Free Criminal Destiny by Gordon Korman Page B

happen.”
    There’s a gate in the barbed-wire fence where trucks come and go. Newly energized, we sprint for it.
    I don’t want to kill Laska anymore. When you’re on the run, there are enough ways to die.
    And we just narrowly escaped one of the worst.

8
TORI PRITEL
    Malik proves that a point can be interesting and gross at the same time.
    â€œIf we went into that wood chipper, what would have happened when the cops tried to take DNA samples of the goo that was left of us? We’d be a perfect match for four criminals who are supposed to be locked up in jail.”
    Amber rolls her eyes. “At least the caterpillars didn’t get you.”
    He glares at her. “Big talk from the person who got us into this mess. You’d better hurry, Laska. There are still a few people in Denver who don’t know that we’re clones.”
    Amber’s tight-lipped. “Okay, that was a mistake. But it was a chance worth taking. If it had worked, Osiris would be out of business, and we wouldn’t be sneaking aroundand looking over our shoulders.”
    I’m not so sure how I feel about putting Osiris “out of business.” That would mean my parents would end up in jail for being a part of it. I obviously hate what they did to me, but I can’t bring myself to hate them. I know they loved me. They would have cried if I’d gone into that chopping machine—and not just because their experiment was down the drain.
    We’ve been walking about twenty minutes, watching the dusk creep over the open fields.
    Eli says what we’ve all been thinking, but haven’t had the guts to say out loud: “It’s getting dark. We’re going to have to find a place to sleep.”
    â€œOh, no problem,” Malik says sarcastically. “We’ll just check into one of these five-star hotels and order up room service.”
    â€œIt doesn’t have to be a hotel,” Eli persists. “We just need shelter and a place to rest.”
    Amber squints and points. “I see some lights over there.”
    After another few minutes, we come to a neighborhood. There are tree-lined streets, and neat brick and adobe homes. It’s the closest thing to Serenity we’ve seen since leaving, with a couple of major differences. First, all ofSerenity would fit into a few blocks here, minus the plastics factory, of course. And second, in Serenity, every home had a tree house, and a pool. These houses are smaller, and not quite as well kept. When poor Hector dented his garage door trying to teach himself to ride a bike, the damage was fixed by nightfall. Things aren’t as perfect in the real world. Here every house has something at least a little bit wrong with it—a missing bulb, a loose curbstone, uncut grass, an oil-stained driveway, or a pile of folded newspapers on the front stoop.
    Amber notices that too, despite the fading light. “What kind of person orders newspapers and just leaves them on the porch?”
    Eli looks thoughtful. “Maybe they got really busy, so they haven’t had time to read.”
    Malik is doubtful. “Too busy to see them? They probably trip over them every time they go in and out of the house.”
    â€œNo, then the papers would be all ripped up,” I muse. “It’s almost like there’s nobody living here.” I know it must sound crazy that it takes so long to dawn on me. But we’re four kids who never left Serenity, even overnight. “Vacation!” I exclaim.
    Malik looks mildly interested. “What about it?”
    â€œThat’s why the papers are piling up! The people are on vacation! This house is empty!”
    Amber is getting excited. “So we can find a way in, and hole up while we figure out what we should do next.”
    Malik breaks into a big grin. “First dibs on the TV.”
    â€œFirst dibs on the shower,” I chime in.
    Eli looks worried. “I’d really love to