Mike and Steve, thirteen-year-old twins, are on the run after being placed in foster care. While digging through a dumpster for food, Steve discovers a jacket with a unique bottle of perfume in its pocket. He’s convinced it’s a sign that his mother is still alive and sets out to find her.
Two runaway boys have slipped into the service area at the back of an upscale shopping mall. Steve gave his twin, Mike, a cheerful smile as they hurried to the nearest dumpster.
“See? It wasn’t so hard to get away from that foster home,” Steve said.
Mike made a surprised noise and lifted the lid of the dumpster. “For now. They’ll report us to Child Services, and then we’ll have to worry about the cops on top of finding food.” Mike sighed. “And there’s no food in that dumpster.”
“Wait, what’s that?” Steve reached over and pulled out a cardboard box. Unfortunately, there was no food inside, just a worn-out jacket.
“This could double as a pillow or blanket, right?” Steve lifted the jacket.
Mike rolled his eyes and leaned over to dig deeper into the dumpster. Steve noticed something in the jacket’s pocket. Curious, he pulled out a small bottle that sent a chill down his spine.
“Mike! This is the homemade perfume Mom used to use…” Steve grabbed his brother’s shoulder and held the bottle in front of his face. “Do you think…this could be Mom’s jacket?”
“Don’t be silly.” Mike nudged Steve’s shoulder. “Mom wasn’t the only person who used that perfume, and besides, she’s dead, Steve.”
Steve shook his head and continued digging through the box. “The cop said she was a missing person, not dead. That means she’s still out there somewhere.”
“No, she’s not!” Mike yelled. He glared at Steve, fury making his cheeks redden. He gritted his teeth and turned his attention back to the dumpster. “But keep dreaming, if it makes you feel better.”
Steve was convinced that bottle of perfume was a sign. He found a receipt among the trash in the box and smiled as he wrote the address on it.
“Now we know where that jacket was dumped and where to start looking for information on Mom!” Steve waved the receipt in front of Mike.
“Don’t even look at me,” Mike replied as he rummaged through the trash. “I’m not going anywhere.” »
“Stop being so negative, Mike! We can’t abandon Mom; we have to fight to the end.”
“Sure.” Mike jumped down and headed to the next dumpster. “How about you fight to the end of this dumpster and find us something to eat?”
Steve tried to convince his twin to investigate the address he’d found with the jacket, but Mike absolutely refused to come with him. So while Mike went to check the dumpsters behind a larger shopping center, Steve went to look up the address on the receipt.
Steve looked at a tall wrought-iron fence surrounding a lush garden. The upper floors of a mansion were barely visible through the foliage. Steve rang the doorbell. No one answered. He tried a few more times, but to no avail.
Maybe no one was home. Steve squinted against the late afternoon sun. Someone would probably show up soon, and if not… Steve spotted an oak tree growing on the sidewalk. This would be his way to the field to look for clues about Mom.
Steve sat down against the fence to wait. Soon it was dark and still no cars pulled up to the gate. Steve climbed the tree in the light of the full moon and hurried to the front door of the mansion.
All the windows in the house were dark. Steve knocked on the door, but he wasn’t surprised when no one answered. He stared at the door in frustration. He was sure he would find answers about Mom here if only someone would talk to him!
In desperation, Steve tried the doorknob. The front door swung open silently, revealing a dark foyer. Steve stepped inside.
Moonlight shone through the large windows on the other side of a huge room just off the foyer, but everything else was dark. Steve reached into his pocket and pulled out a small flashlight.
Mike had insisted they bring supplies when they’d run away from that foster home, and thank goodness for that! As Steve shone the pale beam of light across the floor, he wished he’d convinced Mike to join him. He didn’t want to do this alone.
Steve peered into the moonlit room but saw nothing of interest. He then followed the light of his flashlight into the darkness, peering into formal rooms filled with imposing sculptures and strange paintings, an entertainment room with real movie theater seats and a television that covered the wall, and a kitchen larger than most homes.
He found nothing in these rooms, so he tiptoed up the wide staircase near the front door.
A sound like breathing stopped Steve in his tracks as he reached the top of the stairs. His heart pounded in his chest as he slowly glanced over his shoulder.
He expected to find the monster-man of his childhood nightmares right behind him, fingers like spider legs ready to grab him, but all he saw was a pair of thin curtains flapping at an open window.
Steve sighed and headed down the hallway. The thick carpet absorbed all the sound of his feet. He opened the first door and found a small bedroom. A floral duvet covered the bed and picture frames were arranged on a shelf. Steve crept inside to examine them.
The light from Steve’s flashlight reflected off the glass, obscuring half of the first photo he looked at. A woman with long, dark hair sat in a lawn chair and smiled at the camera. Someone’s hand rested on the back of the chair.
Steve moved his light until the rest of the photo was clear, then let out a shocked groan. It was Mom! These people knew her and could maybe tell him where she was.
Steve dropped the photo as the light flooded the room. He was momentarily blinded but turned toward the door.
“All you’re going to get here is a one-way ticket to the juvenile hall,” a man said.
Steve rubbed his eyes. Panic coursed through his veins as he stared at the figure by the door, but it was nothing compared to the terror that filled him when he saw the man’s face. It was the monster from his nightmares!
Steve was instantly transported back to that day, eight years ago, when he had last seen Mom. Her arm was wrapped around him like a steel bracelet; her steps had smacked against his shoulder as she ran down the sidewalk.
And the man was still behind them. Steve caught sight of his scowling face among the other pedestrians and felt his nails scrape his cheek as he got close enough to grab them.
Mom ran into the subway and slipped into a sheltered alcove. Steve wished he could remember what she had told him, but he had been too scared. Her words had washed over him like water, and she was gone.
Steve had nightmares about this man for years. Now they were coming to life because he was standing right in front of Steve with the exact same scowl he remembered from that day.
This man was behind Mom’s disappearance, and Mom’s picture was in his house. He had all the answers Steve was looking for, but Steve realized he couldn’t ask him directly about Mom. He would have to try a different approach.
“I’m s-s-sorry, sir.” Steve pressed his hands together. “I’m so hungry…”
The man smiled, and it was terrifying.
“You’re hungry, huh?” he said, coming closer. “Don’t you have any parents to feed you?”
Steve shook his head.
“That’s sad… but you’re old enough to work and you look strong.” The man looked at Steve. “I can offer you a chance to pay me back for the damage you’ve done and you’ll be fed regularly. That’s a good deal, considering the alternative.”
“What do you mean, sir?”
“You can work in my factory, or I can call the police and you’ll be sent to jail.” The man pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. “What will it be, kid?”
Steve looked at the man. He’d never find any answers about Mom in a jail cell, but he might find out something about the other workers if he took the job at this man’s factory. He knew he shouldn’t trust him, but this seemed like his best chance of finding out what happened to Mom.
Steve nodded. “I’ll take you up on your offer to work in your factory, sir.”
Early the next morning, a strange man led Steve to a warehouse on the edge of the city’s industrial estate. A single unmarked truck sat in the loading area, but there was no sign of what was being produced in the warehouse.
“Excuse me, sir,” Steve asked the driver as the man escorted him to the warehouse entrance, “but what exactly will my job be here?”
The man stared straight ahead.
“No questions, kid, you’ll find out soon enough.”
Steve had barely stepped foot into the warehouse when he was surrounded by other strange men. They spoke in a language Steve didn’t understand, then one of them pulled him aside. A blindfold covered his eyes.
“Walk straight.” A hand slapped Steve on the shoulder and pushed him forward. He stumbled, but the man pulled him forward.
Steve stubbed his toes as the ground suddenly tilted upward. The man pushed harder against his shoulder, making Steve trip over his own feet. He couldn’t keep up. Steve fell.
A thud echoed around him, and an engine roared, sending vibrations through his arms as he stood up. He realized he must be on the truck he’d seen parked in the loading area when the surface beneath him lurched forward.
It was pitch black in the truck, even after Steve had removed his blindfold. He lost track of time as the truck continued to move forward. He stumbled into the back and found a few bottles of water and bags of chips in the corner. There was nothing else in the truck.
Eventually, Steve fell asleep in the corner with the water and food. Steve slept and woke up several times before, finally, the truck stopped and the door opened.
“Get up and get out!” a man in the truck shouted, his voice echoing around Steve.
Steve shielded his eyes from the bright light and stumbled to the door. Hot, humid air washed over him as he squinted at a wide river with thick jungle growing on either side of the water.
“Welcome to Mexico.” The man at the door grabbed Steve’s wrist and pulled him out of the truck. “Now stop gawking and go walk.”
The man guided Steve to a narrow pier where a boat was waiting for him. Once Steve was seated in the boat, the man with the engine put another blindfold over his eyes. The wind stung Steve’s face as the boat pulled away, taking him to another unknown destination.
The person who ripped the blindfold off Steve’s head also ripped a strand of his hair. Steve barely noticed the pain as he stared at the tall chain-link fence topped with barbed wire surrounding him. Every corner of the open space where he stood had a guard tower guarded by five men.
This wasn’t a factory, this was a prison!
“This is where you work.” The man standing next to Steve pointed to a long building. “And you sleep here.”
The man held Steve’s arm tightly as he led him toward a group of four long, identical buildings on the other side of the fenced-in area.
“The rules here are simple,” the man continued. “Do as you’re told or you’ll be punished. Don’t try to run away or you’ll be hunted by dogs. Do you understand?”
“Yeah… but what job am I going to do, sir?”
The man laughed. “Let’s just say you work in chemical manufacturing, kid.” »
The man showed him the small room he would share with four others, then led him into the dining room. At least a hundred men, women, and shabby-looking teenagers sat at the tables eating unidentifiable brown mush.
“You have about 15 minutes to eat something, kid.” The man pushed Steve into the dining room.
A few people turned to look at him as Steve hurried to the service area on the other side of the building. Many people looked like they hadn’t washed in ages, and several had burn scars on their hands and faces. Everyone had a numb, distant look in their eyes that chilled Steve to the bone.
Except for one woman who stared at Steve in shock. The sight of her left him frozen in place. He began to move faster, a scream growing in his chest as he rushed to find his long-lost mother.
But Mom pressed a finger to her lips. She glanced around the room warily, and Steve understood. Mom didn’t want anyone to know they were related. Their reunion would have to wait for now.
Thoughts raced through Steve’s mind as he lay down to sleep on his hard bunk bed that night. He couldn’t believe he’d finally found Mom! If only there was a way to let Mike know she was alive.
He must have fallen asleep through his racing thoughts, because Mom woke him with an urgent jolt.
“Don’t make any noise,” she whispered. “I know a place we can go talk.”
Steve nodded. He got up from his bed and followed Mom outside. She led him from one shady corner to another until she slipped into a small room behind the toilet block.
“Oh my God, Steve!” Mom hugged him so tightly he could barely breathe.
“What are you doing here? And where’s your brother? Did Mr. Russo find you boys?”
“Mike’s not with me; he’s back in town,” Steve replied. “If Mr. Russo is the man who was chasing us the day you disappeared, then technically I found him.”
Mom frowned, so Steve told her how finding that perfume bottle had set him on the path that led him to her.
“But one thing I still don’t understand is how you ended up with this guy in the first place,” Steve said once he finished explaining.
“Mr. Russo is part of the mafia. Your father and I worked for him.” Mom hung her head. “I was a maid and he was a driver. One day, Mr. Russo accused your father of being an informant… we tried to escape.” Mom shook her head. “Your father died and I got caught in the subway station.”
Mom sighed deeply. “He would have killed me too, but his wife loved me too much. Instead, he made me continue working as a maid for him, but I wasn’t allowed to leave and he didn’t pay me.”
“That’s why I found your picture in this house.”
Mom nodded. “I would still be living there if Mrs. Russo hadn’t died. He sent me here to work at this place before he even finalized his funeral.”
“I can’t believe it. Mom, there has to be a way to get out of here and get back to Mike.”
Mom shook her head. “There’s no way. Even if we escaped the compound, we’d still have to cross the river and find our way through the jungle. It’s way too dangerous, Steve.” She stroked his cheek. “Go to sleep, son. You’ll need your rest for tomorrow.”
Steve and the others at the compound ate breakfast and started work before dawn the next day. They took a short break at noon and then went back to work until late afternoon.
They put Steve to work as a janitor for the first week. The buildings might have been a bit run down, but the guards expected him to maintain a high standard of cleanliness inside the factory and in the living quarters.
Everyone had the day off on Sunday. That’s when Steve discovered the dogs. He was wandering around the compound absently when he saw the sheepdogs in their pens. He slowly approached the nearest one and held out his hand for him to sniff.
The dog stared at him as he approached the fence. It sniffed the air and slowly wagged its tail.
“Look at this.”
Steve turned around. He was sure he was in trouble now, but the man staring at him just smiled.
“You good with dogs, boy?” the guard asked. “Do you want a new job? The last guy who worked the dog pens… well, the dogs didn’t like him very much, so we need a replacement.”
The next day, Steve was assigned to groom the dogs and clean their pens. He had always loved dogs but had never been able to have one as a pet, so this was great news for him. He set to his task with a smile, which only widened when he made an interesting discovery.
When Steve entered the last pen, just in the corner of the camp, it was empty. He looked around in confusion, then noticed a pair of dark eyes watching him from under the kennel.
“How did you get under there?” Steve asked as he approached the kennel.
The dog disappeared for a moment, only to emerge tail first from a hole in the dirt on the other side of the kennel. Steve approached and stumbled. There was another hole in the middle of the run. Upon closer inspection, Steve realized that the holes looked more like tunnels. If a dog could dig tunnels like that, why couldn’t he?
Steve scratched the dog behind the ears and whistled happily as he cleaned the run. He wasn’t sure of all the details yet, but he had figured out how he and Mom could escape this work camp.
The next day, Steve took one of the dog’s bowls back to his bunk after he finished working for the day. Once everyone was asleep, he snuck out of his room and began digging his tunnel to freedom with the dog’s bowl.
Steve worked on his tunnel every night for weeks. Finally, he broke through the surface and poked his head through the other side. He was through! All he had to do was widen the exit.
The next night, as Steve was walking back to his dorm after dinner, another worker put his arm around Steve’s shoulders and whispered in his ear,
“I know about your plans.”
Steve looked at the man innocently and shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. What plans?”
The man smiled. “Don’t fool around with me. You’re planning on getting out of here, and my friend and I want to join you. We have some things you need, like a rope and an axe to build a raft. You have the tunnel, and the dogs know you. We need each other.”
Steve didn’t know how the man had come up with his plan, but he was right. He and Mom would need a raft to cross the river, and having four people working together would certainly be better than two.
“Okay,” Steve said. “You’re in.”
A few nights later, four dark figures crept through the camp and into a dark laundry room. Heavy rain pounded on the tin roof as Pedro, the man who had approached Steve, pulled out the bag of groceries he had hidden behind a gas canister.
Lightning flashed across the sky as the group slipped through Steve’s tunnel. It was completely flooded at the lowest point, but he was holding on. A loud clap of thunder sounded as they ran toward the river.
Steve held Mom’s hand as he ran, his feet slipping on the mud with every step. He was soaked through and the rain stung his skin, but he was grateful for it. This rain would make it nearly impossible for the dogs to keep up.
They ran along the muddy path to the river. When they reached a sharp bend, Pedro motioned for them to continue through the jungle.
“This is a shortcut,” he shouted over the rain and thunder.
They continued more slowly through the dense underbrush. The storm had passed by the time they reached the road, and Pedro assured Steve that they had just cut three miles off their journey.
“We’re almost to the river,” Pedro smiled.
There was no sign of pursuit, so the group decided to rest briefly. They would still need to build their raft when they reached the water and needed strength. Mom went into the bushes alone to take a pee break. A few minutes later, Steve heard her yell.
“Mom!”
Steve ducked through the bushes and felt low tree branches whip his face as he ran after Mom. He noticed a spot where the ground had given way just in time for him to slide to a stop. He peered over the edge and saw Mom lying awkwardly in the mud at the bottom of a steep ravine.
“Mom, are you okay?”
Tears streamed down Mom’s cheeks as she looked up and shook her head. Steve cautiously made his way down the slope. He stopped just before Mom and stared grimly at the pale bruise on her calf.
“Steve,” Mom whimpered. “I think my leg’s broken.”
Steve and Pedro carried Mom up the slope and set her down on a fallen log. Pedro briefly examined her leg and shook his head.
“It’s not good,” he said. “We have to leave her behind.”
“Never!” Steve squared his shoulders and looked at Pedro. “We can carry her.”
“Then we’d all be slowed down. They’d catch up. I’m sorry, but we’re not going to take that chance.” Pedro gestured to his friend. “This is the only chance we’ll have to escape and we’re not going to waste it.”
“He’s right.” Mom looked at Steve with pain in her eyes. “You should leave me behind.”
“I just found you!” Steve joined Mom on the log. “I’m not leaving you, for no reason.” My freedom means nothing if you’re not with me.”
“Then this is where we part ways,” Pedro said. He and his friend turned away and left Steve and Mom alone in the jungle.
“We’re screwed,” Mom sobbed.
“No, we’re not. » Steve stood up and scanned the area.
“I’ll still get us out of here.”
“How? You can’t carry me by yourself.”
“I have an idea. Pedro said we were near the river, so there’s a chance we’re also near a village or some sort of settlement. We just need to make a signal to get their attention.”
“And what about the guards? They’d probably see that signal too.”
Steve sighed deeply. “This is a chance we’ll have to take. Hopefully, we’ll be rescued by the locals before the guards reach our position.”
Steve only had one chance to succeed, and it was unlikely. He started uphill towards a seemingly clear area and trekked through the jungle. Everything was soaked and muddy from the rain, but he refused to give up hope.
He found exactly what he needed in a hollow at the base of a large tree. An animal must have made a den there at some point because it was filled with dry grass and leaves. There were also pieces of dry wood, partly eaten by termites, that had fallen from inside the hollow. Steve picked it all up.
He laid the dry materials on rocks at the top of the hill, then returned to the jungle. He gathered the driest branches he could find, then broke his flashlight against a rock. He used the lens to focus the sunlight on his tinder.
A thin trail of smoke soon rose from the bundle of dried grass. He carefully placed the driest pieces of wood on top. The wood sizzled and smoked. Steve blew gently on the small flames and added another bundle of grass. The flames leapt higher.
The flames clung to the pieces of wood in the hollow of the tree. The branches above them had stopped smoking now, and the fire soon spread through them. Steve sighed in relief. Slowly, the steam rising from the damp wood was replaced by smoke, and the small fire grew into a blaze.
Soon, the fire was big and hot enough to boil the water from even the dampest branches Steve had gathered. He added them slowly, then threw in a few damp leaves to thicken the smoke. Once he was sure the fire would continue to burn, he rushed down the hill to his mother.
“It’s working!” he shouted. Then he handed her a long stick. “I found this for you. You can use it as a crutch and I’ll help you get to the fire.”
Steve and Mom watched the smoke rise into the sky. He tended the fire for an hour before he noticed someone appear through the trees in front of them.
“Look, Mom!” Steve pointed at the man.
“My idea worked. We’re saved.”
Mom leaned forward to watch the man just as he stepped out into the sunlight. The smile faded from her face and she shook her head.
“He’s one of the camp guards,” she muttered. “Quick, Steve, you have to run.”
“No! I’m not leaving you, Mom.” Steve took her hand.
“Listen, Steve, this is the only way.” Mom glared at him fiercely. “As long as you get away, you can come back and get me or call the police, but you have to run, now. Go!”
Steve ran to his mother’s side, but stopped short when a second man appeared in front of him. He ran the other way, but the first guard got around him and blocked him.
“Keep going, Steve,” Mom yelled. “Run!”
They formed a circle around the fire, surrounding Steve and Mom. Steve thought about pushing one of the men into the fire, that would surely distract them, but then their leader pulled out a gun.
“I think you’ve run enough,” the man said. “If you come easy now, we’ll make sure it’s easy on you and the lady when we get you back to the factory.”
Steve glanced at his mother, raising his hands in surrender. “Please take care of her,” he pleaded. “She’s hurt.”
The guards took Mom to the infirmary when they returned to camp. Steve caught a glimpse of them carrying her inside before she was locked in the basement room used for punishment.
Steve curled up on a rough blanket in the corner of the room. He had failed. After everything he’d been through to get Mom out of here, they were back where they started. Worse than when he started, because he was locked up and she was badly hurt.
Steve hugged his knees and wondered where Mike was now and if he’d ever see his brother again.
Tears streamed down Steve’s cheeks. He cried for a long time in the dark solitude of his cell and eventually fell asleep.
A little later, a thop-thop-thop sound woke him up. People were screaming and running outside. Steve pressed his face against the narrow bars of his cell door and tried to see what was happening.
A voice rang out through a megaphone. They were speaking Spanish, but Steve’s heart leapt when he recognized two words: La policia.
Two days after the attack on the camp, Steve found Mom in her hospital room. He ran to her and hugged her tightly.
“Oh Steve! You saved us all,” she said.
“What do you mean?”
Mom smiled. “Didn’t they tell you? The police had been looking for this camp for a long time, but they found it because of your fire. That smoke was visible for miles around, and people reported it.”
“When the police came to investigate, they found Pedro and his friend washed up on the river bank,” Mom continued. “They realized they must have escaped from the camp they were looking for and that’s how they found us.”
“Well, I guess my plan worked after all, but not the way I hoped.”
“They’re sending us back to the States soon.” Mom leaned back on her pillows. “Mr. Russo was arrested and the police at home found Mike.” Mom wiped a tear from her cheek. “He’ll be waiting for us at the airport. God, I can’t wait to get home to my two boys.”