I went to bed early that night. I was still pissed about not leaving. But could you blame me?

The worst part was that I couldn't tell mom or dad why I was mad. I wasn't supposed to know they were planning to leave town. I was just supposed to go on with my day and act like a baby.

I couldn't do that after all I knew.

I was already fast asleep when I felt a hand on my arm. I jumped away and pulled my bunny close to my chest as if the cotton-filled toy could protect me.

"Lyla, it's just me." Mom said, her voice hushed.

I looked at her in the dim lighting, my night light the only thing giving the room any warmth and light. She was standing by my crib with her jacket on and her hair pulled back.

"I need to get you dressed so we can go."

"Where are we going?" I climbed out of my crib and watched as she went to my dresser to look for a change of clothes.

"We'll tell you in the car."

She walked back to me with a thick dress with long sleeves. She helped me change into it then put long socks over my feet to keep me warm.

I sat down so she could help me put my shoes on and she glanced at me for a few seconds before she continued.

She grabbed my diaper bag and went into the bathroom. I heard a few things moving around but didn't know what she grabbed. She stepped out and reached out for my hand. "Come on, sweetie."

I followed her blindly, not sure where we were going. I just knew we were leaving. I wasn't supposed to know anything more.

Dad was already in the car when we got there. Mom opened the backseat door and I noticed my car seat was gone. I stared at the empty space for a minute before climbing in anyway. Mom helped me get buckled then set her purse and my diaper bag on the seat beside me.

Dad waited to start the car until we were all in and the doors were shut. He wasted no time after in putting the car in reverse and backing down the driveway.

I waited until we were driving down the road before I spoke. "Where are we going?"

"We're getting out of here." Dad said, his eyes glued to the road. "We should've left a long time ago."

Mom put her hand on his arm and he relaxed his hands on the steering wheel. "This place was too good to be true."

"Why are we leaving now? Why not wait until morning?"

Dad glanced in the rearview mirror. "We don't want anyone to know we're leaving. Someone might try to stop us."

I raised my eyebrows at his words. He made it seem like we'd be in trouble if we left town. "So we're not supposed to leave?"

"Their rules say we're not allowed to leave town unless for a medical emergency. It's a bunch of bull-"

"Brian."

Dad was angry and it wasn't often that he got angry. Something must have happened that I didn't know about. I wasn't sure I'd ever know about it. It seemed like mom was sheltering me from what was going on and I didn't know why.

We passed a 'Come back soon' sign as we left town that sent chills down my spine.