Ash Ketchum: The Prisoner Of Cell 25

Ch. 35 Breaking into Prison

We arrived in Pasadena a little afternoon. I was asleep in the backseat of the Camaro, lying across Clemont. I woke when we stopped for gas and to change drivers. Drew's eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he was about to pass out. He stumbled into the gas station to use the bathroom.

"Where are we?" I asked Calem.

"We're in Pasadena," he said. "I need the school's address."

"I've got it." I handed Calem the brochure, then got out the car and stretched. The California air was moist and warm and, in spite of my worries, it felt good. I looked in the back window and saw that Clemont was still snoring, so I went inside the gas station. I got two bottles of strawberry flavored milk and a box of doughnuts. I knew Clemont would be hungry when he awoke.

By the time I returned to the car Drew had climbed in the back and already fallen asleep. I sat in the front.

"Drew was pretty tired," I said to Calem.

"Yeah, he was. We would have been here sooner but he stopped in Lancaster and slept for four hours," Calem started the car. "Are you ready?"

I was blinking pretty hard. "No. Probably never will be. Let's go."

Calem smiled. "Nice."

Pasadena was lush and green with palm trees everywhere. I was eight when my mother and I moved from California, and I hadn't been back since. The city seemed foreign to me.

"Take Colorado Boulevard to South Allen," I said. "Then turn right."

Calem followed my directions and in a few minutes we were on Allen Avenue. "That's the place," I said. "It looks just like the picture. Except for the prison fence."

Calem parked the car at a gas station about a half block from the school. "Drew, wake up," he said.

"Who. . ."

"We're here."

Clemont woke as well and started searching for his glasses. He had fallen asleep wearing them, and I had picked them up off the car floor.

  "Here you go," I said, handing them to him.

  "Where are we?" He asked.

  "The school," I said.

   Clemont looked out at the building. "That's a school?"

  "Looks more like a prison than a school," Drew said groggily.

  "How are we going to get inside?" Clemont asked. "Fence is at least twelve feet high and there's barbed wire."

  "And the entrance is guarded," Drew added.

  "Getting in is not going to be easy," Clemont said. I think he meant 'possible' instead for 'easy'.

   Calem shook his head. "He's right, man. What are you going to do?"

   I looked out at the building for a few more moments, then I sighed. "Well, it's not your problem. You got us here." I reached into my pocket and took out the rest of the money. "Here's the rest."

   Calem took it without counting. "Thanks. Good luck."

  "Come on, Clemont," I said.

   As we were climbing out of the car, Calem said, "Look."

   I turned back toward the building. A white food-service truck was passing through the gate. "Get back inside, I have an idea."

   We climbed back in and Calem started up the Camaro.