Child's Game

ch. 15

15 - Child’s Game

            “So…basically we’re playing Hide and Seek? A bit old for that aren’t we?” Ben leaned back on the wall.

            “That or get lynched in the streets.” Rion sat down, already they could hear them coming. “We need to go now.” He got up, “I’ll head to one of the empty houses, Ellis hide in Loa’s place. If things go south, I’ll turn myself in, hopefully by the time they’re done with me Loa and James will be"“

            “No! If things get bad, I’ll turn in.” Ben cut him off.

            Oran headed to the door, “You have a few minutes, I’ll slow them down, hide.” He exited.

            “Hide and seek…that’s it! Hide and Seek!” Lei-Lei piped up. “The little kids are still asleep, If I tell them we’re all playing hide and se"“

            “You’d put them in danger to protect us?” Rion tried to contain his displeasure.

            “I think it’s a good idea, it might just keep from torching the place, that’s a bigger problem than them finding us Rion.” Ben headed towards the door, “Think you can get them to play?”

            “Of course! You may not think so but I have some pull around here.” She followed him.
            “I don’t like this…” Rion took Ellis’ hand.

            “Of all the things we’ve been forced to do, I don’t think this one is so bad.” Ellis looked up at him, “I know you’re still sad about your friend, and that you’re still mad at Ben, but he really is worried about you. He wants to say sorry but he doesn’t know how to tell you…I…I just wanted to tell you that since y’know we might"“

 

            “Everything’ll be fine. I promise.” Rion brought him around the back of Loa’s home, the children were still a ways off, it sounded like they were arguing, “Stay low, don’t go near the windows or doors, keep an escape route open, and thanks Ellis.” He held the boy up and helped him crawl in through a window.

            “Be careful, Rion.”

            Rion left, he felt a bit lighter he hadn’t seen where Ben went off to but he’d be sure to speak with him when this was over. He could hear the little children leaving their homes speaking of where they would hide. Lei-Lei came out behind them. “You got them to do it?”

            “They jumped at the chance to sneak out at night, is Ellis ok?”

            Rion nodded, “Yeah, he’s safe.”

            “Good, good, you go hide, I’ll wait ‘til they come and tell them we’re playing hide and seek.” She shooed him away.

            “Lei-Lei…it could be trouble for you if…”

            “I know what I’m risking, I’m doing this cause I want to, now go.” She pushed him toward a hut and ran over to climb inside an empty barrel near James’ home. She watched Rion enter the home and waited for the crowd. After a few moments they came around the bed, torches in hand yet Oran was nowhere in sight. She tried not to show her worry; they stopped when they saw her in the barrel.

            “What are you doing?” One of the mob leaders stepped forth.

            “Those guys invited us to play hide and seek, what are you guys doing?” To her relief they couldn’t tell she feigned ignorance.

            A look of confusion and dismay spread through the crowd, “They…what!? Who’s playing?”

            “Everyone, aren’t you playing, you better go hide before the game starts.”

            The look of the mob leader’s face turned to horror, “And they’re all hiding?”

            “Uh…DUH! It’s hide and seek.” Lei-Lei kept up the show, finally ducking down into the barrel, “Go away before you give away my spot.”

            The mob murmured among themselves, “What do we do?” The looked around.

“We…we can’t...don’t burn anything. Spread out and search the houses, don’t hurt any o’ the kids.” The leader let out a frustrated grunt, “This is their fault! They’re using the little kids to save themselves. They’re more evil than I thought. Lei-Lei, you have to help us find them.”

“No, I’m not It.”

“FINE! Stay there idiot!” From inside the barrel Lei-Lei listened to the crowd disperse, to the sounds of them searching through the houses rousing the children from their hiding places, to the sounds of tables and chairs being turned over. She drew here knees to her face, wondering what became of Oran. Shifting uncomfortably she peeked out, they still hadn’t found the three yet, Ben and Rion were probably sneaking from place to place, then she saw him, Oran limping down the pathway towards the main village.

“Pssst! Oran over here.” She gestured to him quickly.

He limped over, “Where are they?”

“Not sure but they haven’t been caught yet, what happened you?” Even in the darkness she could make out bruises on his face.

“Tried to get them to back off; went ape-s**t on me.” He lifted his leg rubbing his ankle, “Argh, think it’s sprained.”  

“Hang on I’ll see if I can find a firs"“

“What are you doing here? Lei-Lei you better stay away from this traitor.” One of the mob children shouted.

Lei-Lei came out of the barrel, “What are you talking about, he’s hurt. He needs our help.” She stepped between the mob and Oran, “Why would you do this? Oran is one of us.”

“He wants to protect those monsters!”

Oran hissed, “I don’t give a damn about them, but Loa wants them to stay, that’s what I care about!”

Lei-Lei pushed him back, “That’s right, and besides if you’d actually get to know them you’d see their really nice.” She backed up when the mob began to close in on them. “Have you lost it completely!?”

“We should have known you’d side with them, always hanging out with that boy. You’re a traitor too!”

“You ARE crazy! Ellis is a very nice person!” She back up even further as mob came down her.

Oran pulled her behind him, “Stop this, first you try burning down the island now you want to murder three people, you think Loa and James are gonna allow that, you think they’d ever forgive you?” Now he and Lei-Lei were against the wall of James’ home. “Think about what you’re doing.”

“You can’t die too, traitors!” The mob swarmed in on them grabbing at the two.

A ways away Rion watched from the bushes, he’d moved up to a brushy hill, “Damn!” He stood up to go down and through himself to the wolves, as he moved to go down the hill a hand grabbed him. He turned to see Ben there, “What are you doing? They’re going to kill them.” He tried to pull his arm away, “Let go Ben, you aren’t stopping me a second time.”

“Sorry Leona.”

“Wha"" Before Rion could react Ben delivered a blow to his left cheek. Rion tumbled to the ground trying to regain his bearings; he turned to see Ben rushing down the hill calling out loudly to the mob.

At this point the mob had taken to beating down on Oran while another group of children held Lei-Lei. When they heard Ben’s cries they finally stopped laying into Oran. “Hey!” Ben egged them on, “Yeah you keep looking at me like that, we’ve seen how you handle two kids let’s see if you can handle me!” Then the mob charged.

 

Author's Note

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