Acquiring Trouble

the curtain just enough to be able to see out. “Crap! They’re coming. Put this on.” Miles tossed her his tuxedo shirt as he grabbed his pants off the floor.
    “Who is?” Morgan asked in confusion. She pulled the large shirt over her head , buttoning th e top couple of buttons . The shirt was long enough to come slightly above her knees .
    “David’s friends. Hurry!”
    Mi les yanked her from the bed as he pulled a handgun from one of the dresser drawers. “ Here. Do you know how to use this?” Morgan shook her head. Her parents had never a llowed guns in the house. “ I turned the safety off, so don’t aim it at anything unless you intend to pull the trigger.”
    Miles shoved the gun in her hand. She was surprised how heavy it felt. Bill trotted along her side as Miles pulled her down the stairs as fast as he could. “Where are we going?”
    “We aren’t going anywhere. You are. I’m going to get their attention. I want you to run as fast as you can out the b ack door and into the woods. Follow the moon and it’ll take you to my parent s’ house.”
    “I can’t leave you here!” Morgan worried. She wanted to stay with Miles to keep him safe ; she couldn’t imagine leaving him behind.
    “You can and you will. Please, Morgan. I’ll be able to do my job a lot better without worrying about you.” Miles opened the gun safe hidden in a large cabinet and pulled out a n M-16 and another handgun , which he shoved into his waistband at the small of his back. He turned back to her and Morgan felt the tears start to fall.
    “Please,” she begged.
    “Morgan, you need to do this for me, okay?” Morgan nodded slowly then. If it was better for him, then she’d do it. “I’m going to go upstairs. As soon as you hear the first shot, run with all you have.” Morgan looked down on her bare feet and grimaced. She only had four - inch heels —n ot too good for running.
    “I love you. I always have.” Morgan ran her hand over the stubble on his cheek.
    “I know. Get ready.” Miles bent down and gave her a searing kiss that lasted only a second. All too soon he was bounding up the stairs. She looked down at Bill who gave her a little whine and walked to the back door with her.
    “I guess it’s just you and me.” Bill thumped his tail and Morgan unlocked the door and waited.
     
    Morgan tried to stay calm in order to hear Miles’ s cue over her beating heart. She wondered if she’d know it when she heard it. She looked down at Bill who sat calmly by her feet. This was all her fault. All of it. It seemed like a good idea until she placed Miles square in the middle of danger.
    A shot rang out and Morgan said a quick prayer for his safety as she ripped open the door and took off at a dead run. She kept her eye s on the tree line as her feet padded over the well-manicured lawn. Bill stuck to her side as she blindly sprinted forward. She plowed into the hidden depths of the trees and bushes and felt the pain first on her feet as the soft grass turned to dead leaves and sticks . Then she was faced with the problem of constantly being hit on the face, arms, and body as she pushed through shrubs and darted around large evergreens .
    Bill growled but she didn’t have time to think what it meant as a body hit her. She gasped for breath as she was being flung into a leafless bush . Her hands landed first as she tried to block her fall, but with the man on top of her it made the impact worse . The gun she’d been carrying went flying out of her hand. When she hit the ground she felt the last of her air being stolen from her lungs as the man’s full weight came down on her.
    Bill barked madly as a hand came up to tangle itself in her hair. She tried to scream when the man pulled hard yanking her head up from the ground . “You’re dead, bitch,” the man snarled before pushing her face back into the cold ground .
    Morgan fought for breath until she felt the weight removed from her back. She breathed deeply, cough ing and sputter ing out the dirt in her mouth. She thought Miles had come until she felt her head being yanked back. She staggered to a standing position to lessen the pain as she looked around wildly.
    Bill was dancing madly around th em as the man held her against his body. Miles was nowhere to be found. He wasn’t going to save her. The sad realization hit her as she felt the man’s hands wrap around her throat. That left only one option —s he was just going to have to save