twenty-one

I’m almost relieved by the opposite directions they take, until I hear someone talking into a walkie-talkie right outside my hideout. “The guests have all left. We’re going to comb out here now, over.”

“Copy that. Let us know what you find.”

Ugh. If I wait for them to open the door and find me, that’ll be the end. But if I escape now, I can bank on the hope that my athletic skills will let me outrun them.

It doesn’t really sound like much of a choice.

I’m out.

Carefully, I push the front door as softly as I can, taking a quick inventory of my surroundings then squeezing through the space. I realize suddenly that I left my flip-flops inside the shed, but I can’t turn around now. Every second is of the essence.

I see them walking down the beach, their backs turned. Two of them are headed toward the Walrus, and three of them, in the direction of Haley Falls. I can just barely see the top of the lookout’s head, the one standing next to the shed. He’s turned and watching the shoreline instead of checking out the inside of the shed. Luck has thrown me a bone.

I pad off in the sand. Where to go, I have no idea. I walk in the direction of the island’s general public exit. Lampposts are turning on. The sky is purple to the north and dark blue to the east. Only a ribbon of orange remains in the west. Fantasy in the Sky is going to start soon, but Jason has not returned.

Why isn’t he here yet? That couldn’t have been the last time I saw him. I never even got to take a picture with him! This isn’t fair! Pictures . . . I left my phone in the shed! Damn it, I can’t go back for it.

There’s a rope bridge to my left. I head toward it since it’s hidden between two walls of trees. But it’s not long before I see someone—a lady up ahead wearing a safari hat and looking cast-memberish. When she turns to gaze at me curiously, I see her oval name tag with the Mickey head resembling a globe with grid line. Yup. Park employee.

“Miss? Can I help you?” she asks, smiling politely but clearly puzzled as to why I’m still here when all the guests have left.

“Where do I get the boat off the island? Sorry, I lost my folks and got totally disoriented.” I smile sheepishly, proud of my use of the word folks.

She thinks about this for a minute, and it seems like she’s about to point me in the direction of the pier, when she cocks her head. Naturally, her eyes fall on my frayed Daisy Dukes. “Are you the one they’re looking for?”

“What? No, of course not,” I lie. “Never mind, I remember where the pier is now. I just hope my family isn’t too worried about me.” I wave and shuffle past her, but this is a performance that can go only so far. In a few moments she’s telling someone else about me as I’m running down the path, and when I look back, there’re three of them, and one of them—an older man—is holding a walkie-talkie to his mouth.

“Damn it,” I mutter, running past a wading pool with flamingos, a tree with lots of screeching birds, and a few cages with I don’t know what else, because I’m moving too fast to care.

“Hold it right there,” a blond man says to my left, startling me. But I pick up speed and jump off the path, into trees, through knee-deep canals, past crates painted to look old. He’s behind me. I can hear him telling the others to catch up with us in the direction I’m headed.

Thanks for the tip, buddy.

So I break right to avoid them and sprint through the trees like there’re two outs in the tenth inning and my run will win the game. I burst out the opposite end of this clump of trees. I don’t know where I’m headed. Just trying to lose them. My only hope is to find Haley Falls and hide there until they leave. But I don’t know where that is anymore, and it’s hard to pass up the empty light blue, red, and yellow speedboats banked on the beach.

I make a break for them, sloshing into the water and pulling the blue one back with me. Is there a key? I need a key. . . . Yes, it’s in the ignition in the off position. I turn it on, hearing the boat groan to life. But then the men emerge on the beach running my way. This won’t work if they jump into the other two boats. Quickly, I hop out again and, using all the strength I have left in my legs, push the other boats into the water with my foot. Once they’re afloat, I give them another push until they drift out in the bay. Anyone can still climb into them, but now they’ll have to wade out into the water first.

“Miss, Walt Disney World authorities. Stop where you are!” they call out to me.

“Yeah, I know, I know,” I mutter, sitting at the wheel and pushing the throttle forward. The back end of the boat sinks slightly into the water as it picks up speed, and I must say, I am quite impressed with my 007 getaway and my total runaway attitude!

“Miss, I said stop where you are!”

This is awful. I’m running from the law. My dad would be so ashamed; my mother, so proud. Here I go. . . . I turn and speed straight for the marina, until I notice that the employee there has been informed of my whereabouts from the way he’s waving his arms for me to stop. So I turn the speedboat right onto the sandy beach across from Pioneer Hall instead. There’re a million people here sitting on the sand, in beach chairs, lying in hammocks, all waiting for the Fourth of July fireworks to begin. The perfect place to blend in.

Some people scatter, and I get a few odd looks, but I step out and run through the sand, weaving between the groups of people. For a moment I stop behind a big cypress tree to catch my breath. The aura is fighting its way to my vision again. I wish I had my meds. No, do not give in to it, Haley. Not now. Not before you see Jason one more time.

When I peek around the tree, the officials from Discovery Island are already docking and jumping off, looking for me. A few people point in my direction, and the men set out after me. Crap, crap! That’s it. It’s time to run full throttle. I book it.

All the way past the Settlement Trading Post, taking the shortcut to Jason’s trailer I remember from yesterday morning. Seems so long ago. They’re behind me. I can hear their frantic voices on their walkie-talkies. Why am I running, anyway? My breath is loud in my ears. The orange glow ebbs and flows in my peripheral vision.

I feel like I’ve done this before. Like I’ve been chased before. I hear people talking who are not there, concerned voices in my ear from somewhere beyond. Haley? Haley, can you hear me? “No,” I mumble. “No, no, no.”

So tired. I just want to sit down and rest. But I can’t. I can’t. Have to keep moving. Through a loop where the smells of BBQ hit me like a pile of bricks. I run past rows and rows of beige trailers. I think it was this way, but I don’t know where I am anymore. All I want to do is lie down. So exhausted. So overwhelmed.

I stop for one second, just one second . . . hands on my knees, breathing deep . . . in and out . . . in and out . . . in through the nose, out through the mouth. Gotta keep moving. I stand back up and turn around and smack into someone. I scream out loud and struggle, wrestling my arms out of their hold.

“So sorry. Are you okay?” That voice. Love that voice. He lets go of my arms. “Haley?”

I look up and see that face. That beautiful, surfer boy voice. “Jason?” I throw my arms around him. “They’re chasing me. I can’t do this anymore. I can’t.” This is too much. I’ve never been under so much pressure in my life. This is worse than the FCAT, yet this hasn’t made me seize in three days. Talk about resistance building.

“Haley, baby . . .”

“Take me with you, Jason,” I beg, biting my lip to keep from losing it. “I’ll go with you wherever you go. I can’t be here anymore. Please, just let me come with you.”

“You can’t come with me, Haley. Where would you go?”

“The army, wherever. I don’t care.”

He smiles sadly at the ridiculousness of what I’m saying. “Just face them, Haley. What’s the worst that could happen? They take you down to the station, they try to find your parents . . . eventually services will come get you, but it’s better than running from them.”

“No!” I cry. “I can’t. I can’t live this way. If I can’t be with you, then I have to find a way back home. This place isn’t for me. I’ve only stuck it out as long as I have because of you.”

The group of men break through the trees right as the first firework booms into the sky behind them. From far away I hear cheers from the beach crowd. The men slow down once they see they’ve found me, and I’m not running anymore. “Okay, that’s enough, miss. Come with us. We’re not here to hurt you.”

“She just needs a minute,” Jason says to them, holding his hand up.

“No!” I say again, tears welling up in my eyes. I fling them away. “I’m going with you,” I demand.

The blond man comes up to me, and from behind me, I hear, “Thank you, Taylor. We’ll take it from here.” It’s In-Charge from the Mickey Police. He’s strolling up to me, smile on his face. “And you,” he says, pointing at Jason, “I believe you’re supposed to have vacated by now.”

“I was just leaving, sir. It’s okay to say good-bye, isn’t it?” Jason’s so polite and snarky at the same time. I love him for it. He turns to me and holds my hands. “Haley . . .” I swear, I’m going to faint. This doesn’t feel real anymore. It’s a dream. It has to be. A dream I’ve had before.

More fireworks boom into the sky. More cheers erupt. On the loop road, guests are running for the paths, hurrying to see the show that’s already started. Smells of roasted corn, hot dogs, charred burgers . . .

“Haley, go with them. It’ll be okay, I promise. You haven’t done anything wrong.”

“How can you let me go?” I ask. I can’t help but feel like he’s abandoning me. But he’s right. Of course he is. I know it. I’ve hit a brick wall, a dead end; there’s no way out of this. His face, his gorgeous face, swerves in front of me. One second it’s here, and the next it’s two inches to the right.

If I can’t be with you, I don’t want to be here. I want to go home.

And because I need more stress, a police car pulls into the street and turns on its red and blue lights. No siren. Wouldn’t want to alarm the guests. Only the lights are left on—flashing—red and blue, red and blue, red and blue. . . .

Flashing in my face. My eyes.

Red and blue.

How can you let me go? my voice echoes. No control . . . let go. . . .

Jason’s voice from somewhere far away. “Because I love you, Haley.”

Fireworks boom, sparkles of light, fizzling, dissipating. Cheers.

Jason’s arms around me. I love you.

I fall.

Haley . . .

His hand cradling my head.

Bright white. Flickers of light.

Silence.