“It’s about to go,” I tell him.
“I’m ready,” he says.
There is a snap, and Xavier tumbles down. He lands with a sickening thud, and I scream for Lilith to lower me. The ride jerks to life again, and I unravel my leg from the chain. The ride is still spinning as it lowers, and I keep my eyes trained on him as best I can. When I am almost to the ground, and the swing is rotated away from Xavier, another gunshot splits the air.
I jump off the swing and tear back towards Xavier. A small smear of blood is under his head, but when I reach him, he doesn’t seem to be shot. His eyes are open, and he looks up at me, seemingly okay.
“That didn’t feel good,” he says, and I exhale. I realize that I hadn’t breathed out since the shot rang through the air. “The best way to fall from that distance is on your side. People try to land on their backs and break their spine. Or their front and shatter their face. But on your side…”
“Lilith?” I call out, looking up from the still mumbling Xavier. I scan the area where she had been standing by the controls, but she is gone. “Lilith?” I stand, looking all around me.
“Ninety-four percent chance of a broken hip,” Xavier continues.
“Xavier, I’ll be right back,” I say. He nods but continues his statistics. If that distracts him from the pain he’s got to be in; I’ll take it.
“Lilith?” I say as I reach the control box. No one is there. Lilith seems to have disappeared.
And so has the Dragon.
I run for as far as the adrenaline will take me. Pain and exhaustion soon slow me down, and I make my way back to the swings to check on Xavier.
He's still lying on the cement, rattling off statistics and soothing himself with reassurances about how young he is and the rate of bone healing. I didn't find Lilith or Dragon. I'm about to turn around and try to force my way through the park again when I hear sirens. They scream through the trees and echo around me. Moments later, I see the lights flashing.
There's no reason to scream out. They know where to come. Lilith must have called them. She didn't want to be around when they got here, but she wanted to make sure Xavier and I got the help we need. It only takes a few more seconds before I see the ambulance. Behind it are several police cars and a second ambulance.
The EMTs stream out of the first ambulance as soon as it stops and race toward me. I shake my head, holding up my hands.
“Not me,” I tell him. “Don't check me first. Check on Xavier. He’s over there under the ride.”
They take their equipment and run over to him. It only takes a moment for them to call out for the gurney. I step back and watch them carefully slide him onto a transfer mat and bring him up onto the wheeled table.
As they go by, I make sure Xavier can see me.
“Are you going to be okay?” I ask.
“I'll be fine,” he says. “I can do this.”
“Touch him as little as possible,” I tell the EMTs. “Tell him before you do anything. Turn the lights off.”
“You're not my mother,” Xavier jokes. I smile at him, and he returns it. “Thank you.”
“I'll come to see you as soon as I can,” I say. “I'll have them call Dean.”
He doesn't have much of a reaction. The emergency responders have already injected him with a sedative so his body can relax. His eyes flutter closed, and I feel a squeeze of worry in my chest. I hate that he's going alone. And he's going to wake up in a bright, unfamiliar room and might not remember everything that happened. I can only hope Dean will be there.
Once Xavier is loaded into the ambulance and it has driven away, the team from the second bus comes toward me.
“Do you want to climb in by yourself?” one of them asks.
“No,” I say. They start to move the gurney out, and I shake my head. “No, that's not necessary either. What I mean is I'm not going to the hospital.”
“Ma'am, you really should be checked out. You look as if you've been through something pretty rough yourself,” he says.
“You can check me over, but I'm not going to the hospital. I don't have time right now.”
“What do you mean you don't have time right now?” he asks.
“Look me over,” I say. “Then let me go.”
It seems to take forever for them to check over each of my injuries and clean up the ones they think are the most egregious. I'm running purely on adrenaline and determination. I can't feel the deep cuts or the stitches that have been torn away from my arm. I will. There's going to come a time, probably soon, when it all hits me.
I can only hope I've done what I need to get done first.
When they've relented, I thank the EMTs and run for my car. If I get there fast enough, I might be able to get away before the police realize they should be debriefing me on what happened. I'm lucky enough that they're so focused on trying to find Dragon that I can drive away.
My destination isn't very far. I get to Lilith's house and park. The door to her house is standing open, and I walk up to it.
“Lilith?” I call. “Are you home?”
There's no response. I walk around to the back of the house. I don't see anything. A tug in my chest sets my feet running toward the cornfield. I break through the barrier of trees and see the dark outline of someone sitting in the finished grid. All the bones have been removed, so the officers are no longer on duty. She's alone.
“Lilith?” I
