wormwood, pt. 11

Nicole walked around the block, and saw a house that cut through the police blockade. She pointed it out to Rosalind, who smiled and said that would do nicely. The cops paid them no mind as they approached the house's front door and rang the doorbell. When, after several moments, no one answered, they ducked into the backyard, which was enclosed in a high wooden fence. The gate was unlocked.

The backyard was a fairly well-tended garden with cobblestones and a picnic table. It was empty, and a sliding glass door led into the house. The fence had no obvious spots to make climbing easier, but that never stopped either of them.

Rosalind jumped up and peered over the fence, then dropped back down. "It's mostly clear. Some cops looking the wrong way. We just have to be quick and quiet. Get around the corner to the right and then act casual."

She helped Nicole get a leg up over the fence, waited until she heard her footsteps running off, and climbed over herself. She rolled as she landed, and caught the road rash on her shoulder as she did so, and bit back a curse as she did so. She poked it with a finger. It had started oozing again.

Then she ran for it. As she did, she thought she heard someone shouting "Hey!" off to her left, but she rounded the corner without seeing them, and waved frantically at Nicole to get moving. They ducked into a back alley and hid behind the dumpster, while Rosalind got some salt from her bag and rubbed it on the wound to stop the bleeding.