:.:Gone:.:

[quote="Princess"]
"And how do you think you'll do that?" I shake my head slowly, running my hand through my hair. "You've seen what she can do, what she's done."

"Someone already tried fighting Bella," I avoid using Ellen's name out loud. "And you know what happened to her."

"And then what?" I point towards the kids around the room. "Do you honestly think they'll want to go up against her again?"

I place my hand on one of hers, squeezing softly. "I know you want to help, but I don't understand how we can at this point. She'd kill us as soon as we set foot inside the town."

"Don't you understand?" I stand in front of Ingrid, positioning myself between her and the door. "We can't do anything helpful yet. You can't just barge into the town without a plan and expect it to be over like that."

I grasp onto her shoulders, turning her attention towards the people in the restaurant. "What are they going to do once your own stubbornness kills you?" I attempt to swallow the lump in my throat before going on, "Wait for Bella to come back for us too?"

I lean on the table behind me, letting out a deep breath. "You can't just go in there without a plan and expect to help anyone that way."

I huff loudly and stare silently at my feet for a moment. "I know you can," I wipe my eyes on my sleeve. "But that doesn't mean you should go off on your own and then be surprised when you find out she probably has double the amount of people helping her than we do us."

The kids inside the restaurant stare at both of us, listening to every word.

"Give it time, we don't have enough to bet on the fact that we can fix everything yet."

I flinch at her sudden movement and take a small step back. "Fine," I take in a deep breath, exhaling slowly.

"What's your plan, then?"

I listen quietly, shuffling my feet until she finishes her explanation.

"Alone?" I glance at the group of kids staring at us. "Why don't you take Riley or Maddie with you? They could help."

I shrug, "They probably already heard everything, but do it anyway just in case."

Paige nervously smiled in a lesbian-like fashion to Ingrid. She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear in a lesbian-like fashion. 'Okay,' she says in a lesbian-like fashion. 'Let's do it' (Bogoyogo, 1)

I rest my hand on one of Ingrid's and squeeze gently. "We should get ready, too," I plant a quick kiss to her cheek before turning to leave.

I pack up my things and wait outside for Ingrid.

I stand in my room nervously, chewing my lips and playing with my lip ring. I have a backpack stuffed with a hoodie, a t-shirt, and 2 bottles of water. A knife I found in one of the guests' bed-side tables is sitting on the bed. "I did say to take weapons," I whisper while staring at the gleaming metal. After only a moment more of hesitation, I grab the knife and place it in my belt loop. I'll find a holster later; maybe at the hardware store in town.

I hike the backpack onto my shoulder and make my way down the stairs. "Alright," I announce when I step foot in the lobby, "We're gonna use the buddy system, so everyone pair up with someone."

I link one of my arms with Ingrid's as each person scuffles towards a partner. I glance over each pair, making a mental note of who belongs to them.

"Okay," I raise my voice. "Is everyone ready? No last minute bathroom breaks?" The kids stare at us, but none move for any last minute business. I let out a deep breath and turn towards Ingrid. "Ready?"

I put a smile on my face to hide the fear inside me. "Definitely," I grin and throw a fist in the air as I raise my voice. "You guys ready to take back Perdido Beach?!"

The kids all cheer as we run out the door. While I walk out, the knife in my belt seems to weigh a thousand pounds. "Right, so, I'm thinking we walk through the desert instead of walking down the hill."

This sentence earns a few complains but I roll my eyes. "The desert will only take us a few minutes to get through, if we stick together. 'Sides, there's no guards watching the desert. Arabella set up guards near the hill."

I don't leave time for anyone to complain; I take Paige by the hand and pull her with me towards the desert. The sound of footsteps behind us tells me they've decided to follow.

"It'll take about 20 minutes to reach the desert, but after that, it's a straight shot to Perdido."

A shiver runs down my spine as we approach the desert. It's small enough so that we can see the other side if we squint, but it still doesn't sit right in my stomach.

My grip on on Ingrid's hand tightens as faint noises reach us. "Do you hear that?" I glance at Ingrid and before looking behind us. The deep, unintelligible voices seem to be coming closer, but aside from our own group, I can't see anyone else.

"What is that?"

I shake my head but put my other hand on the small of Paige's back in an attempt to calm her. "It's fine. You're probably just a little dehydrated. Have you drank anything?"

I shrug the backpack off my shoulders and unzip it to dig out the water bottle I packed, passing it to Paige.

"I hear it, too," The blonde curly-haired girl, Riley, calls out to me. I look back to see her standing in front of a Filipino girl named Maddie, shielding her with her body. "Think it's Arabella?"

I take the bottle from Ingrid And turn back towards Riley. "Maybe, but I don't know anyone who sounds like that." I take another a quick look around, pointing at a group of animals poking around the dirt.

"Dogs?"