End Journeys
The Light of Their Life

Ruby and Thomas removed their batteries and cell phone cards. The rest of the food they had put into the bag that Ruby had been carrying since they had escaped from their hut. Thomas is holding Tim. This time the team who usually asked a lot just fell silent as if understanding the situation that occurred. Andy and Miranda are picking vegetables in his garden when Thomas, Ruby and Tim escape. They walked until some distance and then they ran away.

"They're running!" andy's cry broke the silence with the sonorous voice typical of a child.

"Damn," said Miranda who was still heard from a distance.

They run very fast without resting. For 20 minutes they continued to run tirelessly. Understandably, Thomas and Ruby are also runners who often participate in competitions.

"Rest first," Ruby took the water and gave it to Thomas and Tim. He also drank and sat for a while.

"It's a 5-minute break" Thomas said.

With sweat pouring out they sat on the ground without thinking their clothes would get dirty.

"Let's go now" Ruby got up and reached out to Thomas.

This time they did not run, but walked fast. The trees are getting fewer. Many houses are visible from a distance. It looks like a village. They again ran until the sky began to dark but the streets remained bright because there were many lights.

Yes, they managed to get out of the forest. With a limp leg Thomas collapsed on the asphalt.

A group of young people who had just come home from school immediately approached them.

"Sister? Brother is okay?" ask a child.

They were wearing high school uniforms and were shopping in a store.

Thomas breathlessly replied that he was just exhausted. The children take Ruby, Thomas and Tim to the store where they shop. The store is indeed one of the shops where High School children like to hang out and chat because the front area is like a cafe.

In her heart Ruby said that the village was quite advanced.

A child brings cooked instant noodles to Thomas, Ruby and Tim. They eat with gourmand.

"Thank you for helping us" Ruby said.

"Where are you?" ask a girl who, from the identification on her uniform, is named Lucy.

"We fled from the forest. We were kidnapped," replied Ruby.

"Well they act again" said the boy who brought Thomas the noodles.

"You'd better stay at my house. It just so happened that there was only me and grandma at home because my parents were going out of town" Lucy offered me a place to stay.

Thomas and Ruby who did not know where to sleep immediately agreed and said many thanks to the High School children earlier.

***

"You take a shower first. I'll get you my mom and dad's clothes that you can wear for a while" Lucy said, pointing out the bathroom.

While taking clothes, Lucy tells her grandmother that they have a guest.

Thomas and Tim, who are waiting for their turn to take a bath, are approached by Lucy's grandmother.

"There are guests. Grandma get me some food first" said the grandmother kindly.

"No need, Grandma. Just now Lucy and her friends bought us instant noodles. That's enough" replied Thomas, although he was still hungry.

The grandmother smiled and rushed into the kitchen. Ruby comes out of the bathroom and Thomas and Tim go in for a bath together.

Lucy accompanies Ruby at the dinner table while grandma cooks food for her. Ruby who is not tasty because of their troublesome nights immediately went to the kitchen to help grandma.

"Excuse me, Grandma," Ruby said from outside the kitchen door.

"Oh, wait at the table, dear," said the grandmother.

"Is there anything I can help you with, Grandma?" ask Ruby.

"No need. Grandma loves to cook by herself" replied the grandmother with a smile.

Lucy and Ruby return to the dining table. They sat down and chatted about light things. Not to forget Ruby asked where Lucy went to school and how the village was doing. Lucy attended one of her favorite Christian High Schools. And the village since the last few years continues to hold development so that it can be as it is now. An advanced village with enough lighting, even almost like a city.

Thomas comes out of the bathroom with Tim in oversized clothes.

Along with that, the grandmother came to bring them chicken soup. They ate the soup made by Grandma.

"Why are you here? Looks like you're from the city" asked grandma.

"They were kidnapped" Lucy replied.

Grandma looked surprised but her face was cheerful again.

"Tell me everything to Grandma. Tomorrow morning grandma take you to the police station" said Lucy's grandmother, who is famous for calling Jen's grandmother.

Thomas tells the chronology of their abductees in detail. Early on they are kidnapped while at Ruby's house, the kidnapper's good behavior towards them, meets Miranda and the kidnapper's reason is good to them.

"Miranda, that fool," said the grandmother.

"Did grandma know her?" ask Lucy.

"He used to be our villager long before our village experienced development. But she married a city person and left her sickly parents" replied Jen's grandmother.

"Parent Miranda, means grandmother and grandfather Kylie?" Ruby asked herself.

"Rubber. It looks like the nature of her children is also the same as her treasure-crazed mother" said the grandmother.

Grandma then told me that before the village advanced and most of the population still did not get too much education,there are often cases of missing people there but then the missing person returned with trauma and some even went crazy.

It's true what Miranda told you but there's one lie, Miranda's husband hasn't died.

The person with the mental disorder who had Kylie search for the target was Kylie's own father. The family cooperates in a kidnapping and when someone is about to escape and be caught by Miranda then he will pretend to help. But usually the person who was caught by Miranda never returned. Only people who immediately escape from where they are held can return with an unstable psychiatric condition.

They were surprised to hear the story of Grandma.

"Why don't they just take the person to the doctor for treatment" Lucy said.

"They belong to a famous family. If the disease is known to the public it can tarnish its reputation. And when their grandmother found out that Miranda's husband had the mental illness after he checked her out of the country" she said.

Actually, there has been no kidnapping in their village for a long time and the villagers think that the kidnapper has stopped doing the action. But it turns out their assumption is wrong, the kidnappers moved places to find new targets in the big city.

"I didn't think they'd act again. This time it will all be completely over" said a man who suddenly appeared behind Lucy.