If I had known it before

Chapter 3

November 11, 2007. The night we escaped.

It was almost winter, and it was raining outside. I remember it like it was yesterday.

Jacob and I had been watching them closely since the day we arrived, planning every detail of our escape. Timing was everything. We had tried so many times to reach a phone, but it always ended badly. This time, we couldn’t afford to fail.

Our foster parents, Angelina and Robert, went to their weekend house in Asheville every Friday at 8:00 PM. They left us in the care of their two biological sons, Henry (who was 17) and Steve (who was 15).

Steve was my worst nightmare. I was the only girl in the house, and he had tried to abuse me more times than I could count. If Jacob hadn’t been there to protect me, I don’t think I would have survived. Jacob was my hero. He took every hit for me, even when I begged him not to. I will always be grateful to him.

We noticed that Steve and Henry didn’t get along. Steve was their parents’ favorite, so he could do whatever he wanted—except when Henry was home alone with us. Henry was older, so he was technically in charge, and at first, he took that role seriously. But once he got a girlfriend, he started sneaking out every Friday at 8:30 PM, right after their parents left. He didn’t want them to find out.

That left only Steve.

He was an easy target. He liked to drink when his parents weren’t home, so we gave him exactly what he wanted—alcohol. Not long after, he passed out like a baby. We locked his bedroom door from the outside. Even if he woke up, he wouldn’t be able to get out right away.

Then, we ran.

Everything went according to plan.

The bus station was nearby, and we had stolen small amounts of money every day so no one would notice. We had just enough for bus tickets and a temporary place to stay until we figured out our next move.

We took a bus to Pigeon Forge. The driver looked at us strangely, but he didn’t say anything. When we got off, we searched for a place to stay for the night before figuring out how to get to Nashville.

We found a small motel near a café and a train station. They let us in and gave us a room. It was late, and we were exhausted. As soon as we lay down, we fell asleep.

Not long after, we heard sirens.

From the window, we saw the flashing lights of police cars.

We tried to run, but we were too tired. There was no way out.

They took us back to that horrible house.

We tried to explain, but they didn’t listen.

Because in their eyes, we were just kids