LILLIAN DIDN’T HAVE TO TELL ME TWICE. I hung up the phone, feeling renewed hope and a courage I had never experienced before. Suddenly, I had the power to make a choice and change my life. I crept out into the hall and gently placed the phone back on the ledge.

I was thankful that I was already wearing my favorite pair of Gloria Vanderbilt jeans and my two-tone brown Nike tennis shoes, both of which I had paid for with my own hard-earned money. I wouldn’t have to take valuable time to change clothes. After all, I didn’t want to take a chance that Mom or anyone else would try to stop me. I knew in my head and my heart that if I didn’t leave today, if I didn’t flee right at that moment, I might never be able to get away.

A wave of nostalgia washed over me as I glanced around the kitchen one last time. Several fresh loaves of bread on the counter sat ready to be toasted. I swallowed hard and purposefully didn’t let myself get caught up in the emotion of my decision. I crossed the living room knowing I was leaving the home that had given me the most positive memories of my life thus far.

I opened the front door, then the screen door. I hoped Mom or Sean wouldn’t hear the loud creak of the hinge on the screen door. I passed by the used appliances we had for sale under the carport and made my way to the road. Once there, I glanced back only briefly to make sure I wasn’t being followed. I walked down the sidewalk without hesitation. I didn’t know what Lillian’s plan was, but I knew how to get to her house, and I knew I could make it on foot, even if it were a hundred miles away. Though tears threatened, I choked them back, turned left, and started walking in the direction of Mark and Lillian’s home on Campbell Road.

My whole body was electrified and alert. Still, I couldn’t help but glance over my shoulder every few moments, wondering if someone was coming after me. I stayed on a constant lookout for someplace along the road that I could quickly dart to and hide, in case I saw a car I recognized —one of my family members driving to pick up an appliance or, worse, Mom searching for me. I was deathly afraid that I might not make it to Lillian’s house before someone intercepted me.

We had traveled this route so many times that I knew I was going the right way. I recognized familiar landmarks and buildings that were helpful, but they also worked against me. This was the same route that many other drivers in our family used daily for the appliance business. Someone could easily spot me and report my whereabouts to my mother. Or worse, pick me up and drag me home against my will.

I pictured Mom at home, looking for me. I could hear her asking, “Have you seen Anna?” I imagined her conversation with Celia when they figured out I wasn’t there. How would Mom react? She’ll probably be shocked or bewildered at first, which will quickly give way to worry. Her anxiety would soon shift to action, and Mom would probably hop in the station wagon and crisscross Houston to find me. I could imagine her gripping the steering wheel, driving to my friends’ houses searching for me. My breath caught in my throat at the thought. I didn’t want to put her through that; I really didn’t.

I considered all these feelings, all the variables, and felt the weight of them in my gut. But I simply could not face working in that dingy warehouse and being under Dan Jordan’s control for one more day. I’d worked for the benefit of others my entire life. I’d never experienced a day without oppression. Even though I was only thirteen, something deep inside me knew that was wrong and had to change.

I felt like I might get whiplash from my zealous efforts to make sure nobody was following me. I battled brief moments of hesitation, but the will to live on my own terms compelled me onward. Part of me fled the horrible fate that awaited me in Denver, but the other part ran toward something better. Part of me knew escaping Dan’s clutches would bring other problems, potentially far greater than those I’d experienced thus far. But with every step I took toward Lillian’s house, I felt a greater sense of freedom.

The lifting of that emotional burden buoyed my spirits, giving me hope where I’d had none. Though I didn’t have a clue about what the future held, I felt certain I had better prospects with Mark and Lillian than with Dan Jordan, and that compelled me to keep walking. I passed dilapidated buildings with pawnshops and check-cashing stores. I passed by a donut shop and a taqueria and other fast-food joints, wishing I had brought some money with me. My tummy growled unhappily.

The smells of Houston —mainly gasoline and oil —filled my nostrils. I noticed how filthy the streets were; cigarette butts, fast-food wrappers and containers, receipts, flyers, dead insects, and gum littered the gutters and sidewalks. A few store owners emerged to sweep sidewalks in front of their shops. One heavyset man with a giant handlebar mustache greeted me. I simply nodded and kept going.

After walking nearly an hour and covering a little over three miles, I finally spotted Lillian’s car coming toward me on the busy street. She honked and then pulled into the parking lot of a car repair place right in front of me. I jogged toward her beige station wagon and watched as she reached across the seat to unlock the passenger-side door. I scrambled into the car as quickly as I could, and when I buckled myself in, the fear and tension that had gripped me began to subside.

I offered Lillian the best smile I could muster. “Thanks for coming to pick me up.” Then I took a deep breath in and let it out slowly, feeling relief flood over me. I’m safe. The magnitude of what I’d chosen to do suddenly weighed heavy on my heart.

Lillian reached across the seat and patted me tenderly on my leg. “How are you? You doing okay?” Her brow furrowed and her eyebrows knotted tightly. “I’m sorry you’re having to go through this —having to make this choice. But you are very brave, Anna. You’ll make it. I know you will.”

I stared at her. How can she know that? Mom could be coming after me right at this moment. I shuddered at the thought.

As if she could read my thoughts, Lillian pulled out of the parking lot and got back on the road. “We need to go. You’re not safe out here in the open.”

“Are we going back to your house?”

“Oh, no! That’s the first place they’ll look for you.”