If Perry wasn’t so used to eating dinner at four in the morning with her friends she may never have remembered that there was actual shelter for her.

The Sunset Diner was an extremely cheap restaurant that was open twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, and for Perry and her friends, costs a penny in their bank account to eat there.

The breakfast menu is the only tolerable food listed, the coffee always burnt, and the leather cushions are actually plush plastic. But this is expected from a cheap diner.

The Sunset Diner was not the original refuge for the new runaway. In fact, she had a few other places she planned on going to.

After she escaped the strenuous, traumatic event inside her home, Perry ran down the beach in her backyard until she could no longer see anything familiar.

At first she stood paralyzed as people strode past happily. Where could she go now? She had no money on her.

A small vibration against her left hip forced her to look down at her jean shorts. Her smartphone had been wedged deep into its pocket, a button locking over it to keep it from falling out.

Perry pulled her phone out of her shorts and inspected it, hoping it wasn’t broken from the dip in her pool. It was accepting a call, which she took as a good sign.

The collar ID said, “Cherry,” so she answered it instantly.

“Charlie?”

“Perry!” a familiar voice cried relief on the other side. “You left me a message saying you were leaving for Venice. Tell me it’s a joke.”

“Actually…,” Perry hesitated. “Can I come over?”

“What? Now?”

“Um…”

There was a brief silence as Charlie pressed her ear closer to the phone, trying to hear Perry’s uncertain voice.

“What’s wrong, Perry? Did something happen?”

Charlie wouldn’t be able to understand. She would tell Perry to call the cops, but the cops wouldn’t listen. She was the girl that cried wolf too many times when she was in trouble. And who would want to mess with the niece of the baddest wolf in Ashwood?

Did she want Charlie involved in that?

“Nothing. Nothing happened. I’m just glad I got to hear your voice.”

“Yeah, me too,” Charlie replied slowly, still suspicious of the situation.

“Well, I got to go, bye.”

“Wait, Per-”

Perry quickly hit end and searched her phone number address app. Surely there was someone who could help her.

All the relatives on her mother’s died in a fire, so that was a dead end. And her father’s were never even in the picture.

Perry hit number 3 and listened to the sound of ringing for about four times until she felt her heart was about to explode.

She hung up before the call would go through and dialed another number.

“Hello?” a male voice came in.

“Seth, it’s me.”

“Perry? I thought you were on a plane to Venice.”

“Everyone knows?”

“Well, yeah. Of course everyone knows.”

Perry hesitated.

“Is there something you need?” Seth pressed. Poor, sweet Seth, who would do anything for Perry ever since they were in third grade.

Most would assume there was some childhood romance attached, but Seth considered Perry simply as a sister, which meant he would protect her as one, wouldn’t he?

Wouldn’t he?

Fear and uncertainty overcame Perry and before she knew it, she had hung up on him. Almost instantly did Seth call back.

“Did you just hang up on me?” he inquired, appalled and a smidge offended.

“I-” her phone began to vibrate, signaling another call coming through.

Perry glanced down and saw, “Uncle Sid”, on the I.D.

She hung up on Seth again and rejected her uncle’s call, feeling the urge to vomit her heart out. Then her phone rang again.

Seriously, Seth?

But, no, it was her uncle. After a few rings he stopped and then call again. It was like a ghost haunting Perry, invading the safe silence, testing her sanity.

Even if she went to the police, she wouldn’t be able to get away from her uncle.

Mr. Perry was the best lawyer in Ashwood. Possibly the entire world. In this situation, she would be viewed as a runaway teenager with a concerned guardian wanting her safely returned.

But this nauseating, anxious feeling kept convincing her that returning would not be a good idea. Just seeing her uncle’s name on her mobile phone’s screen was making her sick.

He could easily get her back into his clutches and do...whatever he was doing.

Was he trying to kill her? To kidnap her? What was going on?

Perry had the opportunity to answer the phone, to get some answers, but the hopeful part of her that stuck with her for her entire life warned her not to. Told her to let this go. That it was better this way.

Finally the ringing stopped, allowing Perry to be abandoned with her knotted thoughts. A minute later, dozens of texts vibrated crazily through her phone, making her jump in fright.

Mr. Perry sent her a tremendously long message with words such as, “Call”, “Answer”, “Trouble”, and “Consequences” popping up repeatedly.

The last text was short, making it impossible for his daughter to avoid reading it, declaring: “I will find you.”

Perry picked up her phone and chucked it with all her strength, watching it sink into the depths of the ancient ocean.

She collapsed onto her knees, feeling the foam water tap the edge of her legs. Tears seeped through her blue-gray eyes and she couldn’t help but choke on awkward sobs.

She wasn’t used to crying. Was it supposed to hurt this much?

Perry slapped salty water onto the bloody mark on her forehead and scrubbed, hoping the harder she washed, the more likely it would all disappear.

But it wouldn’t. The cuts might turn into scars and be an ugly, constant reminder of today’s horror.

Perry, once drenched in water, screamed and threw handfuls of sand around, watching them be yanked away by the wind. She didn’t care who was watching her throw a tantrum; she owned the right to have one.

After what seemed like hours of feeling nothing but useless, Perry pulled herself to her feet. She couldn’t go to a friend’s house, her uncle would easily find her there, and she wouldn’t go to the police either.

She had no money and no shelter. But there was a place she could rest until Perry came up with a better idea of what to do with her inconvenient situation.

“Out of all the places,” Kasey said as he and his partner stopped their walking, “we find him here?”

The two Ignis Bellatorum stood before a one level short square restaurant with the glowing title, The Sunshine Diner, illuminating above its two cadmium red front doors.

They stood on the right side of the diner, looking inside the windows from a distance. It was void of life, unsurprising at this time.

“What do you mean?” Destery asked his friend, their eyes still locked on the restaurant.

“He just seemed the type not to associate himself with cheap things.”

Destery flicked his eyes at his friend with a knowing smile.

“You’re describing yourself.”

Kasey slumped his shoulders in feigned remorse.

“You’re right. It’s a weakness of mine. After we beat the pulp out of this guy, I swear I will change my ways.”

Destery slapped his socius roughly on the back before walking towards the entrance of the diner.

Kasey narrowed his eyes on his friend.

“You don’t think I’m serious, do you?””

“Oh no, I know you’re serious.” Destery opened the left front door, making a little Ching! sound as the silver bell above announced their arrival.

The head waitress instantly appeared, two plastic menus in hand and a wide smile glued to her face; a smile so wide it made the boy’s own faces ache.

“Wow,” she said. “I mean, um, welcome to The Sunshine Diner. How many for tonight?”

“Two,” Kasey answered brightly, making a peace sign with his fingers.

“Please follow me,” the young girl advised, leading them to the left half of the empty restaurant to an artificial wooden table with two red plastic seats.

“Here are your menus.” The waitress placed the papers on the table. “If you have any questions, just let me know. I’ll be back.”

“Thanks, um,” Kasey peered at the golden nametag on her chest, “Susan.”

Susan winked and trotted away, making Kasey sigh in exhaustion.

“What is it?” Destery asked as the two sat down.

“You can’t tell? I was saving our butt back there.”

“By flirting with her,” Destery said, unamused. “All you did was say her name. I don’t how that helps our situation.”

“It helps us blend into the atmosphere,” Kasey explained wearily. “But it’s so tiring when they’re not my type.”

“I didn’t know you had a type.”

“Of course I have a type. Everyone has a type. I know even you have type.”

Kasey’s partner shrugged, glancing around.

Where was the Charcoal Phoenix? By the smoke brimming to its fullest in his Illuminos, he had to be hiding somewhere here.

“Ah, welcome back,” Kasey smiled as Susan approached with two short brown plastic cups and a jug of liquid. “And with water.”

She returned the smile.

“Do you have any questions or are you ready to order?”

“We’re still deciding,” Destery answered before Kasey could open his mouth. “But I do have another question.”

Susan nodded, ready to be asked anything, anything at all.

“Do you have any other male customers here tonight? Specifically a middle-aged man with red hair?”

The waitress frowned, deeply saddened that she couldn’t help.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t seen anyone like that tonight.”

Kasey and Destery exchanged questioning looks.

“That’s alright. Thanks,” Kasey answered.

“I’ll come back again in a few minutes.” Susan nodded.

“Is your Illuminos still working?” Destery whispered to Kasey, who glanced at his bracelet.

“Yeah.”

“So if he isn’t here…”

“Maybe it’s malfunctioning?”

“Illuminos’ don’t malfunction.”

“You don’t know that.”

Destery sighed. They were both on edge because they had hit a dead end, again.

“Are you ready to order now?” Susan’s voice asked, distant and impatient.

Kasey and Destery turned, prepared with their answer, when they found themselves alone.

Susan was visiting another customer alone in a giant booth beside the windows.

“Thanks, but not yet. But more water would be nice,” a female voice answered politely.

Destery climbed to his feet and searched the entire restaurant with his head. There was absolutely no one else there except for the two Phoenixes, Susan, and the mysterious female customer.

“So either the cook is a Phoenix too, or one of these girls are,” Kasey filled in the blanks. “Do you want to take Susan?”

But as soon as Susan had filled the customer’s glass and moved, revealing the other customer, Kasey said, “Nevermind.”

The two phoenixes saw themselves staring at a magnetic young woman with long midnight hair, worn eyes, in jean shorts and a loose gray tank-top.

It had been decades since they saw each other, but there was no mistake. It was her.