فصل 14

CHAPTER 14

INTO THE DARKNESS

THEY RAN THROUGH THE DARKNESS, ran until their lungs burned and their breath came in hoarse gasps, and still they ran. They stuck to side roads, avoiding illumination, keeping away from streetlights. From time to time they stopped to look back and listen, straining to hear over the ear-pounding sound of their own frantic heartbeats. But they heard nothing unusual and saw only blackness.

Their phones began ringing. The caller ID showed their home number; obviously their parents had discovered they were missing. They didn’t answer, and eventually turned off their phones to stop the incessant ringtones.

After an hour on the move they ventured cautiously toward a main highway. They followed it for another mile until they came to a strip shopping center. It was largely deserted; most of the stores were closed for the night. At the far end glowed a familiar green sign.

“Let’s go to the Starbucks,” said Sarah.

“Do you think it’s safe?” said Aidan.

“We won’t stay long. I need to plug in my iPad. The battery’s almost dead, and I want to do some stuff on the Internet.”

“What stuff?”

“I’ll tell you when we get there.”

They made their way along the row of stores, heads swiveling; nobody appeared to be following them. Reaching the Starbucks, they peered through the window. There were two workers behind the counter; the only customers were two young men and a young woman sitting at a corner table, drinking coffee and talking. Sarah and Aidan went inside, Sarah heading for a table near an electrical outlet at the far corner from the other customers.

“Get me a grande skinny caramel macchiato,” she said to Aidan.

“Get you a what?”

Sarah sighed. “Just get me a medium coffee,” she said.

Aidan went to the counter; Sarah took the iPad out of her backpack, plugged it in, turned it on, and began tapping on the screen. A few minutes later Aidan returned with her coffee and a hot chocolate for himself.

“What are you doing?” he said.

“Writing an e-mail to Mom and Dad. Take a look.”

She handed the iPad to Aidan, who read:

Mom and Dad—

Please don’t be mad at us. We have to do this, and we can’t tell you why, at least not now. Please don’t try to find us. We’re totally safe, and we promise to stay in touch. We’re really really sorry, and we love you.

xoxo

Sarah and Aidan

“I would never write ‘xoxo,’” said Aidan, handing the iPad back. “I hate ‘xoxo.’”

“Too bad,” said Sarah, sending the e-mail.

“Why’d you say we’re safe? We’re not safe.”

“I know. I’m just trying to keep them from worrying.”

“They’re going to worry anyway. A lot.”

“I know. They’re going to look for us. And call the police.”

“Maybe we should go to the police.”

Sarah shook her head. “We have the same problem here we had in London. We don’t know where, or who, Ombra is. He can become anybody. If we go to the police, he can become the police. Then he’s got the starstuff. And us.”

“So what do we do?”

Sarah was tapping on the screen again. “We find the Starcatchers.”

“But how? I mean, even if they’re still around, how do we find them?”

Sarah turned the iPad screen toward Aidan. “This is how,” she said.

Aidan looked at the screen and laughed.

“Facebook?” he said. “Are you serious?”

“If they’re still around,” she said, “they have the same technology we do.”

“And you think they have a Facebook page. Like, ‘Hi, there! We’re the Starcatchers! Want to be our friend?’”

“No, idiot. They wouldn’t do that. But they could be monitoring the Internet, looking for some situation like this, where there’s starstuff that needs protecting. They could be looking for certain names or keywords.”

“So what are you going to do?”

Sarah, tapping again, said, “I’m going to make a Facebook page for Molly Aster.”

“I don’t believe this.”

“Do you have a better idea?”

That shut him up. For ten minutes they sat in silence, Aidan sipping his hot chocolate, Sarah leaving her coffee untouched as she tapped on the screen. When she was done she turned it toward Aidan again, showing him the simple Facebook page she’d created for “Molly Aster.” In the profile, she had written, “I found Mister Magill’s box. It’s full of the stuff, but now I’m being shadowed. Can you help me?”

Aidan looked up at Sarah. “So this is it?” he said. “This is our plan?”

“No,” said Sarah, taking the iPad back. “I’m also going on Twitter.”

Aidan rolled his eyes; Sarah resumed tapping.

The young men and woman left. One of the workers told Sarah and Aidan that the Starbucks would close in ten minutes. Sarah was still tapping.

“What are you doing?” said Aidan.

“Craigslist.”

Aidan sighed and slumped in his chair.

Then he sat upright and touched Sarah’s arm. She looked up and he nodded toward the door. A dark figure stood outside, silhouetted by the bright outdoor lights.

“Oh, no,” Sarah said softly.

“Maybe there’s a back way out,” said Aidan.

They stood quickly. Sarah unplugged the iPad and shoved it into her backpack. They walked toward the counter. One of the workers, a middle-aged woman, said, “Can I help you?”

“Is there a back way out?” said Aidan.

“What?”

“We’re wondering if we can leave by the—” Aidan stopped at the sound of the door opening. He and Sarah turned. A tall man entered. He wore a long overcoat and a baseball cap pulled low, shielding his eyes.

The man started toward Sarah and Aidan. They stood frozen; there was nowhere to go except toward the dark figure, now six feet away, now four, now…

“Hey, Bob,” said the woman behind the counter. “Thought you weren’t gonna make it tonight. We’re about to close.”

The tall man raised his head, revealing blue eyes in a broad, friendly face.

“Just got off work,” he said. “Any coffee left?”

“Absolutely,” said the woman, grabbing a cup.

Aidan nudged Sarah and pointed toward the floor; she looked and saw that the man was clearly casting a shadow. She looked back at her brother and they shared a moment of shoulder-sagging relief.

“Let’s go,” said Sarah, heading for the door.

“Where?” said Aidan, following.

“I don’t know. We’ve got to find someplace to spend the night, and then we…”

“We what?”

“We hope somebody gets in touch with us.”

She pulled the door open and they went out, their eyes scanning the shopping center and parking lot. Both were deserted. They crossed the parking lot, then the highway, and entered a poorly lit side street. Tired now, they trudged forward, every step taking them farther from home, deeper into the darkness.