Run. Just Run.

Chapter 20

"Look at all the stars!" James sighs in amazement. "There's so many of them!"

Ashley stares up at them. "It's amazing." She sighs.

They stand there for a while, staring up in sheer amazement at the sight above them. It's beautiful. So many stars shining brightly. It seems like the sky is bigger here, and every inch of it covered with stars. Then, slowly, they realize that it's gotten completely dark.

"We should get back." James says, not wanting to take his eyes off the sight.

"Yeah, the Sanders might start worrying about us." Ashley agrees.

The thought of that finally causes James to pry his eyes away from looking at the sky.

"Okay, come on. Let's go." He takes Ashley's hand and walks over to the ladder.

James climbs down the ladder first, then Ashley follows him. They leave the barn, swinging shut the big wooden door behind them. Then they walk up the hill to the house. When they open the door, the Sanders are sitting in their living room, both reading books as thick as dictionaries.

"Oh there you are." Mr Sanders looks up from his book. "I was beginning to think we'd lost them, Ruth." He says with a chuckle as he looks at them.

"If you don't mind, we'll go up and get some sleep. We've had a big day." James says with a yawn.

"Oh, that's okay!" Mrs Sanders chimes in. "There's some extra blankets in the closet if you guys need them tonight!"

"Thanks! Goodnight!" Ashley says with a smile.

The two of them walk upstairs and sigh, almost simultaneously.

"I'm going straight to bed." Ashley says, exhausted. "Goodnight, Jay."

"Goodnight, Ash. Sleep tight." James says as he turns the lights off. He walks over to the bed opposite Ashley and lays down. His head hardly hits the pillow before he's asleep.

Ashley closes her eyes, but she can't fall asleep. She can't seem to get comfortable. She glances over at James, who looks like he's sound asleep. Ugh. She wishes she was asleep right now. She tosses and turns for a few more minutes, then she decides it's gotta be the jeans she was wearing. They were very uncomfortable to sleep in. She glances over at James again, to make sure he's asleep, then slips out of her jeans.

"Ahh. That's so much more comfy." She whispers under her breath.

She closes her eyes, but this time her mind starts wandering. She thinks about everything that's happened in the past 24 hours, and everyone, from James to her aunt to those two mystery men, and finally her mind rests on Mrs Browning. She was like a second mother to her, and Ashley can't get the sight of her laying on the floor out of her mind. Tears start forming. She remembers how James' mom used to treat her like her own, no different than James. She wanted that feeling again, and the thought of never feeling that again causes her to burst into tears.