Free Wrong Turn by Diane Fanning

trouble.’
    Charley simmered. She’d gotten pretty disgusted with adults over the last twenty-four hours. But these two were the worst. Wouldn’t even let her explain anything. She hoped nobody called her dad.
    She rode up in the elevator to the fifth floor with an officer by each side. She took turns staring at them but neither one would look her in the eye. They walked down the hall and stopped outside of an office marked ‘Sgt. Cafferty.’
    One of the officers went into that room, leaving her there with the other one. She followed the conversation inside. ‘Got another little criminal on the line, Cafferty. You might have to throw this one back, though; I think she’s too small to keep.’
    ‘Deadly kids come in small packages,’ she heard the other man, who Charley assumed must be Sergeant Cafferty, respond.
    ‘She claims Lieutenant Pierce is her best friend.’
    ‘Pierce? Oh, give me a break. How old is this kid?’
    ‘Looks about ten.’
    Out in the hall, an indignant Charley shouted, ‘I’m eleven. I’m in middle school. I’m not a little kid.’
    ‘Zip it, kid,’ the officer with her said.
    ‘Whoa, officer, sounds like a hardened criminal to me,’ Cafferty joked. ‘Empty her pockets and put her in an interrogation room. And if you have cuffs on her, take them off. It really freaks parents out, with the little ones especially.’
    ‘Sergeant Cafferty, sir!’ Charley shouted. ‘I need to see Lieutenant Lucinda Pierce. Don’t call anybody until I talk to her.’
    A dark-haired man in a suit came out of the office and looked down at her. He had those spooky blue eyes, the kind that always made her feel like a butterfly pinned to a board. ‘You want me to call Pierce?’
    ‘Yes, sir,’ she said. Then, quickly added, ‘Please, sir.’
    ‘What’s your relationship to Pierce?’
    ‘She’s my friend.’
    ‘Really, what did she bust you for?’
    ‘She didn’t bust me, she’s my friend.’
    ‘Right. What’s your home phone number?’
    Charley pursed her lips tight.
    Cafferty crouched down on his haunches. ‘C’mon, what’s the number?’
    Charley shook her head. ‘I’m not telling you anything until you let me speak to Lieutenant Lucinda Pierce.’
    Cafferty rose back to his full height, a look of disgust on his face. ‘Take her away.’
    The two officers hustled her down to an interrogation room. Once inside, they removed the handcuffs. ‘Now, everything out of your pockets. Everything.’
    Charley pulled out her cellphone, a pen and the change from the ten she spent at the coffee shop, laying it on the table. As an officer started to scoop it all into the palm of his hand, she said, ‘Wait! That’s my stuff. You can’t just take it.’
    ‘You’re under arrest, kid; we can take anything you’ve got.’
    ‘Can you leave my cellphone here?’
    The two officers burst out laughing and one of them said, ‘No way.’
    ‘I promise I won’t make any phone calls without permission. I just want to play a game while I wait for the sergeant guy to come back.’
    ‘Kid, we don’t want you entertained in here; we want you bored. Now sit down and shut up or we’ll cuff you to the table.’
    Meekly, Charley took a seat and stared down at the surface of the table. She wanted them to think she felt defeated. She could think better if they got out of the room and left her alone.
    When they were gone, she raised her head and saw her reflection in the glass across the room. She knew that it wasn’t a mirror. Lucy had told her about the two-way glass. They’ll be watching me, she thought. I can’t forget that. She swore that when she was grown up, she’d treat everyone with respect no matter how old they were or how tall they were and she wouldn’t let anybody laugh in anyone’s face in her presence – no matter what they did or said.

ELEVEN
    J ake had a fitful night wondering what was going on out in Idaho. He woke up every two hours; reaching for his cell to check if he’d missed