DEVAN Eyes followed us, every step of the way. People were watching, and murmuring as we passed by. And the worst of it all, was the fact that I knew who these people were. A little sad, wasn't it? We were in the same grade, but yet, none of them seemed to show any concern or care, instead they had chosen to gossip and stare. "Devan, are you alright?" Lance quizzed, stopping beside me. "Yeah, just a little bit nervous. Everyone's staring." I admitted, as he patted my thighs. "Come on, we'd be quick. Let's hope Principal Walter is in." Lance said, driving ahead, as I followed slowly behind him. "Devan?" A voice called behind me. I turned neck sharply, to see Ms. Dottie grinning in excitement at me. She definitely did look excited to see me, and I wasn't happy about that. "Come here, you little pumpkin." She said forcing me into an embrace. "Ms. Dottie, how are you doing?" I greeted, trying to breathe as the aroma of whatever she had cooked that

FIFTY FOUR DEVAN Time did tell. But, the tales it did bear on its wings, weren't the ones that should be heard, or told of. They were stories that always found a way to leave its listeners unnerved by its tales. Sad and happy all at once. No thoughts of what you wanted, no feelings, just a bleak future staring blankly at you, waiting for you to realise that you had reached the end of the road. I wanted to feel happy again, but they were just wants and wishes, and they didn't matter in the real world. It was suddenly beginning to seem like everything was happening too quickly. It was all too fast to even understand. Lance had seemed to vanish. He hadn't stopped by in a few days, and I had suddenly began to realise how stupid I had been to push him away. I needed answers, and he had been the only one ready to help me with them. But now, I was stuck with Zach. Crazy old Zach! "You're beginning to beat me at my own game." Zach grumbled, resting his eyes on the

JOE The day had barely birthed when she had stolen out of bed. I had been shocked to my bones when I had awakened that morning to find her gone. A number of thoughts had raced through my mind, and I had tried to understand why she would choose to return to Zach in the first place. I wanted to understand, but the one person who could help me understand had vanished. And so, I had sat down on the bed, ruminating on everything that had happened, and then there was a knock on the door. Suzy had been my first thought. Maybe, Ellen had sent a message to me through her, but a greater disappointment had struck when I found Cole at the door. "Where's Suzy?" He had asked, and at that moment, I understood that they were certainly up to something. I had waited for a few hours, delaying my trip to the hospital in order to get B.J but none of them had shown up. And just when my exhaustion had reached its peak, and I was about to step out, a car drove parked beside my la

ELLEN There was no need to hide anymore, Cullen had found me. I couldn't explain why it was so important to keep on running away, but the more I tried, the more unending the story turned out to be. I was alone at the table. Tommy had stepped outside for a smoke, and Big Joe had gone along with Cole to comfort him about his wife's disappearance. Although, it didn't seem necessary to me, Suzy wasn't dead yet, so why the pity? I sighed deeply, and felt a cold wind hit me. Winter had really set in, and I was barely prepared for it. A thicker jacket would have helped greatly, but it was the least of my priorities at the moment. "There you are." Tommy intoned vocally, walking into the room. "What do you want, Tommy?" I fired, barely glancing up. I heard him scoff, but I paid no attention to him. "You consider that to be a really good question to ask at this time? What do I want? That's crazy, don't you think." "It's a simple question, Tommy. You either answer

ELLEN Tommy turned Joe's truck around as we headed down the street again for the third time in a row, in search of Cole. We had driven through every single street that was close to Joe's house, but still we hadn't found him. I was terribly frightened. Perhaps something had happened to him, and he had had gotten caught bin Cullen's games as expected. That was barely possible though. There was no way Cole would have been taken, right under our noses. "We should go back to the house." I began, as Tommy shook his head, and continued driving. "Tommy, what if something has happened to him already, I mean what if Cullen took him already." I argued. "Ellen, you can't just blame everything on Cullen. A little thing happens, and you start insinuating or making up silly stories." "They're not silly, Tommy. He did take Suzy if you remember? That shouldn't be too difficult to remember, it happened just yesterday." Tommy exhaled, and patted the steering wheel li