Apparently noticing the same thing, Jilly slowed down and fell alittle bit behind.
April looked back and said, “Come on, let’s keep going. We’ll beall right if we just go really fast.”
With that, they both broke into a run.
Then they both stopped dead in their tracks.
A large, shadowy figure had stepped in front of them, seeminglyfrom out of nowhere.
“Who’s there?” April demanded.
The figure didn’t reply, but April could see it more clearly now.It was a tall, muscular man entirely clad in black. Even his face was concealedby a plain black mask.
This is no trick-or-treater, April thought, fighting downa wave of panic.
CHAPTER THIRTY TWO
April stood frozen in her tracks, staring at the sinister figure.He just stood there without replying. He wasn’t moving out of their way either.
April tried to sound braver than she felt …
“Whoever you are, this isn’t very funny.”
There was still no reply, but she could feel his eyes staring ather.
She heard Jilly say in a shaky voice, “Maybe this wasn’t such agood idea.”
“Maybe you’re right,” April whispered back. “Let’s get out ofhere.”
She and Jilly turned around, ready to run, but the same darkfigure seemed to be standing in front of them again.
How is that possible? April wondered.
Then she turned back and saw the first figure standing where he’dbeen before. She began to feel dizzy with panic.
Was this some kind of monster who could be in two places at once?
No, there are two of them! she realized, forcing herselfto calm down.
Her mind flashed to the gun her mother had bought for her and wasnow sitting unused in its case in Mom’s closet. She wished she had it in herhand. But if she did, would she know what to do with it?
It doesn’t matter now, she thought.
April felt a rush of adrenaline. Whatever else happened, she wasdetermined that no harm would come to her little sister. It was her own faultthey were in this situation.
She leaned toward Jilly and whispered, “You get out of here. Runlike crazy. Run every which way you can. Head off into the bushes. Just getclear of these guys.”
Jilly asked, “But what are you going to do?”
“Whatever I have to do,” April said.
Her gaze still locked on the first figure, April heard Jillyscurrying away behind her. During the scant seconds that followed, everythingseemed to stand still as April’s mind clicked away—trying to gauge whatever wasabout to happen, wondering whether she or the man in front of her was going tomake next move, flashing back to self-defense tips she’d gotten from hermother.
But before she could go into action, she heard sharp cry of painbehind her.
April spun around and saw the second black-clad man falling tohis knees. Her little sister was buzzing around him like a hornet, swinging hercandy-laden tote bag by its handles, smashing it at him again and again.
April realized that Jilly must have landed her first blow in asensitive place that had incapacitated the man—his groin, most likely. Aprilbegan to move toward them to join the fray. But she felt as though she weremoving in slow motion while her little sister seemed to be striking withsupernatural speed. Candy was tumbling out of the tote bag, but there was stillenough weight to it so that Jilly could smash the disabled man in the mask andsend him sprawling backward.
Jilly didn’t let up even then. She kept kicking and pounding ashe curled up in a writhing, pathetic fetal position. It was a weird and almostcomical sight—a miniature zombie beating the hell out of a big,powerful-looking, black-clad man.
“Get off me!” the man was screaming desperately. “Get off me!”
April quickly realized that Jilly didn’t need her help after all.She spun around to face the first black-clad man, only to be surprised that he’dtaken off his mask and was looking dumbfounded. And she knew him.
“Eno?” she yelled. “Eno Bishop?”
He was a big, stupid bully who was always making trouble at herhigh school. And now April recognized the other guy’s voice. Jilly was beatingup Fritz Ollinger, Eno’s best buddy.
Furious with both of the bullies, April took a menacing steptoward Eno.
Looking past April, he backed away. The expression on his facewas one of sheer terror.
April turned and saw that Jilly had finished beating up Fritz,who was groaning and twisting on the sidewalk. Jilly was now charging towardEno.
“Keep that crazy kid off me!” Eno yelled. “I mean it, don’t lether near me! She’s like some kind of wild animal. She’s out of her mind!”
April knew they weren’t in any danger now. She put out her handand blocked her sister’s way.
Jilly flayed her arms and yelled, “Let me go! Let me at him!”
“That’s enough,” April told her. “Enough! We’re OK now.”
Jilly stopped and stood beside her, still looking fierce.
Then April turned back toward the unmasked bully.
“What the hell did the two of you think you were doing?” shesnapped.
“Fritz and me were just playing a joke,” Eno said. “We justthought it would be fun to scare somebody.”
“Some joke,” April said.
Making a wide berth around the girls, Eno went to his friend andhelped him to his feet. Together they lurched away as fast as they could.
Meanwhile, Jilly had taken off her mask and was picking up piecesof the scattered candy.
She yelled after the guys, “Come back here and help me pick thisup!”
“Leave them alone,” April said. “They’ve learned their lesson. I’llhelp you.”
As April joined Jilly in putting candy back into her bag, sheasked, “Where did you learn to fight like that, anyway?”
Jilly scoffed.
“You’re kidding, right?” she said. “Where I grew up, I had to bea tough kid just to survive.”
April suddenly understood. She’d heard about Jilly’s roughArizona childhood from Mom and from Jilly herself. She remembered Momdescribing how she’d first found Jilly in a truck cab trying to sell her ownbody in order to get away from her brutal father. Before that, Jilly had spentthe whole night hiding in a drainpipe.
It’s no wonder she can fight, April realized.
Jilly stopped putting candy into the bag before it was even aquarter full again.
“Even then, I almost didn’t survive,” she admitted with a sigh.
April could see that Jilly
