Brittany wondered through the woods trying desperately to figure out where she was, but nothing seemed familiar. It was starting to get dark, and she was getting scared. Every sound made her jump, from the hooting owl to the faint rustling of the trees.

How she wished she was at home, in her room with her sisters. She even missed arguing with Alvin over the dumbest things. If only she had not walked in on that conversation between Harry and Priscilla. The woods was eerily dark and she looked for some kind of shelter. She was so tired, blistered and beaten. Finally he found a small cave opening She was small enough to fit in it and felt a little warmer than being out in the open.

She huddled up, feeling so lonely and scared. She cried herself to sleep thinking of her sisters, the boys, Dave and Alvin. She could only imagine how worried they all must have been.

***********************************

Dave woke the next morning with an empty feeling. He went to the kids’ room in the hopes of waking them up. When he opened the door he noticed that they they were not in their beds.

“Strange,” he thought. He walked into the kitchen, thinking that either Theodore and Eleanor would be making breakfast, but there was nothing. Then he saw a note on the counter. He quickly opened it.

*

Dear Dave,

Alvin took off to go find Brittany. We going after him to make sure he stays out of trouble. We’ll find them both and be home as soon as we can. Try not to worry.

Simon

*

Dave looked on in horror. How could they have gone off without him? He thought of what to do. He looked out the window and saw that Miss Miller was back from her trip. He quickly changed his clothes and ran across the street to her house. He frantically knocked on the door.

“Sadie,” he called out. He could see footsteps inside. The door opened and there she stood in her robe with her hair in two braids.

“Dave,” she said, seeing how distraught he looked. “What’s wrong?”

“The kids,” he said. “They’re gone.

“What do you mean, gone?” she asked. “Come in.”

She invited him in. He was so nervous that he just kept pacing back and forth. “It all started that night at the benefit concert.”