The punishment for a seventh-grade dropout runaway is probably pretty harsh, but Ash Barker doesn't care. She can’t waste time or emotions on anyone but her brother, Matt. They were placed in separate foster homes, so Ash runs away to find him. If she fails, she’s headed back to juvenile detention. Everything is going right on schedule until two kids, Dayna and Kevin, barge into her hideout -- which just happens to be in their house. She ditches the pair fast, but can’t stop thinking about those bruised, skinny kids. Dayna and Kevin live with abusive parents who force them to stay in their room most of the time. If they go to the authorities for help, they’ll be split up, too. Ash knows how that feels, and she goes back to help, taking the two with her. With any luck, they’ll all help each other along the way. Meanwhile, as Matt waits for Ash, he can’t resist telling his foster brother and best friend, Jon-Allen, about the plans. They stash food, earn money, and keep watch for the night Ash appears at their bedroom window. Ash is so happy to be reunited with Matt and to discover she’s falling in love with Dayna that, at first, she doesn’t worry about what they’ll do next. But life on the road begins to take its toll -- they have to resort to shoplifting and scavenging to survive. Ash feels a growing sense of guilt at the disaster she’s made of everyone’s lives. Can she somehow keep her newfound “family” together despite hunger and sickness? Or will she be able to find the strength to reach out for help?

No Turning Back

“I can’t believe this!” Kevin whooped.


Ash had no idea where to go, so she kept driving straight. Matt leaned back in his seat with a hand over his heart.


“This is great,” he said. “I thought we were going straight back to Auntie’s.”


“Hey, this road leads out of town, turn right,” Jon-Allen said.


Ash obeyed, then realized she hadn’t turned down another regular street…it was an onramp to the interstate. Even though the hour was late, cars, trucks, and semis zoomed past. Ash gingerly increased her speed to forty miles per hour.


“You’ll have to go faster than that,” Matt said.


“I don’t know if I can,” Ash said with gritted teeth.


“You didn’t mind fast cars when we were riding with Jessie,” Dayna retorted. “Come on!”


“I guess we’re not going to be calling any foster parents now,” Jon-Allen said.


“Because, we just ran from a cop and stole a car!” Jon-Allen shouted, giving Matt a high-five


Chapter 64