Chapter 2

Minutes ticked by, turning into hours.

Inside the dark, sunless tunnel, day and night bled into one.

We had brought three cars for this trip back home.

Brandon had rented an SUV to drive Mia around.

Martha and Chloe took the family's old sedan.

Meanwhile, Nia and I were relegated to an old, battered utility van meant for hauling cargo.

Nia couldn't take the hunger any longer.

Her stomach rumbled incessantly.

Curled up in my arms, her voice was tiny and frail.

"Mommy, I'm hungry... I want some crackers..."

I tore through the entire vehicle.

There wasn't a single scrap of food left.

Before setting off, Brandon had insisted that all the supplies be loaded into his SUV because it had more space.

I had foolishly believed his lies back then.

Looking at my daughter's chapped lips and unfocused, dazed eyes, my heart felt like it was being ripped out of my chest.

Dignity was worth nothing in the face of survival.

Gritting my teeth, I pushed the car door open.

I walked over to Brandon's SUV and tapped on the glass.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

The window rolled down just a crack.

The rich, savory aroma of braised beef jerky wafted out.

Brandon was chewing on a mouthful, his cheeks bulging.

He glared at me sideways, dripping with annoyance.

"What now? Didn't I tell you to stop bothering me?"

I swallowed hard, swallowing my pride to beg him softly.

"Brandon, Nia can't take the hunger anymore."

"Just give me a little bit of food, even a single cracker will do."

"She is your own flesh and blood."

Brandon stopped chewing, appearing to hesitate for a split second.

Mia suddenly poked her head over from the passenger side.

Holding a half-eaten bag of potato chips, she took a loud, crunchy bite.

"Brandon, our food supply is running low too."

"We still have to wait three whole days. What if the rescue team gets delayed?"

"We need to save this for emergencies; we can't just throw it away on a whim."

The moment Brandon heard that, the slight shred of hesitation vanished completely.

"You hear that? Mia says we don't have enough."

"If you're too incompetent to secure your own food, don't come leeching off me."

Just then, Martha stormed out of the car behind them.

She shoved me hard on the shoulder.

"You greedy leech! Trying to trick Mia out of her food?!"

"Weren't you acting all tough earlier? Why are you begging like a stray dog now?"

Stumbling back several paces from the shove, I nearly fell over.

I gripped the edge of Brandon's window frame with white knuckles.

"Brandon! Nia is only six years old! She's going to starve to death!"

Noticing Mia's furrowed brow, Brandon's expression hardened into a scowl.

"Let go!"

He slammed his finger onto the power window switch.

The glass shot upward at full speed, nearly snapping my fingers in half.

I cried out in pain, jerking my hands back just in time, and slammed desperately against the glass.

From inside came the muted sounds of Mia and Brandon giggling.

"You're so mean, Brandon, you scared her half to death."

"Serves her right for not knowing her place. Ignore her."

They didn't give a damn whether Nia lived or died.

I slumped onto the cold asphalt, tears streaming uncontrollably down my face.

Right at that moment, the window of a nearby heavy-duty semi-truck rolled down.

The driver was a burly man with stubble all over his jaw, named Wayne.

He spat out his window onto the ground.

"Ptui! What a pathetic excuse for a man!"

Wayne kicked his door open and jumped down from the cab.

In his hands were two large white steamed buns and an unopened bottle of water.

He shoved them firmly into my hands, his voice gruff but kind.

"Here, ma'am. Take these."

"Go feed your little girl. Don't let her starve."

Cradling those two plain buns felt like holding the most precious treasure in the world.

My tears broke through the floodgates.

"Thank you... thank you so much, sir..."

Flustered, I sputtered my thanks and turned to scramble back toward my van.

Brandon suddenly stuck his head back out of his window.

He pointed at Wayne and me, his face twisted in disgust.

"Oh, look at that! Already hooking up with some random guy, are you?"

"No wonder you were sitting on the ground bawling your eyes out—you were just whoring around trying to find some meathead to protect you."

"Fucking filthy."

"Say that again to my face, you little punk!" Wayne roared, stepping forward with his chest puffed out, scaring Brandon into snapping his head right back inside.

I thanked Wayne over and over. Knowing it was an ugly family dispute, he sighed and climbed back into his cab.