Chapter Thirteen

Bridge Home School for Girls, Misty

W aiting for midnight was the hardest part of the escape plan, or so Misty thought. She went between regretting she’d agreed to go and being angry she hadn’t left already. Mostly, she was terrified of being caught. What would the punishment be? She couldn’t see them, but she knew she had bruises on her back from Mrs. Turney following her around and hitting her with the cane. The bruises on her fingers had faded, but they were still visible. Every girl at the school had some sort of detectable damage, even if it was only temporary.

Did her parents know what this place would be like? She had a feeling they did. Her job as their child was to obey. She’d failed.

Or, as her thinking changed, maybe they had failed her. Paige didn’t believe in God and called it mythology. She’d said so many things that made sense and she made Misty think about the things that always bothered her. Women were born of Adam’s rib and Paige called that the biggest lie.

“Babies come from a woman’s womb. It’s the only way they come. The church taught you the Adam’s rib crap so you would think men were better. They teach you to obey and not to think for yourself. They feed you demeaning lies from the time you’re a small child so you know nothing else. They isolate girls and women so you don’t see or hear about the real world happening outside the church every day. Places like this school exist to stop girls from thinking because if we gain knowledge, we become stronger. There are horrible things in this world and if God is all powerful, he’s also responsible. You can’t have it both ways. Is it something you’ve thought about?”

She hadn’t but Paige’s words stuck with Misty. She believed in God but the how to believe was changing. She rolled over and counted the imperfections on the ceiling. A few minutes into her second round, she heard a small noise at the door. A scratch?

She sat up, and the door opened. Sarah ran in first, followed by Paige, who closed and locked the door behind her. She carried a large plastic garbage bag that looked heavy.

“This is the most dangerous part of my plan,” Paige said and dumped the contents of the bag onto the bed. “I tried to match sizes as best I could and I found a flashlight for each of us.”

Jeans, shirts, and jackets fell onto the bed.

“Where did these come from?” Misty asked.

“I figured they belong to the girls in here or the girls who have come through. They’re kept in a closet by the nurse’s room,” Paige said.

“We have a nurse?”

“No, but there’s a door that’s labeled ‘nurse’ and we don’t have time for these questions. If someone sees us sneaking out with these on, the game is up and we’re caught. If that happens, run separate ways, and maybe one of us can escape.”

“But what do I do if I’m the one who escapes?” Sarah asked.

“You run,” Paige said. “Don’t stop until you find someone you can rat this place out to. What they’re doing here is illegal and they will be in big trouble.”

Paige ruffled Sarah’s hair. Sarah reared back and shook her head. “Don’t do that,” she said, her fearful eyes going hard.

“Gotcha,” Paige said and glanced at Misty. “What are we waiting for?”

They tore through the clothes, handing items to each other as they tried them on. The school supplied boots and socks that would help them stay warm, too.

“I couldn’t find rain ponchos, but the jackets will help. They were the ones I thought would keep the rain away as much as possible. I put snacks in the pockets. We’ll be able to find drinking water if we need it.”

“How did you find the clothes?” Misty asked.

“The same way I got into your rooms.” She lifted her hand and showed Misty a single key. “It’s a master key and unlocks every door in this place. Mrs. Sanders had an extra one hanging in her office. She got called away, and I took it.”

“And she didn’t notice it missing?”

Paige shrugged. “There were other keys there, and I moved one over, so it looked like the master. She never noticed, and I’ve been walking the halls at night while the rest of you sleep. I found the clothes and also some money.”

“How much?” Sarah asked.

“Enough to keep us from working for a few weeks. We’ll need to be frugal, but we can do this. First, we need to get away, though. A huge crash of thunder sounded outside, and they could hear the rain hitting the roof.

“We need to hurry and be gone before the lights go out. Someone will come down and start the generator, and I don’t want them catching us.”

The girls dressed in record speed. Paige placed pillows beneath Misty’s bed sheet, the only bedding she’d been allowed so far. Misty had folded the sheet in half to keep warm at night. Paige then placed her finger to her lips. “Walk softly and no talking. We won’t need the lights until we’re clear of the house. I know the best way out.”

The girls followed Paige as she led them to what looked like a closet but was actually a stairway up to the attic. There was a landing outside a small door at the back of the attic that opened to the outside metal stairs. They were the same ones Misty had seen when she’d arrived at the home. The wind was blowing so hard they had to hold the handrails and walk slowly because the stairs were slippery from the rain.

Paige made it first and turned on her flashlight. “Follow me,” she said.

“Did you go outside at night too?” Misty asked loudly so she could be heard over the storm.

“Yes, and I explored as far as I could.”

“You never sleep,” Sarah said. “No wonder you’re so grumpy.”

“Stop gaggling and hurry,” Paige urged.

They followed the road that Misty had arrived on the first night at the school. The rain pelted them, and they held onto each other, walking in a single file line.

“If you see the lights on a car, we need to hide, but I doubt anyone is out tonight. Just a bit further and we can get off the road.”

They walked for maybe another hundred yards, and Paige pointed them to a small path.

“This leads to another road that leads to the river, and the river leads to the ocean. It’s easier to stay lost near the water where there are always families vacationing. Those families are easy money too.”

Misty had no idea what Paige was talking about. She was shivering from the cold, and her wet socks squished in her boots, which made her more miserable. They couldn’t stop now, but Misty was second-guessing leaving during a hurricane.

“I, I, need to ta turn on my flashlight,” Sarah said.

“Go ahead.” Paige didn’t seem as cold as the other two girls.

The extra light helped, and they moved faster, which helped a bit with warmth, or so Misty told herself. Water poured down the trail, and the dirt quickly turned to mud. Misty took a step and lost her footing. She landed on her butt and started sliding.

“Whoa,” said Paige and made a grab for her.

“You should let me slide down. It would be faster,” Misty complained.

Lightning lit up the sky followed by thunder a few seconds later.

“That lightning was close,” Paige said. “We need to keep pushing. We can’t give up now.”

They moved faster. An explosion in the distance startled them all .

“Lightening hit a tree,” Paige yelled. “Keep moving. There’s another road not far from here.”

The hurricane was early in the season and spring was warm but not summer warm. With the rain and wind, the temperature was dropping. Misty couldn’t stop shaking. Her pants were now soaked, too. The wind made her stumble, and she almost took Sarah down. Paige remained unflappable and pushed forward like a superhero.

“See up there,” she said and pointed ahead. “There’s a bus stop with an overhang that will give us a chance to regroup.” Paige pulled both their hands and led them to the partial shelter.

She went to the very back and sat down, bringing Misty and Sarah in beside her.

“Cuddle in close for warmth,” she said.

With their hands in the middle, they formed a half-circle. Paige rubbed Misty’s fingers and Sarah’s to bring the circulation back. When she finished, she pulled a candy bar from her pocket.

“Turns out Mrs. Sanders is a candy junkie. There was an entire box in her desk drawer. The sugar will give us energy, and we all need to eat one. I put several in your jacket pockets. Fish them out.”

Cold and miserable, Misty pulled out one of her bars. She slowly peeled back the wrapper and took a bite. It tasted wonderful.

“I haven’t had candy in a long time,” said Sarah before she shoved the rest of the bar in her mouth .

Misty ate slower and savored every bite.

“Run,” yelled Paige as lights flashed into the bus stop.