Midnight Run

Tough Love

The car came to a stop and Kit opened her eyes, taking in her surroundings warily. Skye smiled over at her as she turned off the car.

“We're going to need a new ride.” She stated matter-of-factly. Kit yawned and stretched.

“How long have I been out?” She croaked. Skye was scoping out the parking lot as she answered.

“Three hours.” She responded. She looked over at Kit again. “You must have needed the sleep.” Skye very rarely slept and when she did it was in short 10–15-minute intervals. Kit stared at her mom. She had long, unruly, curly jet-black hair, a round face, beautiful full lips and big brown eyes that could see into a person’s soul. Kit was a spitting image of her mother, all 5 foot and 3 inches of her; but she had her father’s optimistic disposition. “You hungry?” She asked. Kit nodded. She wanted to eat real food, she didn't know how long it had been since she had a real, home-cooked meal instead of junk food and snacks, but Kit wasn't a little girl anymore; at the experienced age of 15, she knew that she needed to simply go along with whatever her mom wanted because they both were too stubborn and in the end, Skye always won their arguments. “I’m going to go take that green firebird.” She proclaimed, nodding towards the car sitting in the back corner of the large parking lot. “Gather up everything and wait outside the car,” She finished as she opened the driver's side door and stepped out. “I’ll pull up to get you.” Kit let out a deep sigh but nodded her head in understanding. Skye shut the door and quickly made her way over to the firebird while Kit gathered up all of their belongings. She opened her door, slung her bag over her shoulder, grabbed her mom’s duffel bag and waited outside the car for her mom to pull up in the stolen car. Kit was tired of the running, the stealing, the fear, the lack of cleanliness and comfortability. She wanted to be able to sleep in a real bed, in a nice room not some cheap motel. She wanted to eat a good meal and feel safe for the first time in ten years. She shifted from one foot to the other as her mom pulled up in their new ride; she tossed the duffel bag into the back seat, took the bag off her back and slid into the passenger seat. They were off again, headed God knows where.

Skye and Kit had been moving through the country of Brazil for the past six months and up until three days ago when those two vampires had found them, they had been surviving undetected. Now that people back home knew where they were, it was only a matter of time before Skye would decide to travel to another country. Kit pumped the gas at a rundown gas station outside Rio Branco while Skye stocked up on food, drinks and medical supplies. Kit looked up at Skye as she came strolling out of the convenient store with sacks full of supplies, speaking in perfect Portuguese to a man she had met inside. Kit was in awe. She loved education, culture and expanding her knowledge but as someone who has grown up on the run, her resources were extremely limited. Skye could speak 15 languages and had an extensive education that Kit admired. Kit finished pumping the gas and hopped into the car as her mom plopped into the driver’s seat. She rummaged through one of the sacks with a grin on her face.

Kit played with the pendant around her neck as she sat, waiting. The pendant was a gift from her father that he bestowed on her the day before Kit’s mom and her had to flee; he had made Kit promise never to take it off as it would protect her. Kit stared off into the distance, her father’s face fading in her mind. Whenever she had a moment of peace, she would try to picture his face, to remember him, but as the years went on and Kit continuously had to dodge death, her dad’s face became harder to remember. Kit didn’t have any pictures or keepsakes, as her mom had to pack up quickly as soon as she knew something was wrong.

“They had twinkies!” Skye exclaimed, as she started the engine. Kit rummaged through the bag, found a package of twinkies, opened it, and passed one over to her mom. They toasted with their twinkies before Kit took a healthy sized bite. Kit sighed heavily as she went back to staring out the window off in the distance. “What’s wrong, Kitten?” Skye asked with knowing eyes. Kit looked out the window and her reflection stared back at her. Brown skin, long curly black hair, and big, sad, brown eyes reflected in the glass. Kit took a deep breath before looking back at her mom. Kit was an exact replica of her.

“How long will we have to keep running, mom?” She questioned. She was so tired of constantly being on the move, of living off of fast food and junk, of having to sleep in crappy motels and cars. “I can't do this anymore.” She finished quietly. Skye cast her eyes down in shame and sadness. She knew how difficult life the past ten years for her had been, so she knew it had to have been even harder for Kit. When Kit was younger, Skye could treat the situation like “an adventure” as she saw the excitement in Kit’s eyes at choosing their next destination; but that excitement had disappeared a while back. Skye was tired of running too, and the loss of her mate made it nearly impossible to move forwards sometimes, but she had to ensure Kit’s safety by any means necessary. The vampires, werewolves, witches and dragons had been closing the distance between themselves and Kit, and Skye knew they were running out of options as the last four werewolves at the previous gas station came extremely close to getting Kit. Skye hated having to kill her own kind, but when she burned down the gas station and any evidence that they had been there, apart from the four dead werewolves, she knew she had to start making decisions that she may not entirely like.

“I know I haven't been the best mom, Kitten.” Skye mumbled, using the nickname Kit’s dad gave her when she was little. “I’ve forced you to grow up way before you should have had to, and I can never express how truly sorry I am for that.” She spoke softly as she glanced out her window.

“Why can't we go stay with Grandpa Melik?” Kit asked hopefully. Skye’s whole demeanor changed as her head snapped back towards Kit.

“No.” She barked. Kit sighed heavily; this was not the first time they had gotten into an argument over seeking refuge in the Tundra Pack. Skye was so headstrong; Kit couldn’t really be mad about that because she was the exact same way. Once either of them had their mind set on something, they were very hesitant to change for any reason. Skye’s face softened. “Kitten, there are things you just don’t understand.” She explained as she continued looking down at her lap.

“So, tell me, mom.” Kit insisted with pleading eyes. “Don't you think I have a right to know?” She pleaded. Skye looked to be thinking it over, so Kit plowed on. “I'm not a kid anymore, I’m going to be turning sixteen within the next few months, I’ll be going through my first shift. Growing up is inevitable.” She asserted. Skye smiled over at Kit; pride evident on her face.

“Your dad would be proud of you, you know.” She stated with a smile. Kit smiled back and automatically reached for her pendant, twirling it between her fingers. It was a comfort for her. Skye tucked a stray hair behind Kit’s ear before taking a deep breath as if to steady her nerves. “Okay.” Kit almost squealed in excitement as she turned in her seat to face her mom who smiled at Kit’s reaction and chuckled a little. “We’ll start heading to the town, but if I sense any danger from the pack or any of the other factions, we leave immediately, no arguing.” She affirmed, looking at Kit with a mixture of fear and seriousness upon her face. Kit nodded her head eagerly, trying to contain her excitement. Skye laughed at her and swept the unruly curls from Kit’s face before finishing her twinkie. She looked over at Kit and told her to eat something before pulling the old firebird out of the parking lot, heading in the opposite direction of where they were originally going.

Skye was worried that they would run into more of the supernatural beings that had been chasing them by going back the way they had come, but she also knew that this was something that she had to do for Kit. They couldn’t outrun the factions forever. As a werewolf, Skye didn’t get as tired as quickly as humans did, but she knew that she was going to have to stop somewhere and allow her body to rest.