. With Roxy clutching Lynn’s arm, they walked through the dark to the bathroom. The sound repeated.

As they peered around, a flashlight illuminated a face outside the window. The light revealed a young man’s face underneath the bill of a hat.

Waving at Roxy to stay back, Lynn didn’t dare to turn on the light. She felt for the book page and the pen still sitting on the sink, unlatching the bolt on the window and lifting the pane.

“Are you the lady out in the yard?” the man whispered. “Are you OK?”

“Thank you, thank you for coming,” Lynn said. “Thank God you saw me.”

“My brother actually did. Said he didn’t like how that guy was yanking you around.”

At this proximity, Lynn realized this was no man. He had to be barely on the edge of sixteen, and reeked of alcohol.

“We don’t have much time. I’m writing down a phone number. It’s my daughter. Please, please call her and tell her where we are.”

When he responded, the beer on his breath almost made Lynn flinch. “My grandpa would kill us if he knew we were up here. He’s chapped our butts before for snooping around the old Scotter place. We always wonder what’s going on over here, with all the men in suits and stuff. My brother didn’t believe me that that the cicadas were acting weird again, so I brought him out to show him. We didn’t think we’d see you too.”

“Please, just take this number and run. And thank your brother.”

“He’s hiding under a deer tarp right now. We figured we needed a distraction to get to where you stuck that sign. What kind of trouble are you in—oh shit!”

He turned off the flashlight, snatched the book page, and took off running, quickly vanishing into the night. Lynn held her breath, peering forward.

The crickets and cicadas outside were so loud it was almost piercing. She nearly didn’t hear the sounds of footsteps that arrived at the edge of the house, just beyond the window. Quietly, she slid the window shut, backing away.

For a brief moment, she saw the outline of the two guards pass the window, walking from the house towards the trees where the boy had run.

ELEVEN