Chapter 2 - THE BAT AND THE BROKEN GLASS
A terrifying crash exploded from the kitchen as Evelyn smashed through the back sliding glass door. The security alarm began shrieking, flashing red lights across the hallway. I guided Sadie and Nolan into the bedroom closet, telling them to stay hidden, before I remembered the old wooden softball bat leaning against Sadie’s dresser. I grabbed it with both hands, my palms damp with nervous sweat.
Downstairs, heavy shoes crunched relentlessly over shattered safety glass, and Evelyn’s voice drifted up the stairwell in a sickeningly sweet singsong: “Sadie? Nolan? Grandma brought something special.” The staircase creaked under her weight. One step. Then another. I stood between the closet door and the hallway entrance, adjusting my grip, channeling every hour of my collegiate left-field softball training into keeping my stance grounded and steady.
