Eliot Strange and the Prince of the Resistance

25) To the Rescue

Baby Christopher is asleep on the back of the golf cart where Cindy has him strapped in with pillows and an improvised seat belt.

"Shh, my baby don't rest easy. I have to ride him around to get him to go to sleep," explains Cindy, as if a ride on a dangerous road after dark with a fussy baby is the most natural thing in the world these days.

"Cindy, what are you doing way out here, and who's golf cart is that?" I ask.

"I borrowed it from Marla," says Cindy who air quotes the word borrowed and then quickly confesses. "Ok, I stooled it. She did let me borrow it for my baby. It was her idea, but she told me not to leave the property. I went to check the mailbox and just kept on driving."

"So why are you out here?" asks Steven who adds, "We are sure glad to see you."

Cindy looks around and notices the wrecked moped and Steven's wrapped foot and ankle.

"I came to rescue you," she says grinning ear to ear. "I came to be your hero, Mr. Steven Lindquist, and Miss Eliot whatever-your-last-name-is."

And before I can ask her how she knew we needed rescuing, Cindy adds, "Ok, I'm lying. I came to tell you the good news cause I knew you would want to know. And I came to tell you the bad news too."

"What news?" asks Steven.

"Our best friends on the bus have been found, and they are not all dead. All the Leos are ok and so are the Taylors and the grown ups. The bus is all dead and won't go to or from, but the kids is all right.""

Praise be to our Heavenly Father, our Lord and Protector. Maybe, prayers are answered even when you don't say them out loud or don't say them at all.

"The bus? The kids? What happened?" asks Steven. "How do you know for sure, Cindy?"

"Adam came back. He came back to get the dump truck and another truck so's he could get everybody. Tommy and Marla went back with him. The bus was broken down and the kids was thirsty cause they was not near no water to drink and they runned out. They still had most of the food. They hid it and acted pitiful, like please help us to strangers, so nobody did. Some of them strangers was those three assholes that pretended to be Christopher's mommy and daddys. I told you they were not nice. They are assholes. I would say sorry for cussing, but Eliot you do it a lot and they are, you know."

"Assholes," I agree.

"Assholes," says Steven.

"Now Steven, you don't got to cuss just because your friends do. You don't have to follow the pier's pressure. We will like you all the same," says Cindy.

"Thanks Cindy," says Steven, "And sorry about the cussing. That is not gentlemanly of me. I am sorry."

Cindy pats Steven on the head. "That's ok. You're still my friend. Now, do I need to rescue you or not? I only can be a hero for a few more minutes. I got to go put my baby down to sleep. I got to get some rest too because tomorrow all my friends will be home, and I know I will have to play with them, probably all day. So, I need my sleep too."

"A rescue would be great," says Steven. I reach down to help him up.

"What about the bad news?" I ask. "You said there was bad news too?"

"Lordy, I plum 'bout forgot," says Cindy with as much excitement and animation as she can muster and still be quiet enough not to wake a sleeping baby. "It's news that is going to make you sad, Eliot. And mad too. And real sad," She rubs my shoulder and does her best sad face. "I told you before, everybody leaves us. Everybody. But we will be ok, we will."

I really don't want to hear bad news. I nod and brace myself. "OK. I'm ready. What is it, Cindy?"

"Prince Torin," says Cindy who is quite the actress, and I think might be enjoying being the bearer of bad news. She hesitates in her telling of the bad news. I can almost hear the drum roll.

Oh Lord, please let him be safe. Please let him be ok.

"Prince Torin?" I ask though I am afraid to know the truth.

"Prince Torin Albert Henry the 8th," says Cindy. She pauses again while I hold my breath and then adds, "has run away from home. Disappeared. Left us all. No goodbye. No see you soon. No note. He is gone to Timbuckytoo for all I know."

Both Cindy and Steven wait for my response, and I only have one thing to say, "Prince Torin is an asshole."

Steven who is now sitting beside our rescuer says, "Now, Ellie that is a little unfair. We don't know where he's gone. Maybe, he's gone to help with the bus and the kids."

"Nope," says Cindy. "Left before Adam got back with the good news."

"Well, maybe he came to join us?" speculates Steven.

"Nope," says Cindy. "Saw him go, he went the other way. Not to back to our town and not to the bus. Another way."

"How do you know?" I ask.

"Seen him. Seen him go. He waved me bye. Tried to catch him and go too, but I got this baby to look after now."

Cindy sighs heavy and deep like parenthood is the biggest responsibility in the world, and of course, it is. She's already learned the most important parent rules: Get your baby to sleep no matter what and watch over them and never leave them. And, of course what should be rule one - don't ever let assholes eat your baby.

What is this crazy ass world coming too?

I am resigned to the fact that Torin deserted our sinking ship and me the first chance he got, but Steven won't give up on him.

"What did Jack say? And Carli?"

"They gone too. Jack said - Where did my prince go?- when he got up from his nap. Carli saw Jack leave and was crying - Don't leave me, don't leave me - and that Jack, who looks like the prince but is not the prince, took her with him."

"To find the prince," says Steven with a confidence I don't feel. "Or maybe, Torin is trying to not be found by Jack?" he asks me. "He did leave in a hurry after Jack arrived."

"You didn't see how happy they were to be together. Torin was glad to see him. They hugged each other like your friends did you that time you got that last strike out," I say.

Steven smiles at the memory of being hip-hip-hoorayed. "Well, I guess he has his reasons," says Steven patting the seat beside him. "We'll have to trust him. Let's go, Elie."

I shake my head. "I am not going back, Steven. You go get your foot checked by Clay. I'll be fine. I am just going to get home and check to see what info I can find out. I won't do anything crazy. Just see what I can find out. You know I travel faster alone anyway."

It is a testament to how much pain Steven must be in because he doesn't try to argue with me or go with me, but only says, "You do know all the dad rules."

Cindy, on the other hand, won't leave a soldier behind. "What about my rescue?"

"Well," I say. "You are rescuing Steven, and you already rescued Christopher, so you are a hero twice."

Cindy thinks about this and says, "You're right. I am. Look out."

Before I can say anything else, Cindy turns the golf cart around, and I have to jump back to keep her from running over my toes. I watch them until the taillights are almost out of sight, and I think I hear the sounds of a baby waking up.

And then there is the faintest sound of a mama singing a lullaby.