Family
I sat in the rocker for long hours. And I watched Elsie care for her babies. She washed them with her tongue. She lay on her side and fed them. She nudged them over on their backs to clean them...
Three times a day, I put five of the puppies in the basket. Then I let the little runt feed by herself. Once a day I held her in my arms and fed her a bottle. It was special milk from the vet. The little runt got stronger every day.
I tried one more time to get to sleep, but now my eyelids didn't want to behave. Did you ever notice how your eyelids futter back and forth really fast when you're trying to be still so you can sleep? The more you want them to stop moving, the faster they jump around. Same with your brain. The more you want it to slow down, the faster ideas and pictures come storming through. Like right now, ripped notes and slimy worms and broken steps were playing hide-and-seek in my head.
My legs felt heavy. Now I understood why Lucy hated running. But I couldn't quit. I had to get to the finish line, and running would get me there faster.
Where were Stephanie and Emma? Probably at the finish. I pulled the corner of my shirt up to mop my face, and when I was done, I realized I was alone. Where was everyone else? Was I lost? Was I last?
At first, relief flooded her. Nobody in sight—just the bare gray rock gleaming in the hot sun. Then she spotted the blue canoe floating in the reeds. Before Melissa could turn around, someone waded out of the shade cast by the low boughs of a tree overhanging the water.
It was a girl in a red bathing suit, standing waist deep. She had long blond hair that hung down her back and a thin pointed face. She didn't look at all surprised to see Melissa. In fact, Melissa thought afterwards, it was as if she had expected her.
Suddenly the air exploded. A gunshot. And it came from behind them. Ben! Sheila stumbled, half-turned.
"Keep going!" Wendell said.
The air filled with another sound. Barking. At the same moment a light flashed. On and off. Again. On and off. The signal!
