Her sister answered, "Lucy."
"Lily and Lucy," I repeated. "All right. Let's go inside."
I tried not to look toward the house again as I guided them up my driveway.
Once inside, I locked the front door.
The click of the deadbolt made both girls flinch.
That frightened me more than anything they had said.
I brought them into the kitchen, gave them water, and put a plate of crackers and sliced strawberries on the table.
They stared at the food but did not touch it until I sat down several feet away.
"You can eat," I assured them.
Lucy grabbed a strawberry.
Lily copied her.
Within seconds, they were eating so quickly that I wondered when they had last had a proper meal.
"Where's your mommy?" I asked.
Both girls stopped chewing.
Lily looked at Lucy.
"Is your mommy next door?"
No answer.
"Your daddy?"
Lucy shook her head.
That was when I realized I had no idea who the man and woman next door actually were.
I reached for my phone.
Lily immediately slid off her chair.
"No!"
I stopped.
"It's okay."
"No police," she said, panic rising in her voice.
"Why not?"
"He said police take bad girls away."
My stomach tightened.
"Who said that?"
Lily's eyes filled with tears.
"Him."
Before I could ask another question, a heavy thud came from next door.
Both girls ducked beneath the table.
A second later, a man's voice carried faintly through an open window.
"Lily! Lucy!"
The girls began trembling.
I shut the window and pulled the curtain closed.
"Stay here," I whispered.
I walked to the front room and peeked through the narrow gap beside my blinds.
The man I had seen in the driveway stood on his porch.
He looked different now, and his chafar expression was angry.
He came down the steps quickly, turned his head from side to side, and started checking the yard.
