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possible, she pushed the accelerator down after jerking the gearshift back. The van shot forward. The garage door crumpled under the impact.
         A surge of panic swept through Phoebe as she corrected herself and put the gearshift into reverse. “Come on, come on!” she exclaimed. She eased the accelerator down with more caution. The van reversed down the driveway; not as fast as it had to implode the garage.
         Carmen’s parents threw themselves at the moving vehicle, but they seemed slower and weaker in the sunlight than they had in the halls of the darkened house. The most they did as Phoebe steered past them was snarl and reach out for the passing van.
         They returned to the street, where at least the only prominent danger was Phoebe’s inexperience. Her hands shook on the wheel as she fought to remember where she’d planned to go next and what they could possibly do.
         For the first time since they locked themselves in the closet for safety, Carmen spoke. “Where’s my mommy?” she asked in a whisper.
         Phoebe parked the car against a curb and cried.
    Chapter Six – The Convenience Store – Leland
         Leland had run until his legs burned and his chest felt as though an alien being was about to burst out of it. He may have been a sports fanatic, he may have been deeply involved with football, but he was convinced he had never run farther or faster in his life. He didn’t know exactly what time it was but the sun had set. That indicated it was at least 9p.m. Being out in the dark didn’t sound appealing to him, so he sought temporary shelter while he walked.
         The country road had been abandoned the whole time he’d been running. He didn’t like to think about why that was. He did know he wanted to get out of the open. Possibly, he wanted to find a car he could use. He hadn’t thought to take the vehicles of any of his family members. Getting their keys would have required him to go downstairs into what had surely been Hell. He shivered as he felt himself being dragged back by the bloodied fingertips of memories from the family party. No, he couldn’t have brought himself to get any of the keys.
         He found a convenience store located on an otherwise unoccupied corner. The County Line Store was a stout and proud collection of bricks, wood, and natural stone. It advertised beer, liquor, lotto, and the fact that it accepted EBT. Leland had never understood the point of advertising the acceptance of EBT at a liquor store, but to each his own in his mind.
         There were no cars packed in the parking lot of the convenience store. Even with the deserted lot, the door was chocked open to let the sweet summer air inside. Leland poked his head inside and looked around for a moment before he called out.
         “Hey, anyone in here?” he asked. He heard no movement and saw no evidence of anyone being in residence.
         Moving cautiously, he stepped inside. He considered taking away the cinder block to let the door swing closed, but he wanted to make sure he would be alone in the store before he tried to make it appear as though the place was truly deserted.
         Leland moved behind the counter first. The register was closed and appeared to be untouched. If there had been a robbery, nothing had been taken or moved out of place. A screwdriver sat beside the register, inconspicuous enough to appear to have been forgotten after maintenance. Leland was sure it had been left there as a defensive weapon that wouldn’t immediately draw attention to itself. He took it and got the feel of the weight in his palm. It reassured him.
         A can of wasp killer had been forgotten on the counter. It looked as though a customer may have been in the middle of a transaction when the store was cleared out. Leland took the wasp killer and slid it into his pocket. He’d sprayed for wasps for his Aunt Rose last summer. He knew how far the stream on the cans