Sapphire Read Free

swung from a branch, caught the windowsill
with her shoe, and crawled through her upper story window.
    The house was silent except for her feet on the
creaking floorboards. The whole house creaked and groaned so much
it seemed miraculous that the structure hadn’t toppled over by now.
She took a few steps, then slumped down on her bed. She’d make her
plans in a few minutes. For now, she just needed to sit. Rainbows
from her CD-mobile danced around her room as she stared at her
hands. Had anyone else noticed? They had all seen her throw Krystal
into the wall, but had they seen the blue sparks of electricity
running down her arms? Had she actually seen that? Her hands
were starting to tremble and she clenched them into fists.
    Something glinted on her dresser. For one moment she
forgot about the strange incident at school while she stared at the
glinting object. The bed springs creaked as she got up to examine
it. The edges of her vision swam with darkness, creating a
spot-light on the gleaming statue. She blinked rapidly and the
light-headedness retreated. It was only the length of her hand, but
the statue was incredibly heavy as she picked it up. She had never
seen it before and, most of all, it was something she had disliked
since she was teased about her keychain in fourth grade.
    “A unicorn …what the?”
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

     
    Shawna finally decided to leap out her bedroom
window, climb down the tree, and escape from whatever future had
been planned for her. She had briefly considered asking John and
Mary what was going on, but communication was never a strong point
of theirs, not to mention their conversation had truly frightened
her.
    A wave of nausea hit her, almost bringing tears, but
she took a deep breath and held it back. If she let such thoughts
consume her she’d never climb out that window. Sinking sunlight
brought her back to the present. She had to leave, and soon, before
they returned. Her backpack had been undisturbed, so she assumed
they hadn’t noticed it. It now bulged with everything she’d need.
Her mind ran through the checklist one more time: Money, check . Mary’s jewelry to sell, check . Flashlight,
sleeping bag, batteries, food, she checked off a few more things
necessary to traveling on her own.
    Like a bum.
    She shook the overwhelming thought of having nowhere
to go, except hostels or bridges, until she figured things out. She
hoisted the pack onto her shoulder, determined to face her
decision. Even cold benches were better than being carted off by
strangers for some unknown reason. It was her life and she wouldn’t
let someone else, insane or otherwise, decide it for her.
    The unicorn reflected the sunset off its horn as she
put it on the windowsill. It was delicately cast in iron with a
tiny silver horn and silver hooves. The pose it was caught in, like
it was galloping to freedom, made it look almost alive. She thought
at first maybe John or Mary had put it there, but she wasn’t sure
why. She wasn’t into unicorns, much less horses, at all, ever.
Skulls, weapons, and kung-fu movies were more her style, in spite
of what her not-parents thought.
    They would be home soon.
    Go!
    She put her hands on the window frame and
hesitated.
    The diamond cross.
    How could she have forgotten about that. It was
probably worth a few thousand. Mary would kill her for that one,
but it wouldn’t be its monetary worth that would drive her into
hysterics.
    She’ll probably damn me to a fiery abyss. Fine. I’ll
see her there.
    She turned to rush downstairs, but the glint of
light caught her eye once more. Silver. The unicorn’s horn was
silver. Something else she could sell. With the statue in hand, she
went downstairs to John and Mary’s room.
    “I should have done this a long time ago,” she
muttered, dropping the pack as she walked into their bedroom.
    There was religious and spiritual