Page 31 of Here for a Good Time
“That’s both weird and impressive,” he says, one brow arching up. “Weird that they’re all women, impressive that you can pinpoint a perfume on a passing buggy.”
“The definition of ‘superpowers’ isn’t limited to just ‘flying’ and ‘teleportation,’” I say sagely.
He rolls his eyes. “Well, woman, man, nonbinary, it doesn’t matter because they’re still armed and trying to find us. Can we cross over to the other side without them noticing?”
“There are four of them so we’ll have to be quiet,” I say. I lookaround, willing a field of tall, unkempt grass to magically appear, but all I see is a row of pruned trees. Damn these perfectly kept gardens. “We need a distraction.”
“What kind of distraction?”
“The kind that will confuse them long enough for us to make a run for it behind the trees.”
“Like what? We don’t have anything.”
“I don’t know!” I huff. “Let me take another look.” I stretch out my neck again and am scanning around for something, maybe a vase I could throw a shoe at, or—I freeze when I make eye contact with Antonio.
He widens his eyes, and I can’t tell if he’s sayingHelp usorGet the fuck out of here.
I motion over at the woods behind the reception area, hoping that he puts two and two together.
His face scrunches up as he looks back and forth between me and the general direction in which I’m gesturing, but then he sits up straight and I know he’s got it.
“Are you ready?” I whisper at Zwe without taking my eyes off Antonio, who nods.
“For what?” Zwe asks.
“To run.”
“Wha—”
“Three,” I say and hold up three fingers so that Antonio can see as I count us down. “Two. One.”
That boy should absolutely consider an acting career, because he lets out a bloodcurdling scream so realistic that for a second, I’m worried he got shot. But so does everyone else, and the two guards who were manning the steps rush over. In a moment, everyone’s crowded around him.
“Run,” I say, grabbing Zwe’s hand.
We bolt. I’m trying to make as little noise as possible, and the thudding of my heart in my ears is so loud that I can barely make out what’s happening a few feet away.
“Something’s wrong!” Antonio is screaming. “I can’t feel my legs! And my heart is beating too fast! Is it a heart attack? I think I’m having a heart attack!”
“Shut up! You’re not having a heart attack!” one of the guards barks. Definitely a woman.
“How would you know? Do you have any idea how stressed I am right now?”
“Listen, little boy,” she snarls. I don’t know what she’s doing, but everyone’s gone very silent.
A mental image of her putting her rifle to Antonio’s temple pops up. Before the image can get any worse, I squeeze my eyes shut and shake my head like an Etch A Sketch.
I don’t know why I thought shutting my eyes as I charge through a grove of trees at the fastest speed I ever have during my twenty-nine years on this earth would be a good idea, because it instantaneously turns out to benot.
I trip, my speed making it impossible for me to catch myself. My left ankle makes a popping sound that ankles are not supposed to make. It feels like someone’s set off a flash grenadeinsidemy foot as heat threads itself through my veins and muscles. I clench my teeth together so I don’t so much as yelp, but it doesn’t matter. My fall has made enough noise that someone yells “Who’s there?”, and I know there’s no hope.
“Go!” I yell at Zwe, who’s stopped several paces in front of me. He shakes his head, and I cry again, “Go! Just go!”
“It’s them!” comes a female voice, followed by the sound of quick footsteps.
Cold metal presses into the nape of my neck. On reflex, I pivot around and onto my ass, coming face-to-face with a pair of calves. By the time my gaze rises up to her masked face, I feel like I’m on the precipice of fainting. Before I can think twice, my body acts on a primal urge to survive, and I start violently thrashing about. My right foot lands on the woman’s jaw, causing her mask to fly off.
She’s around our age, dark brown skin, hazel eyes. When she reaches up to rub her cheek, I notice a tattoo on her left wrist of an opaque black blob. For a distracted second, I try to make out if the tattoo is maybe an animal? A country?
