"...twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine....THIRTY!" The tallest of the three girls yells the loudest as they prepare to search for the fugitives trying to escape to Canada.
"I'll check the alleys," whispers a beautiful young Chinese girl as she creeps through the gangway of the red brick house serving the purpose of Canada. The tall, overflowing bushes brush Elise's skin as she quietly heads for the back.
"I'll patrol the streets," says a second girl, Charlie, matter-of-factly. Charlie is tall and slender, with light brown hair that does not camouflauge with the still night quite as well as Elise's dark black hair does. "You got Canada covered?"
"I'm good, but don't leave me alone too long!" says Ana, her brown eyes shining anxiously. No one ever wants to be the one to guard Canada. It is a boring task until the very end. Ana watches as Charlie's pony tail bounces out of sight. Once she disappears behind a car, Ana takes to patrolling the area. She begins the routine check, pacing back and forth between gangways, waiting four or five seconds between each house. On occasion she hears a crack or a scuffle behind her and whips around, only to find a grey squirrel scrambling over the bench in front of her house, which is serving as the Canadian border. Five minutes into the game there is no action, and her front door opens. Her mother, a slight, greying women of fifty-three, dashes out carrying a large green salad bowl.
"Hey sweetie, I'm bringing the salad over to Pete and Debbie's, are you guys coming to eat?" she asks as she rushes past.
"No, we're playing Fugitives! We already ate," replies Ana, keeping her eyes on the gangway between her house and the Johnsons'.
"Okay, have fun,"laughs Mrs. Todd, and she walks the two houses down to their neighbors' house.
It is the night of the Progressive Dinner. The Bells, the Robinsons, the Todds, the Luecs, and the Thomsons are each hosting a course of a meal for the block to share, and all the neighbors are rotating between houses. It is a long, annual tradition that continues throughout the years, despite the occasional neighborly spat. It is currently ten thirty at night, and the Bells are hosting the entree, as usual. Mrs. Todd had insisted that she was too busy to clean the house, so this year it is a combined salad-entree course at the Bells'. Everything else has gone as planned.
There is a snap between the Hutchinsons' house and the Todds', and Ana sprints over to the far side of her house, her heart pumping, only to see Rachel dashing back toward the alley, clearly frustrated with herself for getting caught. Ana's one moment of excitement subsides as she takes to pacing once again.
Finally Charlie comes back.
"I got Nicky and Sam, they were hiding behind Mary's van at the end of the block," she says with relish. "They're in jail, Elise is guarding."
"Nicccee," breathes Ana with appreciation. Nicky may only be ten years old but she is fast. "Take over for me?" She asks.
"Sure," says Charlie dispiritedly, but understanding. It's part of the job. And she, Ana, and Elise do a damn good job. They are the best team of cops the game has ever had.
"It's been pretty dead around here," says Ana empathetically as she runs backward into the alley with a small salute. She reaches the back gate silently and creeps out into the alley. She stays near to the garages, her best strategy, seeing as she is one of the slowest runners of the group. She has a good surprise tactic.
She slows as she sees a shape up ahead. It is tall and blonde. Eric. Eric is strong, fast, and a karate master. No one wants to see him in a dark alley at night. Nevertheless she slinks slowly and quietly forward until she is just feet away. She jumps out just as he turns in her direction.
"Holy!" he yelps, and another shadow begins sprinting in the opposite direction. It's Devin. Already Ana knows she has no chance of catching him.
"Do you surrender?!" she shouts at Eric as he turns and attempts to escape. He doesn't answer. She chases. He escapes. No surprises there.
She slows to a slight jog and takes a right into a neighbor's backyard. She slips through the gangway and continues on toward jail to check the progress. There are two new additions.
"Eli and Jonathan tried to get these two out, but I got 'em," says Elise smugly as Ana comes out from behind a tree. "Seen anyone else?"
"Yeah, I saw Eric and Devin, but they got away," says Ana. She kicks at the dirt with frustration.
There's a shout, followed by another yelp, then confusion. Ana, Charlie, and Elise are convened near Canada, just about to switch posts. Eric comes out of nowhere, half walking, half running toward them. All three of them start to call out, "Do you surrender?" but he silences them as he approaches.
"Did any of you scream, 'Let me go?'?"
The girls look at each other blankly, then to Eric. He doesn't need them to answer.
He takes off like a bullet. It is almost comical, the way he shoots down the street, like a cartoon, crouching and revving its feet and disappearing in a cloud of dust. Except it is not funny, and he no one is laughing.
