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

“Good idea, Auntie,” Matt said.  22: Closer to Matt


Kevin kept an eye on Dayna as the next few days passed, in case she decided to leave him again. But he soon knew he had nothing to worry about. Kevin felt like he and Dayna had turned into different kids. He pretended they had always lived like this—they had never been locked in their room or forced to hide there—and had never been bruised by their own parents.


One afternoon while they took a break in the woods and Ash looked at the map, Kevin thought something seemed different. Ash was biting her lip and frowning a lot.


Dayna leaned forward and her eyes widened. “Then what’s wrong?”


“I think we should start walking at night from now on.”


“Wow, are we really that close?” Kevin felt a rush of excitement. “Will we be there in a couple of days?”


“Well, we’ve still got a while before we get there, but it’s going to get more dangerous from here on out. The police will be watching for me.”


Chapter 139