Versus

Emma swerved off the road, into the grass. She could feel the bike wildly shake under her from the forced strain that she demanded of the narrow wheels while she saw a man running after the little girl, a hundred yards away or so. Not thinking, there was no time for that, she threw her bike to the ground, nearly running full-on into the fence as she began climbing to get to the little girl.

“Do you know him?” She screamed.

“No!” The little girl answered clearly through her panic.

Emma’s feet reached the ground on the other side, seconds before the little girl made it to her. She ran straight into her arms and Emma quickly lifted her up.

“Climb!”

She did exactly as she was told. Emma climbed just as quickly behind her. The pursuer reached them, faster than expected and he grabbed Emma’s left foot as the other was already swung over the top of the fence.

Nearly sitting now on the top of the fence, she jerked her confined leg away, and with just as much force, she drove it back down, into the man’s face. The force that struck him was beyond what she felt capable of. It was consuming, like a surge. She felt as though she had more building as a reserve, right behind that one if needed. Adrenaline? Perhaps.

He rolled several times before stopping in the grass with a huge thud.

She gasped at the force in which he hit. He did too. Her eyes were huge from the shock at what she witnessed, at her own hand, but just as equally from fear.

“Leave us alone!!” She screamed as ferociously as she could attempt.

He was standing as though he planned to continue his pursuit but suddenly looked dazed, wobbled a little, and ran away. Emma looked at the small girl, still sitting on the top of the gate, “I’m stuck.” She cried.

As Emma cleared the top of the fence, both legs on the other side now, she held out a hand to the little one, “Get on my back, I’ll get you down” holding her hand for support as she climbed on Emma’s back. Emma then slid carefully down the other side with little fingers gripped tightly around her neck.

With both feet barely on the ground, she collapsed. Her knees just gave way. The little one crawled off her back and was around the front of her, hugging tightly before she knew what happened.

Her clasp around her neck was so tight and secure that she honestly wondered if she would begin tingling from lack of oxygen. She matched the embrace and rocked her. It was as much to ease her as it was the little girl.

“I need to get into my backpack. I need to call the police. Then we’ll call your mom and my mom. Ok?”

Her head never left the crook of Emma’s neck as she cried while shaking her head up and down to answer “yes.”

Emma fumbled with her phone as she saw the guard running towards them. He had a phone to his ear and knelt beside the two of them.

“Are you both ok?”

“I think so.”

He asked them if they could walk to the guardhouse. Emma wasn’t secure in the operation of her legs but declared that she could. She continued to carry the girl. There was no putting her down. Her grip on Emma grew stronger by the minute.

The guard had already called the police and they were on their way. He escorted them to the guardhouse and instructed them to sit down.

“I promise I won’t let go. I just need your name so we can find your mom, ok.”

“Shelly.”

“Shelly?” She repeated. Shelly nodded her head again.

“Do you know your mom’s phone number? We can call her together.”

She began saying numbers so quickly that she wasn’t sure if she entered them into her phone correctly. The phone rang one time and Emma heard a lady crying on the other end.

“Shelly, what’s your mom’s name?”

“Lauren.” Sobs grew as the little girl spoke her mother’s name.

The woman on the phone began to scream. She heard the exchange on the other end of the line and immediately knew her daughter was on the phone.

“Lauren?” Emma asked the voice on the other line.

“Yes, oh thank God. That was Shelly. Is she OK?” She continued to cry.

“Yes. She is a very brave girl.” Emma explained how Shelly ran to her. She assured Lauren that they were safe, and the police were coming. She tried, for the sake of Shelly, to use a chipper tone. It was obvious that her tone didn’t fit the current situation, but if it would help calm her little friend down, she was all about this oddly sounding tone coming from her. She thought she sounded like a mom cooing to a little baby. But she didn’t have experience with faking her voice when she herself was struggling with keeping her own composure. It was all that she could think of to do for the little one, cradled up in her lap.

“She is just fine. Shaken up a bit, that’s all.”