End of Last Post:

As Tina made her way across the expanse, she developed a pattern of crawling when she heard voices or noises that gave her sound coverage, and pausing when they stopped. She had no idea where she got the idea, but guessed it was instinct. It proved to be tedious, but effective work.

At one point, she came upon a tile chipped out at one corner. She turned off the flashlight and peered through the hole to observe an unfolding scene that broke her heart.


The Story Continues:

Directly beneath were two seventh graders crouching on the floor of the library. Above them towered a snarling beast, his voice loud and rough. He was ordering them to stay put while he went for more children.

The girls trembled as they grasped each other for security. Tina couldn't see more, but could hear growling voices and shuffling feet. The kids were being separated out, that much Tina could tell, and they were terrified.

She wanted to scream out in anger. How could a woman, a principal, be so uncaring about those who trusted her? How could she turn terror loose on those she was hired to protect?

"I'll get you out of this," Tina said. "I promise."

Forcing anger into the same spot in the back of her mind she had placed fear and worry, she prayed for the safety of the kids and crawled on towards the catwalk at the end of her beam.

Once there, she stood carefully. Her knees ached from the journey across unyielding metal, and her wrists throbbed. She rubbed them for a few moments, but refused to let pain achieve what the witches could not. She thought about her terrified classmates and pressed on until she guessed she was close to the front door.

She knelt to the floor and pressed her ear against a tile. At first she heard nothing, and then the voice of Mrs. Pierson, now Gelada, came filtering up.

"Matilda," Gelada said. "I want you to oversee the library and the hall on the left, both of which contain seventh graders. Travel around checking on things until everyone gets settled in.

"Melba, you take the middle wing, which is the eighth grade hall. Anastasia, you take the right wing with 6th graders. You can have the cafeteria, too, where the werewolves are housed when they aren't in rooms.

"Anastasia, your territory is the center hall with sixth graders. They are a handful enough by themselves, so you'll only have one area.

"I'll remain in the auditorium with the Daredevil Girls and adults. Keep your cell phones on and close. We'll send supper out from the cafeteria shortly."

"What about people needing to go to the bathroom?" Matilda asked.

"There are two wolves to each room," Gelada said. "One will always stay with the kids, and the other will take groups of two at a time to the restroom. If they get to asking to go too much, the wolves can limit the number of trips."

"And what about the blankets and pillows you mentioned earlier?" Anastasia asked.

"I have a team of wolves that will start passing those out after the meal trays have been picked up, Matilda."

"And the reason why we are treating them so nice?" Melba

"I told you, we want the Daredevil Girls to come off looking like the bad guys, not us. When I start my media broadcasts tomorrow, I'll play up how bad we feel about losing our sister, and how we were forced into desperate actions to free her."

"Yes," Anastasia said. "We're the martyrs, and the meddling Daredevil Girls the enemy."

"Uh, don't martyrs die?" Matilda asked.

"Good point, victims, then," Anastasia said. All the sisters began to laugh.

"Giggle now," Tina whispered, "and keep believing your lies, because no one else will."

For a few minutes more, Tina listened to the hags making plans, and then the voices faded with retreating footsteps. Tina waited a few more minutes, then pulled up the tile just a few inches and looked down. There was no one there. She grabbed the edge of the catwalk and lowered herself as far as she could go. Quiet as a whisper, she dropped to the floor.

Creeping in the shadows near the wall, she made her way to the front doors. Her hand trembling, she pressed the bar handle. She released tense breath as it eased open. Locking from the outside, the witches must have thought the doors secure.

Once free, she looked around. There were emergency vehicles everywhere, lights turned off to conceal their presence. Everyone seemed unsure of what to do. She ran as fast as she could to the first car she could see. A man reached out his hand and pulled her to safety. She fell sobbing into his arms.

"What's going on in there?" he asked. "We got a call from a cell phone right before it went dead. We didn't get any details, but something about a hostage situation. Are there terrorists in there? What country are they from? Did they send you with a list of demands?"

Tina proceeded to explain to the officer exactly what had transpired, and how the witches were planning a media announcement in the morning. The police officer looked at her like she was totally crazy.

"Sweetheart, there are no such things as witches and werewolves. Clearly you must be distraught... you're shaking like a dang leaf."

"I am upset, but I'm telling the truth, Sir. I know it sounds crazy, it was to me, too, but you have to believe me. Bruce, one of the Daredevil Girls, I mean Guys, told me to get in touch with a man named Emory Settler. He's an officer in Houston who specializes in supernatural beings. He'll explain it all if you'll call him."

"We don't need help from anyone in Houston," another officer answered. "Do me a favor, go to the ambulance over there. They can give you something to calm you down. We'll just have to wait this one out until they try and make contact. We don't want any of the kids to get injured. You did say they're planning to broadcast in the morning didn't you?"

"Yes."

"And the hostages are all safe right now?"

"Well, sort of, but they are in terrible danger."

"We understand that," the original officer said, "but we can't just charge in there until we know what we're dealing with. What kind of weapons do they have?"

"I'm not sure, I didn't see much because I was in the attic space going for help, but I do know the witches have wands, and the werewolves have teeth and claws. They are very deadly with them, I'm sure."

"Okay, okay. We'll just have to wait for them to contact us. It's not wise to rush in without knowing what we're facing. Thank you, young lady. You're very brave and should be proud of yourself."

"Thank you," Tina said, "but I didn't do it for pride. I only want my friends freed."

"They will be, now go on to the ambulance so they can check you out."

"Yes, sir."

"And don't talk to any of the reporters on the way. You'll just scare people with your witch story. Maybe, once you have rested, you can tell us what really happened in there."

With a sigh of frustration, Tina headed away from the safety of the police cars, but not toward the ambulance. She still had to get hold of Emory Settler. Now she knew why Mr. Bruce had told her it would do no good to call 911. People didn't want to believe the truth... they wanted to believe what made sense. Well, she believed and she knew someone else who would, too.

Turning her back to the school and emergency responders, she headed down the dark road leading to town. She had change in her pocket to use for a pay phone, and she had Mr. Bruce's flashlight. She knew they all meant well, but if the adults couldn't help her, she would just have to do it on her own.