Finding Hannah Read Online Free PDF Page B

highway, since this is my house, the next time you want to come inside, I’d better know about it first. You got that?”
    I could see Tony was serious, and he stared at me, waiting for an answer. “Yes, sir,” I said, trying to put this fire out before it got worse.
    “Yes, sir,” Tony said. “You hear that, Molly? That’s the sound of respect. Dylan may be smart after all, except, of course, for the fact he’s hanging around a criminal like you. Wait a minute, maybe he doesn’t know about you yet.” Tony smiled, “Well, he does now.”
    Molly glared at him. “You are the biggest jerk I know!”
    “Keep up that tone with me, young lady, and you’ll be out the door.” Tony pointed at her. “Don’t think I won’t do it. And you,” he pointed at me, “if you’re half as smart as I think you might be, you make sure and keep your junk in your pants.” He pulled out his hunting knife and pointed it at my crotch. “If I catch you messing around with Molly,” he made a slicing motion, “I’ll remove it for you. The last thing I need is a pregnant teenager walking around my house.”
    Tony put the knife back in its sheath and looked at his watch. “I want both of you out of here in twenty minutes. And don’t start any fires while you’re out, either.”
    Molly’s mouth was wide open as Tony left.
    I’d known Tony for all of one minute and I already feared for Molly’s safety. Living here would be awful.
    Molly flopped down on her bed and buried her head into the comforter. The floorboards creaked as Tony walked back into the living room.
    She turned her head to look at me and spoke softly. “I shouldn’t have brought you here.”
    “You want to get out of here?”
    “Yeah.”
    Molly finished packing and strapped her sleeping bag to her backpack. We walked into the living room, where Tony was opening his mail. Molly’s mom still appeared to be passed out on the recliner.
    “Claire invited me to stay overnight at her house,” Molly said.
    “Good riddance,” Tony said. “See if you can stay another night while you’re at it.”
    “I’ll ask. We’re leaving.”
    Tony returned to his mail. “Stay out of trouble. And Dylan …”
    Tony held up an envelope that he skillfully sliced open with his knife, then held up the knife and glared at me like I’d just insulted his mother.
    “Come on.” Molly grabbed my arm and pulled me out the front door.
    When we were alone I asked, “Who is Claire?”
    “She’s a friend I’ve made up so I can get out of the house anytime I want.”
    “Does it work?”
    “It just worked, didn’t it? Besides, with a mom who is always drugged up and Tony, who would be thrilled if I never came back at all, I don’t even need Claire.”
    * * *
    Molly and I stared at the map on the wall in my room. We picked an area outside the ring around my house that had already been searched by the volunteers. We’d hike the trail to the northeast and set up a base camp. Each day we’d loop in a different direction from camp. Once we searched the area, we’d move our base camp to a new location. I figured it would be about a three-hour hike to reach our starting point.
    I left a note on the dining room table: “Out searching. Be back in a few days. —Dylan”
    I marked the location of my house on the GPS as we left with our backpacks full of food, clothes, and supplies. I had a jackknife, tent, clothes, rain gear, spotting scope, Wiz’s night-vision goggles, and my sleeping bag. My baseball bat handle stuck out the top for easy access. Molly’s slightly smaller backpack had her sleeping bag bungeed under it.
    We’d been on the trail for an hour when we came upon the first of many streams, which were small, thanks to the lack of rain from the three-year drought we were experiencing. I was amazed at Molly’s determination as she methodically picked her way across the stream, stepping on stones, then jumping to the far embankment.
    We climbed to one of the many peaks on