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Sunnyvale Court was just as Dakota Lee left it, except for the lone figure hovering just inside a neighbor’s open garage.
It was darkness against a deeper darkness, but the moment he saw it, he was sure it was human.
Kota flicked the headlights off, staring hard out the windshield just in front of his house. The deeper shadow didn’t move. He counted the seconds.
One, one-thousand
Two, one-thousand.
Three...
Nothing.
Maybe he was wrong. Maybe it was...what could it be? Maybe they’d moved the trash bin, and left something on top of it?
Maybe his eyes were playing tricks on him. Clouds were rolling overhead. It could have been a trick of the light.
He rolled the sedan forward slowly, keeping the lights off, and parked in the far corner of his own driveway. He climbed out, closed the door, and looked over the top of the car, waiting.
The two story gray house, a couple of homes down from his own, was quiet. The shadow he’d spotted had gone. Still, he didn’t move, keeping his eyes on the darkness, sure he’d seen something.
He didn’t like shadows.
He knew the family in the gray house...well, knew was a pretty strong word to use. The two teenage girls and their parents had only moved in a few weeks ago. The only one he’d seen for more than a few moments was the younger daughter.
One beautiful girl with bright green eyes and dirty blond hair.
It was her he was worried about when it came to this shadow hanging out in the garage. The house didn’t have a security system to speak of. If it was someone looking to break into the house...
Rain sprinkled against the windshield. As the moments dragged by, and the shadow didn’t re-appear, Kota forced himself to turn toward his own house. He hit the garage door opener and waited for the door to rise.
A short bark sounded from inside. Max, his golden retriever, had been put up for the night. Max pawed at the door.
“Sit,” Kota said, using a strong tone.
Max instantly sat down, as still as could be.
Kota smiled and bent over, unlocking the crate and opening the door. Max padded out, shook his body and then panted.
“Come on,” Kota said, softer this time. “And keep quiet. You’ll wake mom and Jessica.”
Max nudged Kota’s leg, like he understood every word.
Since Kota was gone so late, his mother, Erica, must have put Max out in the garage. Otherwise, Max tended to whine if it was real late and not everyone was home.
It made it difficult for Kota to sneak out late, doing what he needed. The Academy required odd hours for different jobs. He preferred if he was gone that Max stay in the house. He felt his family was safer that way.
Kota hopped up the steps to the door, using his key to unlock it. He opened the door slowly to minimize the creaking. A fresh wave of cool air hit him, and he stepped inside.
Max followed, and then instantly marched down the hallway toward the living room. The dog sniffed the air as he went. He’d sweep the house, making sure everything was okay. If someone was out of bed, he’d yip. If someone was there who wasn’t supposed to be, he’d bark.
Kota left the garage door open for the moment. He suspected he’d be back out with Max in a few minutes. He wasn’t sure how long Max had been put in, but now that he was awake and moving, he’d probably want outside in a little while.
When Max yipped and then returned without a further sound, Kota tiptoed down the hall and opened another door, revealing a set of stairs. Max shot up the stairs ahead of him, climbing to the top and sitting down, waiting.
“Lay down,” Kota said, as he climbed. Max went for a spot near the bed and curled up on the floor. Kota was tired, and needed to catch some sleep before tomorrow. He had to go to the mall, and was expected to be up early to finish a few chores before he could take off.
Rain tapped against the window. Kota sat on the bed, taking off his tennis shoes.
The shadow was still on his mind. It wasn’t that he was paranoid. Maybe he was, but when he had a feeling something wasn’t right, he wasn’t usually wrong.
Something felt wrong now.
He moved to the window, squinting through the drops that splashed against the glass. He checked the street, and studied the house up the road.
For a moment, he wasn’t sure what he was seeing, as his eyes adjusted.
The shadow was back, only now it was moving toward the street. It was still at the two story gray house, moving along the driveway slowly. There was a hump on the back, like a book bag. Small figure.
He stared, waiting. He couldn’t be absolutely sure, but he was pretty sure it was the younger daughter.
“What in the world...” He stopped short, breathed in and held it, as if the girl down the road might hear him.
He continue to study her, trying to be sure. Is it really? Yes, it has to be. She had such a small frame, and the height was hers. It was also the way she walked, the way she kept her head down. She never looked up.
She stopped at the street, and waited.
At first he wondered if someone was about to pick her up. Somehow, he didn’t think so.
For the past few weeks, the younger girl always snuck out the back door, dashed to the woods behind her house, and walked the trails. He knew, because he spotted her a few times.
Each time he tried to find her, though, he either lost her, or when he got close, she dashed out of the woods. He understood her to be shy, which was probably why she never simply waked the street where someone might see or approach her.
When he realized he probably wouldn’t be able to approach her normally, he spent time in the woods, waiting. She’d come around, climb a tree, and sit and watch the day pass. Daydreaming.
The thought of her face flashed in front of him. Sweet. Pretty. Haunted.
He felt it the moment he saw her. She was scared. He didn’t know what of.
She stood now at the end of her drive, still waiting.
His heart leapt, and he pressed his hands against the window, his breath causing a slight fog against the glass. He was silently urging her to go back inside.
What are you doing, crazy girl? It’s late and it’s raining. Where are you going?
It wasn’t likely he’d get answers just watching her. He waited, watching.
She stood still, alone. Did she do this every night and he’d never noticed? Or was this something more serious. She had a backpack. He had a feeling this wasn’t a nightly event. She wasn’t just going for a stroll. Maybe she was running away. What could she be running away from?
The only problem was, what should he do now? He continued to watch, not wanting to take his eyes off of her in case she took off somewhere. Should he get involved?
Echoes swept through his mind, of Mr. Blackbourne warning about getting involved in situations you didn’t know. It was basic Academy training. Never put yourself in front of someone if you don’t know who they are and what they are capable of. Don’t expose yourself to people you don’t know. Don’t get involved unless you know for sure what the story is.
The problem was, there might not be a story to discover if she was running away.
His heart told him if he didn’t take this chance, he may never have another. He couldn’t get over those haunted eyes. Could he stand by and watch her disappear forever?
No, even Mr. Blackbourne would have sent him out.
He thought about calling Nathan, maybe waking him up to join him in following her to see where she went. Kota’s problem was, if she took off and ran for it, two guys chasing after her probably wasn’t the best way to make an introduction. As it was, he hesitated because he had no idea how to approach her. He’d tried before to cut her off just to say hello while she was walking in the woods, and she always took off running if he got anywhere close. Her hearing was excellent. Even with his training, he was never quiet enough to approach her undetected.
He didn’t have much time.
In a flash, he calculated his options. He had one shot at this. He’d either scare her off into the night, or maybe if he was lucky, he’d simply scare her back inside the house. He’d have to watch out for her, make sure she stayed inside. Hopefully he wasn’t sending her back in to be hurt, or into a dangerous situation. She didn’t look abused, but abuse didn’t have to be visible on the surface. He knew that too well.
“Max,” he said in a whisper. “Let’s go.”
Max was up and at the stairs in an instant. Kota stuffed his shoes back on, grabbed a poncho and was throwing it over his body as he dashed toward the stairs.
Out in the garage, he stopped, checking out the scene again. For a moment, he lost her in the dark. He swallowed, hoping she didn’t take off in the minute it took him to get outside.
No. There she was. Standing. Waiting. For what?
His heart thundered. His hands were normally steady. Nothing shook him up, not after so many years of seeing such disturbing and amazing things. The Academy trains you to think on your feet, to be aware, that no matter what, you are protected, so never fear anything. Fear weighs you down and can be distracting.
He was afraid now. What if he tried to stop her, and she called the cops? What if her parents heard her rushing back in, fearing for her life, and they came out looking for him? Or what if doing so caused her to get into major trouble?
Max stood by his feet. His nose was up, sniffing the air. Kota sensed his dog could tell someone was out there. He was being quiet, waiting for a command. Kota reached for his lead hanging from the wall. He was forming a plan, but unsure exactly how to execute.
Kota wouldn’t move until she did. He was wondering if she was reconsidering. Maybe she realized it was a mistake. It was raining, a little cool for an August evening. It was only going to get worse tonight, with thunderstorms later. It was late. Maybe she had planned it, but hadn’t totally thought it through. If she went back inside, he’d look out for her, and tomorrow if she went to the woods, he’d be sure to intervene somehow.
She needed someone. Staring at her now, he felt it so strongly. Maybe she didn’t know it, but he could help. Whatever it was, he knew people who wouldn’t turn her away. The Academy could do amazing things for the right type of person.
One, one-thousand. Two, one-thousand. He counted, only because he didn’t know what else to do. The waiting was difficult.
When he got to ten, the girl moved. She picked her foot up, and placed it on the street. She turned in his direction and started to walk. Slowly, keeping to the shadows.
He had to take a chance. In the few seconds she started moving, he came up with a thousand different scenarios, each one he didn’t like. He wanted her to trust him, to talk to him. How?
“Max,” he said. He shifted Max’s lead in his hand, gripping it.
Max stood quickly, his nose pointing out, waiting for the command.
Kota bit his lip, debating one last time, but the Academy doesn’t want team members to hesitate. If it really is the right thing to do, go for it. Kota could only hope she wasn’t going to get hurt, as this was already risky.
“Get her,” he commanded. “Take her down.”
Max took off in a shot, heading right for the girl.