“You have one last chance to give me the pendant, or I start taking little pieces out of that pretty face of yours.” While he continued to yell at Kimberly, Daniel pushed his scarred face close to hers. He could see her eyes, wide with fear, again return to the open door of the library. He gave a victorious chuckle. “Don’t be expecting any grand rescue from that dumb bodyguard of yours. Kevin is out back investigating a small explosion.”

“Is that what that was? I thought a jet went by overhead. What did you do?” she demanded, leaping out of the chair she had been sitting in, her temper warring against the fear of the knife he held in his damaged hand.

Daniel grabbed her arm when he saw she was about to bolt around him. “No you don’t, Missy.” Her arm was yanked up behind her back, giving him a sadistic satisfaction from the grunt of pain that came from her clenched lips. “You know that ugly little white thing out back you were so fond of? I’m afraid it went boom.”

She pulled against his grasp and was rewarded by another vicious jerk on her arm. “My gazebo? You blew up my gazebo? That…that was a gift to my father from Walt Disney. You knew it was handmade to look like the one in Marceline! How could you?”

“Oh, it was quite easy.” Thinking he had accomplished something impressive, he had a bragging swagger in his voice. “It’s amazing what you can buy over the Internet…. Now quit changing the subject. Where is that diamond?” The knife slid even closer to her face.

She backed away as far as the pain in her arm would allow. “I don’t have it. It isn’t here.”

“Now why don’t I believe you?”

“You know me, Daniel. You know I could never lie convincingly. Father always knew when I was lying, and so did you.”

“Where is it, then?”

“Lance has it.” She had to drop her eyes so he couldn’t tell that she was lying through her teeth.

“You gave a red diamond to Pretty Boy? How stupid are you!?” he yelled at her, waving the knife around in his anger. “Do you have any idea how rare those are?”

“Oh, been doing a little research, have you, Daniel?” she spat back at him.

“What, do you think I’m an idiot? Of course I did.” He had to refrain himself from slapping the smug look off her face. “Right after I heard you and Brentwood talking about it. Maybe you should have done a little yourself before giving it to that con artist. Do you really think you have a future with that loser? Your dad told me he turned on his own friends.”

Kimberly kept her voice low in an effort to sound contrite. She didn’t need him getting any angrier. “I know his history, Daniel. You don’t need to lecture me. Anyway, you of all people should know that people can change.”

“If you mean they can go from bad to worse, then you’re correct. But I don’t trust this guy. Never did. But, no, you never listen to family. You think you know everything. Well, I want that diamond. And I will get it. One way or the other. Then I’ll deal with your stupid amusement park. And the little secret you have hidden away down there.”

Kimberly gave a gasp. “You wouldn’t dare! Don’t you dare touch Walt. Let go of me!”

He gave her aching arm another yank. “Don’t tell me what to do. You aren’t in charge any more. I am. As I should’ve been all along. I finally got your father out of the picture. You cooperate, or you’re next.” He roughly pulled her over to a window that overlooked the expansive back yard. They could see the bodyguard still poking around through the debris of the gazebo looking for the detonator. Daniel knew Kevin wouldn’t be there much longer. Now it was time to put his secondary plan into action. “I need you to make a call to the Park.”

“I’m not doing anything you say. What do you mean you got my father out of the way?” She struggled against his grip. “What did you do!?”

He waved off the shocked look on her face. “Seems there are certain teas someone with a heart condition shouldn’t drink…. He really should’ve been more careful. And, yes, you are going to do what I say. If you don’t, your dear Mr. Brentwood will have an unfortunate accident in that piece of crap he drives. You know how unreliable Jags are.” Daniel started laughing at his own joke. It was a sick, desperate laugh that chilled Kimberly to the bone. She knew he meant every word. She also knew he was past the point of no return. He was desperate. He was dangerous. He had killed once and wouldn’t hesitate to do it again to get what he wanted.

“What do you want me to do?” Her voice was deceptively calm as she tried to hide the hatred. She didn’t want him doing anything impulsive to her. She now had ‘revenge’ to add to her list of grievances against her uncle.

The pressure on her arm lessened and the knife lowered. He had believed her. “That’s a good girl. You usually did listen to reason once a strong hand was shown.”

I’ll cut your heart out if you blink twice, she silently promised.

Daniel, misunderstanding her sudden smile, assumed she was now compliant and scared of him. “Call the Park and tell them to shut down Tom Sawyer Island and leave one raft operational. And don’t even try and tell me you don’t have that power.” When she opened her mouth to protest, he again pulled on her arm.

“I understand. I need to get over to the phone, Daniel.” As soon as she moved, he had shoved the knife in her face.

“Oh, right. I knew that.”

With the knife still in front of her, Kimberly picked up the direct phone to the Park and pushed number two. When the phone was answered, she knew there was no need for any pleasantries. This was the Direct Order phone line with the voice-altering transmitter. “I need Tom Sawyer Island shut down for the rest of the day. Leave one raft ready to use at the dock. Effective immediately. Thank you.”

As Kimberly replaced the handset, she knew there would be another call being placed immediately within the Park system. In approximately fifteen minutes, the Island would be completely cleared of guests. She also knew there would be no questions and no one would check to see what was either needed or wrong. Sometimes the system worked too well.

“Now what?” she demanded. “And put away that stupid knife. You know you don’t need it.”

He started to push her out of the library and toward the hallway leading to the garage. “You must think I am really stupid. I’m not about to get rid of the knife. I don’t trust you any farther than I can throw you.”

Yes, I do think you are stupid. I’m just waiting….

“You’re going to drive us to Disneyland, park in the regular lot, and enter the main gate just like any other loving family. No employee entrance. No message to any hulking security guard. We’re just going to blend in,” as they entered the garage and he motioned for her to drive her car.

“Yeah, a knife held at my throat really blends in, Daniel.” She started the car, pretending to warm it up in hopes that Kevin would come to look for her.

“Oh, don’t worry about the knife. It’ll be aimed at your spine the whole time we’re walking down that insipid Main Street.... Man, I’ll be glad when the bulldozers finally take care of that eyesore…. One false step, one tiny word to any of your friends, and you get stuck straight into the spine. Then I go after Brentwood. Savvy?” His plan was working so brilliantly, he could barely refrain from laughing out loud. He could tell she was putty in his hands. He figured it would be one hour, two tops, until he would get his hands on that diamond. And then the fun would begin.

When he realized they weren’t moving yet, he became furious. “Quit stalling! Put this jelly bean in gear and get moving.” By now Kevin would have found the cause of the explosion and would be on his way back to the house. Daniel knew he could manhandle Kimberly easily enough. Kevin was another problem. Kevin could break him in two like a matchstick.

With a silent sigh, Kimberly backed out of the garage and started down the hill, her mind spinning. Sooner or later Daniel would relax his vigilance. And she would be ready when he did.

It was a beautiful, sunny summer day in Anaheim. Disneyland was full of smiling faces, all headed in a myriad of directions to go on their next adventure. The Central Hub was newly decorated with bright flowers; the hanging pots of fuchsias a vivid pink against the green of the full trees lined up behind the flowers.

Kimberly had more on her mind than the flowers as she was roughly led by the arm through the crowds of people. Daniel had clamped onto her arm the moment her car stopped in its parking spot in the Mickey and Friends Lot. He didn’t even let go when they went through the Security checkpoint. He wasn’t giving her any chance to either flee on foot or strike out at him with her long fingernails.

Daniel led her under the arched entry of Adventureland and they wound their way through the crowd in front of Indiana Jones. Kimberly gave an upward glance as she passed under the boughs of the Treehouse, a small smile playing over her lips as she remembered the night she shared with Lance. They had gotten so close in such a short period of time. Then there had been that strange, wonderful vision of Lance.… Another yank on her arm brought her attention back to her hated uncle.

“You don’t need to be so rough, Daniel,” she quietly told him. “You’re going to leave bruises if you don’t stop that.”

“I’ll leave more than that if you don’t shut up. I see a raft at the Landing. At least you got that right.”

Kimberly gave a short sigh. Yes, her instructions were always followed to the letter, as her father’s had been. Rats.

Daniel slowed their pace as they approached the Frontierland River. He wanted to see if there was anyone who appeared to be watching the raft. Satisfied after a quick look around, Daniel pushed her through the exit gate of the Raft ride. There didn’t seem to be anyone giving them a second look. The closest people were the ones on the smoking dock, over by the Columbia’s berth. There were no security guards hovering. It looked like they were free and clear. “Get on the raft and get back by engine, away from the entrance.” He unhooked the leather ties that held the wooden raft to the dock. With a quick glance on the location of the Mark Twain and any approaching canoes, he flipped a couple of switches and the small engine roared to life, water shooting out from under the rudder. He let the force of the water agitated by the engine slowly push them free of the dock. The task of getting clear of the dock was usually accomplished by a second cast member who pushed off, balancing from a precarious perch on the outermost pontoon of the raft. Daniel knew better than to ask Kimberly to help.

The raft took a rather awkward trip over to the Island. Daniel had learned how to drive the raft by questioning a friend of his who used to work there. He had never actually steered or docked one. He missed the landing dock by a few feet and had to back the raft into position. It banged heavily against the wooden dock, almost throwing them off their feet—much to the delight of several guests who watched from the other side of the River. They idly wondered why the rafts were open now with only two people on them who were obviously not cast members. Some of them guessed the raft had been ‘borrowed’ by two guests and wished they had thought of it themselves. Once the raft hit the landing, their attention drifted and they moved along. They had wanted to see the raft make the complete trip around the Island. This wasn’t any fun to watch.

After the engine was killed and the raft secured, Daniel motioned for Kimberly to get moving.

“Where are we going?” She was starting to get more worried. The island was empty and no one would come back until they received the call for the Go Ahead. She knew Daniel wouldn’t make the call. Kimberly swallowed nervously when she realized no one knew she was there.

“Head for the Fort.” Daniel referred to Fort Wilderness, a stockade built out of twelve- to fourteen-foot tall logs designed to look like real wooden stakes even to the pointed tips on top. It had been called the ‘Last Outpost of Civilization’ in years gone past, a favorite place for children of all ages to climb through and shoot imaginary rifles through the small slits high in the watchtowers.

“The Fort has been closed for years, Daniel. Even you should know that.”

“I do know that, smart-aleck. That’s why it is so perfect.”

Kimberly felt a chill go through her. “Perfect for what?” It was difficult to keep her voice from breaking.

“You won’t be found for a long, long time. No, head to the back of the Fort.” He roughly pushed her down a narrow, dusty path that led to the back of the island. “Head to the graveyard.”

Kimberly stopped short, causing Daniel to run into her. He grabbed the knife out of his pocket. “Get moving!”

“Why do you want the graveyard?”

He could hear the fear in her voice. The smile he gave her was twisted, one that looked even worse because of the damage the accident had done to his face. “Do what I say, or it will be your last stop. There’s a tunnel back there.”

Kimberly’s mind raced. She had to get away from him, but he had already nicked her with the knife since they had landed on the island. She knew it wasn’t an accident; it was a warning for her. Kimberly also knew which tunnel he meant. He was taking her to the exit of the old Escape Tunnel. The start of the tunnel was inside the Fort and had been a fun idea for children pretending to be attacked by savages. The tunnel itself was narrow, low and dark. There was no telling how long it had been since anyone had been in there. At the Park, once something was closed and locked up, it was generally forgotten. She could feel her heart start to pound.

“I’m sure it’s locked, Daniel.” She had to throw something out there in desperate hope. “Can’t we talk this through?”

Daniel was busy with the cell phone he had pulled out of his pocket with his free hand. “We’re done talking…and it isn’t locked. You aren’t the only one with friends,” he scoffed. “Stand over there,” he pointed with the knife, indicating the low exit to the tunnel. He then blocked the only exit path with his body. “Hello? Is this Lance? Hey, buddy, this is Daniel. How are you?.... Now, now, no need to get nasty…. Say, I have something of yours that I would like to offer as an exchange…. Oh? I beg to differ. I think you’d be very interested in what I have to say…. Say hello.” The phone was jabbed up to Kimberly’s face as he nicked her arm again with the knife.

“Ouch! That’s not necessary, Daniel.… Lance! Don’t do anything he says….”

Daniel gave a laugh and put the phone back to his ear. “You still there, Brentwood? Yeah, you’d better listen. Oh, she just cut herself with a knife, that’s all. You know how clumsy she is…. Now, now. No need for unpleasantness. We’re all friends here.” Daniel gave a loud laugh. “Gosh, I’m so funny! Say Lance, I want to make a trade with you. I’ll give you Kimberly alive and you give me the red diamond…. No, no. No argument. I know you have it. You have, oh, say, half an hour to bring it to Tom Sawyer Island. I’ll meet you at the raft dock. If you come alone and bring me the diamond, I’ll actually tell you where Kimberly is…. Half an hour, Brentwood, or I’ll send a piece of Miss Waldron floating across the River on its own.” Daniel snapped shut the phone and thrust it back in his pocket. He was still chuckling at his own cleverness. His humor died when he saw the look on Kimberly’s face. “Wow, if looks could kill….”

“Then you would have been dead a long time ago, Daniel,” she said through clenched teeth.

Daniel checked his watch. “Now, let’s see how prompt your dearly beloved is.”

“He’s going to need more time than that.”

“Don’t give me any of your lip. I know how long it takes to drive here from his crappy apartment. I went through it often enough to know,” he admitted with a huge grin.

Kimberly licked her dry lips. “The pendant isn’t in Lance’s apartment. It’s at the house. It’s been there all along.”

Angry again, he waved the knife under her face. “You told me Lance had it.”

Kimberly gave a little shrug. “I lied.”

He looked at his watch again. “Then you’ll pay the penalty if he doesn’t get here in time.” Stupid girl…always messing with me.… I’ll show her who is boss. “Let’s see how my friend did. Try that door under there. Now!” He promptly shoved her into the door.

Knowing he would use the knife again, she felt it was in her best interests to comply at this point. If his friends were as mindless as he was, perhaps they didn’t—or couldn’t—do what he asked of them. After all, the Fort had been closed a long time. Only a few key personnel would have access to these hidden tunnels. Buoyed by that hope, Kimberly felt her heart sink when the door swung open. A rush of stale air hit her in the face. No one had been in there for a long time. “Don’t make me go in there, Daniel,” she whispered. “I won’t call out. I promise.”

“’I won’t call out. I promise’,” he mocked in a shrill voice. “You must really think I’m stupid. That does remind me, though.” He pulled out a long string of twine from his pocket. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back.” After she slowly complied, he secured her wrists so tightly she couldn’t move them. Since her back was turned, she couldn’t see that he now pulled out a long strip of material.

“You don’t need….” The rest of what Kimberly was going to say was cut off when he roughly put the strip of cloth in her mouth as a gag. As he pulled it around to the back so he could tie it behind her head, he caught some of her hair in the knot. Her eyes started to water from the pain.

Rats, she inwardly complained. Should have kept my big mouth shut.

“Now you really won’t call out. Get in the tunnel.”

Kimberly had to bend over to fit in the fairly low exit. Darkness enveloped her as she stumbled forward, hoping she didn’t bang her head on one of the unseen stalactites in the realistically-built cave. Unable to use her hands to steady herself, she found it easier to drop down on her knees. She gave a small, unheard scream when the door—her only source of light—slammed shut behind her. She sank into a sitting position, tears filling her eyes, as blood ran down the cuts on her abused arms.

Daniel guided the raft back over at the mainland before Lance arrived. He had to turn away guests who wanted to take their children over to the Island to play. They walked away wondering why that cast member was not in costume and very rude to them.

Lance was wide-eyed and breathless by the time he got to the Raft dock. He had to force himself to drive carefully and then not run through the Park, pushing people out of the way, to get to Frontierland. “Where is she?” Lance demanded once he got face-to-face with Daniel.

Daniel reached in his pocket and showed the point of the knife to Lance. Lance could see specks of red on the knife. He knew it was Kimberly’s blood and he turned red with rage.

“If you hurt her in any way, I will kill you,” Lance muttered to Daniel, low enough so he would not be overheard by anyone who happened to pass by.

Daniel took a step back from the intensity in Lance’s eyes. He knew Lance was being perfectly honest. “Back off, playboy.” Daniel tried to sound menacing, like he was in charge. But his voice quavered and that irritated him. “I’m in charge here, not you. If you want to see her alive again, you’ll do what I say. Got that? Now, where’s the diamond?”

“I want to know she’s all right first.”

“You don’t have any bargaining chips, Brentwood. Show me the diamond. Now, or I walk away and you try and find her on that island before she bleeds to death.” All that was a last-minute bluff to force Lance to comply. He wanted that diamond. The whereabouts of Kimberly was his only ace in the hole. But Lance didn’t know that.

Lance realized he could call in the entire Security force to help him scour the Island. But, there might be secret hiding places he didn’t know about that Daniel did. If Kimberly was hurt as badly as Daniel was implying, it wasn’t worth the risk. Look what he had found hidden under the Pirate ride that had been there untouched and undiscovered for thirty-six years.… He knew he had to go along with Daniel at this point.

Lance reached into his jacket pocket and pulled a velvet box out far enough for Daniel to see. “I have it right here, Crain. Now take me to Kimberly!”

“Open it. I trust you just about as much as I trust her. Open it!”

Lance pulled apart the velvet sides of the small box. The sunlight caught on the facets inside and sent out a dazzling sparkle of red light. “See? It’s here. Now take me to her.”

“I could just take the diamond and leave.” His smug smile faded when Lance showed no fear.

“And I could shoot you where you stand,” was Lance’s quiet response. He was rewarded by Daniel’s eyes going wide with panic and hesitation. “You didn’t say come unarmed, Daniel. You only said to come alone,” whispered Lance as he leaned closer.

“I don’t believe you.” Daniel tried desperately to force his bravado.

“Then I guess we’re at a stand-off. Take me to Kimberly and you can have the diamond. I only want her.” Lance swallowed when the words came out of his mouth. The words were true. He knew he would give Daniel every diamond in the world if Kimberly was safe and he had her in his arms. Nothing else mattered. He shoved the velvet box back in his pocket. “Take me there. Now.”

“When I show you the girl, you’ll give me the diamond, and I bring the raft back here. Is that agreed? Gentlemen’s agreement?”

Lance suddenly grinned. “Gentlemen’s agreement? Why, of course.”

The grin should have clued Daniel in. Lance didn’t consider Daniel a gentleman.

“Get on the raft. I’ll take us over. How you get off the island is up to you.”

Lance just gave a curt nod in agreement. The time for words was over.

As the raft made its irregular course over to Tom Sawyer Island one more time, a pair of sharp blue eyes watched from the deck of the Columbia, berthed in Fowler’s Harbor. The eyes narrowed as the two men left the raft and turned left, heading for the old Fort.

What was Lance up to now? He didn’t look very happy.

Sitting in the darkness, Kimberly tried humming to relieve her nerves. Small, dark places had never been her favorite. She tried to keep down the choking fear that crowded the edges of her mind. Think, think, girl. What can you do?

The attempt to get her hands free had been unsuccessful. The cuts from the knife still smarted, but she thought the blood had stopped running down her arm. Daniel surely had locked the door behind her. How long was this tunnel? What was at the other end of it? Did it go straight to the old Fort?

She got back onto her knees and began her slow advance through the tunnel. She could have stood and walked, but she was still mindful of the low-hanging rocks. Thankful there was no scurrying around her, for she knew those noises would indicate that the tunnel was occupied by something else.

The main tunnel twisted and turned, but there were no other smaller tunnels branching off like there were in the other caves on the Island. She came to the end of the tunnel, which she hoped would lead inside the Fort. Anything would be better than this dirty darkness. With some effort, she got turned around and got her hands around the handle. It, too, was locked. She held back a wave of panic as she turned around again. Using her feet, she kicked at the door, giving a muffled yell of triumph when the second kick splintered the old wood and fresh air and sunlight streamed into the tunnel.

Blinking from the bright light, she crawled out of the tunnel and stood up in the littered, but otherwise vacant, parade grounds of the old Fort Wilderness.

“She’s in there.” Daniel pointed at the tunnel with the knife he had taken out of his pocket once they were out of sight of the mainland.

Lance looked up at the tall walls of the Fort. “What is this? The old escape tunnel?”

Pleased with himself, Daniel smiled and rocked back on his heels. “Yeah. Kinda ironic, isn’t it?” He pulled out a key and threw it to Lance. He didn’t want to have his back turned to the very angry man in front of him. “Unlock the door,” he instructed. “Then, you first. I insist.”

Worried about Kimberly, Lance didn’t bother arguing. He still had the diamond and the assumption he might have brought a gun. Ducking down, he started to make his way through the tunnel, using the light from the open door to see what was in front of him. Daniel came in after him.

“Kimberly?” Lance called out. “It’s me. Are you all right? Kimberly?”

The men could hear no movement except for their own. “I’m warning you, Daniel. Where is she?”

Daniel felt a moment of panic. She was supposed to be there, cowering in fear. Where was she? “I left her gagged right here in the opening. It’s not my fault she didn’t stay where she was told.”

Lance bit back the angry words he was going to hurl at Daniel when he heard Kimberly had been gagged. There would be time later. He started moving through the tunnel. “I see more light up ahead.”

“You do?” Daniel blinked in surprise. He didn’t know what to think. This wasn’t part of his plan. He should have had the diamond by now and been on his way back to the Aston Martin and the mansion.

Lance emerged from the tunnel, blinking from the bright light. He was relieved to see Kimberly sitting on a bench in front of one of the old buildings. She jumped to her feet, swaying from having her hands tied behind her back. Lance ran up to her and caught her. “Are you all right? Why are your arms bloody!?” He pulled the gag out of her mouth and untied her hands.

“I’m okay, Lance, really.” Sagging in relief, she leaned into him. “Just do what he says. Please? I just want to go home.”

During this whispered exchange, Daniel silently came up behind them and smashed a rock down on the base of Lance’s skull. His eyes stunned, Lance collapsed at Kimberly’s feet without a word. She let out a small shriek and sank beside him. “What did you do that for!? We’ve done everything you said.” She ran her fingers over Lance’s head. There was a large, bleeding bump at the top of his neck. “You’ve really hurt him!”

Daniel just shrugged as he backed away from the hatred he saw in her eyes. “He said he had a gun. I was just making sure I was safe. Now, take the diamond out of his jacket pocket and throw it over here.”

“You are despicable, Daniel.” She reached into Lance’s jacket to find the box.

“Yeah, I’m really going to lose sleep over that, Kimberly. Hurry up. I have plans to put into action,” he motioned with the knife. “Enjoy your day at the Park. It’ll be one of the last. I have a plug to pull.”

Her heart aching, Kimberly pulled out the velvet box and tossed it to Daniel. With a shout of triumph, he shoved it down his shirt and turned to head back to the escape tunnel. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I will be on my way.”

“I hope you rot in….”

“Now, now, Kimberly. You know how your father didn’t approve of you talking that way.” With a snickering laugh, Daniel turned to go back the way they had come.

“Don’t you mention my father! After what you did, you have no right to even speak his name.”

Ready to give her a smart remark, Daniel was stopped in his tracks by a sudden, unexpected noise over by the locked stockade gates. Thinking they were alone on the Island, both he and Kimberly jerked their heads in that direction. They were stunned to see Wolf, dressed in his security outfit, drop easily to the ground from one of the high watchtower windows. Eyes narrowed in anger, he walked slowly toward Daniel, his hands out from his sides. He looked like a gunslinger walking toward a shootout at high noon. “Is he okay?” he briefly asked Kimberly, indicating his partner Lance with a tilt of his chin.

“I…I think so.” She could feel the throb in Lance’s neck. “His pulse is strong. I think he was just knocked out. Wolf! It was Daniel…he killed my father.”

“I know. He was poisoned. I have a Fort to clean up.” He turned back to Daniel who was still rooted by shock in the same spot. “This is my turf,” he snarled at Daniel.

“It was you. You were the inside man!” Ashen-faced, Daniel suddenly came to life and dove into the tunnel. They could see him scramble forward like a crab as fast as he could. Wolf followed him into the tunnel, his eyes flashing and lips compressed into an angry line.

Daniel got to the end of the tunnel, but he knew he would never make it to the raft in time. The knife was pulled back out of his pocket and he turned to wait for the security guard. He didn’t have to wait long.

Wolf emerged from the tunnel and was faintly surprised to see Daniel standing there waiting for him. He wasn’t surprised to see the knife in Daniel’s hand. The knife didn’t worry him at all.

Daniel held out his free hand in front of him. The red diamond pendant dangled from his fingers by its chain. “I don’t have an argument with you. I don’t want the girl. I only want this. Let me pass and nobody else gets hurt.”

Wolf pulled up short when he saw the pendant in Daniel’s hand. How the heck did he get that? His eyes never left the sparkling diamond. “You don’t know what you’ve got.”

Daniel smiled when the security guard stopped advancing toward him. It was a sick smile, a smile tinged with delusions. “I’ve got this knife and I’ve got this diamond. This knife is going to get me off this Island, and this diamond is going to make me rich.”

“You think so?” Wolf’s voice was deceptively calm. He might have been discussing the possibility of rain.

With a confident laugh, Daniel swung the diamond up by its chain and caught the gem in his hand. “Absolut….”

Suddenly, Daniel grabbed his chest as he saw a flaming arrow pierce his heart. Looking down at the blood pouring out of the hole in his chest, he saw he was wearing some kind of a soldier’s uniform. It was blue and there were gold buttons and gold trim like an old Calvary uniform. He was surrounded by the sound of a battle. Then, he realized he was in a canoe and it was rocking violently from side to side, heading toward a swirling vortex of lightning and water….

At the moment of Daniel’s vision, Wolf pointed at him. “You’ve seen your future…and the future is now!” He emitted a roar and hurled himself at the distracted, panicked man. The knife flew out of Daniel’s hand as he was thrown to the ground. “This is my turf!” Wolf grabbed the diamond from Daniel’s loose grasp and drug him to his feet, shaking him like a rag doll. An eerie fog suddenly enveloped the Island and a brilliant, pink light flashed all around them.

When Lance came to, his head was in Kimberly’s lap, her fingers brushing the hair away from his forehead. When she told him about Wolf’s sudden appearance, Lance managed a small smile. “That’s my partner.”

“Why is it foggy all of a sudden?” She looked around the Fort’s parade grounds, distracted. “We need to get you out of here, Lance. You need help. Do you think you can walk?”

“Yeah, I think so. Oh. my head is killing me.”

“At least Daniel hit the hardest part of you.” Kimberly was so relieved he was all right she was almost crying.

“Ha ha,” was all Lance could manage as a comeback.

Since the main gate to the Fort was securely locked, Kimberly led him over to the only exit—the escape tunnel—and entered ahead of him. Lance was slow, but he knew he had to get out of there. A moan of pain came from his white lips from time to time.

When they got near the end, Kimberly heard what sounded like a howl and was suddenly blinded by a brilliant light that came from just outside the tunnel. A sudden blast of wind blew her back, covering her with leaves and dirt. Then, the pink light and the wind stopped as quickly as they had started.

“What was that?” Lance asked as she fell back against him.

“I’m not sure. It came from outside.” It was calm when she helped him out of the tunnel. They stood locked together in a close embrace, an embrace that was as much from emotion as it was to help Lance remain upright. Her mind was spinning. She wasn’t sure what she had just seen and heard, never having witnessed Wolf’s methods before. But, if that was what had just happened, it chilled her to the bone.

Lance looked up toward the sky, trying to peer through the fog that was beginning to dissipate. The movement of his neck caused a sharp pain to course through his head. “Oww. Remind me not to do that again. Where are Wolf and Daniel? Wolf should have caught him by now.”

“But Daniel had a knife, as the holes in my arm can testify.” Angry, she rubbed the red welts, recalling Lance wouldn’t have any way of knowing what had just happened.

Lance gave a chuckle. It wasn’t a mirthful chuckle. “I don’t think Wolf cared about that little knife.”

“Lance, I had to give Daniel the pendant. He had it when he left. He’s probably long gone by now. Maybe Wolf is still chasing him.”

Lance held her tight. “I don’t care about the diamond. We’ll do fine without it. I just care about you. You’re safe. That’s all the reward I need.”

They stood together for a moment longer, foreheads touching. That was enough for them. They had each other.

It was a moan from Lance that brought Kimberly back to the present—the uncertain present. “We need to get you back to the mainland. Daniel brought me over on a raft.”

Lance tried to nod, but the movement still hurt too much. “Same here. I’m not sure how Wolf got here. There might be a canoe nearby.” That was all he seemed capable of contributing when he lapsed into silence, a grimace from the pain crossing his face.

Kimberly put his arm around her waist to help him along. Walking a few steps in the fog, she suddenly stopped. “Lance! That’s Daniel’s knife! Why is it there on the ground?”

“Dunno,” Lance mumbled. “Bring it along. I might need it later.” He didn’t see the need to tell Kimberly why. If need be, he had plans of his own.

“Come on, Lance. The raft dock is just down this path. You can make it.” She needed to be strong and encourage him, not cry from frustration, anger, or worry.

She led them around the front of the Fort. If that odd fog hadn’t come in, they could have seen the canoe dock across from them and the Hungry Bear Restaurant. In their current predicament, she wondered if the wispy fog was a blessing or a curse. Did they want help and have to explain the Whats and the Whys? Or could they manage to get Lance across on their own and not have the risk of exposure?

Kimberly stopped short when she reached the raft’s landing dock. The raft Daniel had used was still there. A small utility canoe, usually hidden on the far side of the Hungry Bear Restaurant, was tied up next to the raft. That had to be the means Wolf used to get across the River. Hopefully Lance wouldn’t notice and ask too many questions—ones she didn’t want to have to answer.

Lance did notice. “That means they’re still here on the Island. There’s no other way to get off unless they swam, which is totally unnecessary with a raft and a canoe here.”

Kimberly said nothing and tried to help Lance move toward the raft.

Still trying to work out the inconsistency, Lance attempted to shake his head no, but stopped. “No, we would have heard them. The Island isn’t that wide. I have a feeling neither one of them would be silent right now.”

Kimberly got him as far as a bench under one of the overhanging trees. “The fog is clearing.”

“That’s really weird. Well, if they aren’t here and they couldn’t have left, then where are they?”

For four days, Lance tried to reach Wolf to find out what happened on the Island. But Wolf never answered his phone and never showed up at work. It was as if he had disappeared off the face of the planet.

On the fifth day, there was a knock on the door of Lance’s apartment. Kimberly answered the door and was surprised to see a bedraggled Wolf standing there. He looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. It was Wolf’s turn to be surprised when Kimberly threw her arms around his neck. “Oh, Wolf! I am so glad to see you.” Lance doesn’t know, she hurriedly whispered. ”We were so worried. Lance! Wolf is here.” She finally released Wolf just after he whispered back to her that ‘all is well.’

Lance, the back of his neck bandaged, came to shake hands with his security partner. “Good to see you, man. Come on in.”

He took a couple of steps inside. “I can’t stay. I’m on my way to work.” Wolf looked back and forth at the two pairs of eyes that stared at him. “I just came to tell you everything was taken care of.”

Lance looked at Kimberly, not sure what he meant. “What is taken care of?”

“Daniel. He won’t bother you ever again.” At Lance’s confused look, Wolf had to say something. “I…umm, convinced him to move far away. He won’t be coming back.”

Lance took him on his word and looked relieved. “For Kimberly’s sake, I hope that’s true. What about the pendant? Did you see what he did with it?”

Wolf shrugged one shoulder, knowing he couldn’t reveal the truth that the pendant was back in his safe-keeping. He didn’t like to lie to his best friend, but it couldn’t be avoided. “I didn’t see it. I have to go. Doka, Lance. Kimberly.”

Lance clapped him on the shoulder. “Doka, Wolf.”

Wolf gave a quick, meaningful glance to Kimberly. It wasn’t time yet for Lance to know. They both nodded their heads once in understanding as he turned toward the door to leave.

As he closed the door behind Wolf, Lance gave a sigh. “Well, I guess we’ll never know.”

Kimberly slipped her arm around his waist. “Know what?” She hoped he wasn’t referring to her uncle.

“What the power of the pendant was. Why it was so important to Walt.”

Kimberly’s mind flashed back to her vision—still so real that she could almost touch it—of her holding the hand of a happy, smiling blond-haired little girl and standing with Lance. How you get it is up to you, Walt had written. “Hmm,” she hesitated as the power of the vision took away her power of speech. “I only know the diamond was very beautiful,” she told Lance when she could talk again. In her mind, she felt thankful that the red diamond heart was gone. While her vision was quite wonderful, it also revealed the diamond’s power. That power, whatever it meant, was something she felt shouldn’t be in anyone’s hands.

“Lance?”

“Hmmm?”

“Did I tell you today that I loved you?”

Lance smiled. “No, actually you didn’t,” pulling her into an embrace.

She smiled back. “Oh, okay, then. Just checking.”