River’s Run

Chapter 1-3

Everything worked out well. She made the flight and for once she didn’t have to produce documentation about her duffel bag. She had gone ahead and checked all her baggage so she wouldn’t have to deal with it in the cabin of the plane for the long flight. After she plugged in her iPhone and placed her sunglasses firmly on her head, she was left blissfully alone for almost seven hours.

Picking up her two bags at the airport, she placed them in the trunk of the rented black SUV and began the three-hour drive up into the mountains. She wouldn’t get there until after midnight. It was a warm evening, but she couldn’t resist driving with the windows down. She loved the freedom of the wind blowing through the window.

She stopped for gas and a quick bite to eat an hour out as she didn’t want Jo or Star to feel like they needed to cook for her so late. She couldn’t suppress the thrill of seeing them.

She did miss them so much. No one could separate the three of them during their teenage years. River was two years younger than Star, who was a year younger than Jo. She had always been the one everyone protected the most.

There was a full moon, and the gravel road was lit up as River pulled up toward the cabin. The road for the past ten miles had been winding around and around the mountain. Star told her to park in the garage, which was located below the cabin. She would have to tote her stuff up a narrow path to the cabin.

River found the garage with no problems and pulled in next to Jo’s SUV with Florida tags. River grinned when she read the bumper sticker saying “Flyers Do It Better.” Grabbing her black duffel bag in one arm and her smaller carrier in her other, she quietly pushed the button to close the trunk. She bent down and pulled one of her smaller knives out of the bag to slide in her boot.

She didn’t know what types of animals lived in the mountains, but if she was walking through the woods at night, she wanted at least one knife with her for protection. Moving out under the bright moon, she was glad she had worn her black jeans and put on her black sweater to ward off the cool mountain air. She would have glowed in any of her other jackets with their rhinestones.

Walking along the moonlit path up to the cabin, River was enjoying the peace and quiet until a scream ripped through the air, followed by a second one. River froze for a moment before she dropped her bags and took off at a run toward the cabin. She skidded to a halt behind a tree when she heard what appeared to be a growl. Reaching down to her boot, she pulled a knife from the sleeve hidden inside it.

Moving up toward the front porch, she jerked back when the door suddenly opened, and a huge figure moved out onto it. She crouched down so she wouldn’t be seen. Peeking around the corner, her breath caught in her throat when she realized more than one huge creature was coming out of the cabin. She counted three of them; two of them appeared to be carrying something wrapped in blankets.

River shook with fear as she watched the huge creature turn at the bottom of the stairs. Its face, if you could call it that, was elongated and had what looked like scaly green skin. It turned and hissed at the other two. As they moved down the steps, River almost fainted when she saw Star’s arm hanging limply down its back. The creatures started moving down another path on the far side of the cabin.

River slid the knife back in her boot and took off toward the path she had just come from. If she was going to try to save them, she needed more than the one knife in her boot. Sliding on the leaves, she grabbed her black duffel bag and took off running after the creatures. She didn’t have any idea what she would do when she caught up with them.

River rounded the cabin cautiously before moving down the path on the other side of the cabin. She could hear them moving up ahead of her. She moved silently, keeping as close as she could to the trees so the shadows would help hide her. They moved at a lumbering pace, their long legs taking steps twice the length of hers.

She froze suddenly when one of them stopped and turned around. Keeping her head down so her face wouldn’t be as visible, she held her breath. After what seemed like hours, the creature hissed at the one leading them and turned to move down the path again.

River followed them for almost two miles before they came to a clearing. She stood frozen behind a tree as she watched them move into what appeared to be some type of spaceship. It was almost as long as a football field. The two creatures carrying her friends moved up a platform that was opened in the back. River could see lights shining dimly in the interior. The one leading hissed at the other two as they moved up the ramp, but it remained outside the spaceship. A few minutes later, the two creatures returned. A loud noise off to the left side of the ship suddenly caught their attention. All three hissed and took off running toward the woods.

River shook with fear as she moved toward the spaceship, keeping an eye on the woods where the creatures had disappeared. She didn’t know if there were any more in the spaceship or not, but she knew she needed to get to her friends and get them out. Pulling her duffel bag straps over her shoulders, she slowly climbed up the ramp, casting quick glances all around her.

Moving up the ramp, she saw a narrow corridor leading to a larger opening. Moving swiftly through the corridor she glanced around the interior of the spaceship. In front of her was another corridor that looked like it led to the front of the spaceship. On each side of her, there were a series of seats with what appeared to be storage compartments above and below them.

Chained to two of the seats were Jo and Star; both of them were unconscious. River moved toward them with a silent cry. She put her hands on their cheeks and gave a sigh of relief when she felt their warm breath against her palms.

“Jo, Star, wake up. Please, wake up,” River called out softly.

She looked at their wrists and noticed they were both chained to a metal bar between the seats. She gripped their wrists to look for where the key went in to see if she could pick it. All three of them were good at picking locks. Marcus the Magnificent, the most famous magician in the world, had shown all three girls how to pick locks before they had learned how to ride a bike. She twisted the cuff on Jo’s wrist around and around but didn’t see where a key would fit into it. Jo gave a slight groan as River moved the cuff.

“Jo, wake up. It’s me, River. Please wake up,” River softly said again.

“River?” Jo whispered. Jo’s eyes suddenly flew open in horror. “River, you have to run. Run, River. Don’t let them get you.” Her eyes flew back and forth as she struggled to free herself.

“I can’t leave you and Star. We have to get out of here,” River whispered back.

“There isn’t time,” Jo said as her eyes filled with tears. She looked at Star, who was still unconscious. “Oh, Star.”

“Come on. You have to help me figure out how to get these off you before they come back,” River whispered frantically. She pulled the knife from her boot and tried to pry at the metal.

“Where are we?” Jo asked weakly.

“It looks like some kind of spaceship,” River replied softly. “The creatures that had you and Star carried you here. I don’t know what they are. What happened?” River asked.

She was trying to keep Jo occupied while she worked on the cuff. There had to be some way to get it off them. If she had more time, she knew she could figure it out. There was always a way.

“I don’t know. We were waiting up for you. I heard a noise and thought you might need some help, but when I opened the door to the cabin, it was to those creatures. I screamed and tried to close the door, but it just ripped it right off the hinges. Star ran for the bedroom, but one of them caught her and she fainted. I don’t remember much after that. They put something across my mouth and everything went dark,” Jo whispered hoarsely. She began shivering uncontrollably.

“They’re coming back! I can hear them. Run, River. Run!” Jo began crying softly now.

“Never. I won’t leave you,” River said, sliding her knife back into her boot.

Looking around, she dropped down to pull open one of the compartments under the seats. It was filled with boxes of some type. Moving down the row, she hurriedly opened and closed them until she found one in the corner that was empty. Removing her duffel bag, she slid down feet first into the compartment, pulling her duffel bag in front of her, then reached over and closed the compartment.

Jo stared at River before nodding. River would not abandon them, ever. Closing her eyes, Jo let the darkness of unconsciousness take her away from the fearful creatures boarding the spaceship.