Lopez was on his knees in the middle of the street. A truck sat not far away, two men standing in the bed, guns in hand. Another masked man stood over Lopez, a gun pointed at his head.

“Go back, go back,” she whispered, turning and gesturing for Lennon and Hadley to move. They ran back around the corner.

“What?” Hadley whispered.

“They have Lopez. We need to—” She cut herself off, glancing at their surroundings. They’d see her coming a mile away if she just waltzed down the street. She needed to get inside one of the homes. Maybe then she could surprise them.

She ran to the back gate of the closest house, opening it and sprinting across the lawn. She hopped the chain-link fence, glancing behind her to see Hadley and Lennon climbing over as well.

They jumped the next two fences, until they hit a small red house near the middle of the block. She ran to the back door and peered in the windows. An empty kitchen table, and beyond that, a living room. Seemed deserted.

She tried the door. It opened easily.

Her shoes squeaked faintly as she stepped inside. Behind her, she heard Lennon’s and Hadley’s footsteps following.

She checked her left, and then right.

An older man and a woman were huddled together on the kitchen floor. They were clutching hands, eyes wide. They looked vaguely familiar, though she couldn’t remember their names.

She lifted one finger to her lips. They both nodded. The woman actually appeared a little relieved, like the sight of Maisie in her kitchen was a welcome one.

Maisie darted to the front window and just barely nudged the curtain to the side so she could see to the street. Lopez was still on the ground. The guy above him had his phone pressed to his ear, gun still aimed at Lopez.

“I need to distract the guys in the truck,” she whispered. She glanced back at the couple on the floor. “Do you have any explosives?”

Lennon looked at her with a baffled expression, like this was the weirdest question he’d ever heard.

“No,” the man said, with genuine disappointment. His eyes lit up. “I’ve got lighter fluid, though.” He stood up and dashed out the back door.

The woman jumped to her feet and opened the cabinet under the sink. She began pulling glass bottles from her recycling bin.

“Yesss, great idea,” Hadley said. She grabbed a dish rag off the sink and tore it in half.

“Are you making…” Lennon watched as the man brought the lighter fluid back inside and began pouring it into the bottle. He didn’t finish his question. He’d clearly figured out the answer.

“I need someone to throw it,” Maisie said. “And I’ll go for the guy with Lopez. Hadley, how’s your arm? Think you can throw it accurately from the porch?”

“Uh…” She winced. “Probably not. And you know I can’t aim a gun for shit at that distance. I’d probably hit Uncle Franco.”