Runaways

"So," Dani said. "That's our reasons for running away. Now, how about you?" "Me?" For just a split second Pixie looked like she was trying to think what to say, or maybe decide whether she ought to say it. But then her eyes did that quick flash of fire thing, and biting her lip, she nodded slowly. "Yesss," she said, drawing it out to a sizzle. "See, it's very important that I run away soon before something terrible happens. Something unbelievably terrible." She turned to Stormy. "I think Stormy can guess why I have to run away. Can't you, Stormy? Can't you guess why I have to run away as soon as I possibly can?" Stormy didn't answer. Instead he only did the embarrassed squirmy thing that usually meant he'd been up to no good. Dani was sure she recognized Stormy's guilty expression, but she couldn't imagine what he was guilty of that had anything to do with why Pixie had to run away. But then he said, "I didn't ask her about it. She just told me." Dani began to get the picture. She stared at Pixie, "What did you tell Stormy?" "Well," Pixie said. "You know that rumor about the machine my parents took up to the ranch?" "What machine?" "You know. The one on the big truck?" "Yeah?" Dani had a horrible feeling that she knew what Pixie was driving at and where the conversation was headed, but she didn't intend to help it get there. She knew Pixie wanted her to ask what the machine was really for, but she wasn't going to do it. If Pixie wanted to say that her parents had a machine for making monsters out of dead people she was going to have to do it on her own, without any help from Dani. No help from Danielle O'Donnell, who didn't believe in any crazy stuff like that. Particularly crazy stuff about Frankenstein monsters. So "Yeah?" was all she had to say. Pixie nodded, and repeated, "Yeah." The nod was slow and solemn but the blue-fire flashes were constant now. "Why do you suppose they wanted to live way out there anyway, where no one could see what they're up to? Did you ever think about that?" From the Hardcover edition.Snyder, Zilpha Keatley is the author of 'Runaways' with ISBN 9780440415121 and ISBN 0440415128.