We roll up in the driveway. I’m not too surprised to find all of our parents, as well as Jenni’s family, sitting on the porch; but what is Austin’s uncle, the detective, doing here? A bit of panic fills my chest. I grab a hold of Austin’s hand for a life preserver. “We’re in so much crap right now.”
Austin sighs. “Yep. I can’t believe my uncle’s here.”
Jenni speaks up from the back. “Great. He’s probably going to separate us and take our statements.”
Simon looks over at Jenni. “Is he a cop?”
I look back at him. “For an 11-year-old, you’re very astute.”
Simon frowns at me and crosses his arms on his chest. “Thanks. I guess. I’m not a troglodyte.”
Austin rolls his eyes and glares at me. “Wonderful. Another word nerd.”
Simon pops up between us and gives us all a start before throwing his hand in the middle. “No worries. I’ve got this. In it to win it, right?”
I have no idea what he’s talking about, but I throw a hand in. We raise our fisted hands and make quiet explosion sounds.
Austin climbs out of the driver’s seat. Jenni and I follow suit. Simon climbs out last, looking all teary-eyed, and he rushes to Austin’s side and clings to him. Austin pats his head. “There, there, Simon. It’s alright. You’re home now.”
Simon must sense the weakest link, as he goes straight for my mother’s knee. He plops down beside her and gives her a huge side hug. “I’m Simon. I just wanted to say thank you. It was your son and daughter who saved me from that horrible place. I’ve never had a mother, and my father tried to leave us all behind, after he stole everything from us!” He hands his phone over to Austin’s uncle. “He even used my phone to send messages so he wouldn’t get caught!”
Detective Martinez opens the phone, scans the contents, and connects the dots. He turns to Simon. “I’ll have to keep this phone, Oliver Twist. It has incriminating evidence on it.” His sardonic tone grates on my nerves. How dare he question Simon in an accusatory manner.
Simon wipes his tears away with the back of his hand. “Okay. Just don’t send me away.”
Juan looks over at Austin. “Did you really save this little boy?” I turn away and bite my lip as I remember a grenade-throwing Simon. He’s hardly a little boy.
Austin nods his head. “Yes, sir, I did.”
Detective Martinez looks at Austin. “They’re sending in a S.W.A.T team as we speak.”
I cough a little as I remember Hank and our daring escape. “It’s a little late for that.”
The detective looks at Simon again, who’s still very much attached to my mother’s side. He reaches in Simon’s shirt pocket and pulls out the grenade. His eyes are huge. Simon straightens right up. “Careful, sir. That’s a live grenade. Don’t pull that ring.”
The detective jumps a foot and walks quickly away from everyone. He narrows his gaze at Simon, who just went from a sobbing innocent preteen to a child soldier.
Austin speaks up in Simon’s defense. “Hey. He’s the son of the leader of the doomsday cult. Weaponry is their first language.”
Simon turns to Juan. “Can we keep the armored car?”
My mom turns to me, eyebrows raised. “Whose car was that?”
I sigh. I really don’t want to tell her. “It was Aunt Evalina’s.”
She nods her head, harrumphing as she turns sideways. She bites her lip. “Was?”
I nod my head again, and my tears flow freely. “She’s gone, Mom. Aunt Evalina is gone. The cult leader killed her.”
Jenni’s parents have been quiet all this time. Her dad speaks up. “So you’re really responsible for busting into the doomsday compound and notifying the authorities to free the young Russian girls in captivity?”
Jenni smiles at her dad. “Yes, Father. That was me.”
I turn to her, feeling clueless. “Just what did you do, Jenni?”
She smiles back at me. “I may have videoed girls being unloaded from a truck while I was playing hide and seek, and I may have sent that video to the local authorities on our way home.”
My friend is Awe-Some! I nod my head, impressed. “So while I was stuck in the room with handsome Hank, you were busting a major sex-trafficking ring?” Oh crap balls.
My mom shoves Simon off her and jumps up from the stoop. “Who is Hank, and just what exactly happened in that room?”
Austin steps forward. He gets between me and my mom. “Yo, yo, ma. You met Hank. He was here before she graduated.” He lets that sink in. My mom’s face turns red. He holds his hand out like a stop sign. “The deed didn’t happen. I can tell you that.” I glance at Jenni’s brother, Jim, and I blush even harder. My mom’s face relaxes a hair.
I take a deep breath. “He kept me in his room. He wanted me for his wife. I told him I couldn’t marry him because I’m going to college, and I have bigger dreams than that.” My mom stares at me like I’m nuts. “I tried to talk him into marrying one of the Russian girls. Plenty of them wanted to marry him.”
Jim whips out his phone and pulls up a video, changing the subject, thank goodness. His eyes bug out. “That’s you! That’s you in that car, bringing down the chopper. Ho-ly crap!” Austin’s dad leans in, watching. Jim looks at us, and back at the screen. “Who’s the big guy and where is he now?”
Simon smiles up at him. “The big guy is Hank. He’s my brother. He stayed behind to save our father.”
Jim frowns, looking confused. “Didn’t he take down the helicopter your dad was in?”
Simon sighs. “He thought my dad took Ruby, Hank’s first true love, away from him. So Hank got mad and took down the helicopter. But then he felt bad about making them crash, especially since they caught fire, so he bailed on us to save our dad. They have a complicated relationship.”
Jim stares at Simon. “And you were driving the armored car that whole time?”
Simon grins up at him. “Damn straight. I’m in it to win it.”
Austin’s dad looks down at him. “Son. If you live here, there will be no more driving for you until you’re legal.”
My mom turns to face him. “Juan? You’re just going to let a complete stranger into our home?”
Austin puts a hand on Simon’s shoulder. “If not for Simon and Hank, I never would have gotten out of that silo.”
She looks at me. “And you’re okay with this?”
I wink at Simon. “He’s a little rough around the edges, but he’s got a good heart. I have a feeling he’ll fit right in.”
I pull a piece of paper from my pocket and hand it to the detective. “Here. I think these are numbers to Swiss bank accounts or something. I’m not sure, but I bet they’re tied to Hank’s father, the cult leader.”
He looks at me. “You’re just full of surprises. Where’d you find these, Amy?”
I stare back at him. “In a pile of books.”
The detective walks to his car. “I’m going to take care of this grenade and do some research on these numbers. I’ll be back around I’m sure, but not today.” He turns back to look at me. “Oh, and that finger you gave me? There was no poison in it. She died of natural causes.”
Simon clears his throat. “Actually, she didn’t.” The detective all but glares at Simon, who appears unphased as he looks at me. “Your aunt was a diabetic, and she needed insulin, but my dad said he believed he could cure her. Really, I think he didn’t want to pay for her insulin supplies, and he didn’t want the FedEx guy coming around so much. Anyway, she needed insulin and he wouldn’t get it for her, and he wouldn’t let her leave. She did the best she could, but the insulin was something she eventually couldn’t live without, and that’s how she passed. She went into a coma.” He takes a deep breath. “And that’s when I cut off her finger and put it on ice and mailed it to you. So actually, it was me. I mean, she wrote the letter, and she told me what to do if she went into a coma. I didn’t want to do it, but I made a promise to your aunt.” He stops for a few seconds and looks at Juan. “She told me if I did this, I could keep her armored car.”
Juan looks down at him and nods his head. “Boy, you’ve got a lot of nerve, but it’s a deal. That armored car is yours.”
Simon answers him with a grin. “I’m going to hold you to that.”
Juan shivers and wiggles his fingers in the air. “I’ll keep my promises. I don’t want to lose any fingers. I kind of need them.”
He and Simon share a laugh, while the rest of us inwardly cringe.
Jenni’s dad stands up. “I can’t take any more of that kind of talk.” He turns to me and Austin, and glances down at Jenni. “What you three did was very brave, and very stupid. Jenni, give your friend a hug. You won’t be seeing each other for a while.”
Jenni leans in and hugs me. “Wouldn’t change a thing, Amy.”
I hug her back harder. “I’m so glad you weren’t catatonic.” We burst into uncontrollable giggles all over again. Jenni’s mom grabs her hand and tugs her off our porch. I watch the rest of them climb in their car and drive away.
Juan turns to the three of us. “I hope you’re hungry. I ordered plenty of Chinese food.”
Simon turns to Austin. “Is that anything like Sonic?”
Austin pulls him in and gives him a noogie. “Sure.” The boys walk inside.
My mom lingers on the porch, and I sit down beside her. She puts a hand on my knee, squeezing. “Amy. Do you have any idea what kind of mess you were in?”
I nod my head. I feel really stupid when I think of all the gunfire and explosions. “Yes.”
She nods her head. “Good, because my heart can’t take another doomsday trip.” She stands up and puts her hands on her hips. She rolls her eyes skyward. “Thank God you only have one Aunt Evalina.”