You'll Just Know

Chapter 27

            “Harry! We’ve got to get Harry! Harry! Frank! Where’s Frank! Oh, Harry!”

            Mrs. Cameron was babbling hysterically in the backseat, making us all more than a little uncomfortable. Josh tried bravely to comfort her, but she continued to cry out nonsense. One moment she would be asking for Harry, the next she would want Frank. I didn’t know either of them.

            “We’ve got to turn around!” Mrs. Cameron screamed out suddenly. “They’ll get Harry! They’ll get Frank!”

            We were almost ten blocks away from the house by now. My nerves were still electric and I glanced behind us every few seconds, expecting to see the UPS truck or the Harley in pursuit.

            “First.” Wendy said.

            The car shuddered for a moment as she pressed the clutch and I shifted down from second to first again.

            I started to ask Wendy “Who are Frank and---“

            “Dad.” she said before I could finish. She made a right turn, then an immediate left. She had made so many turns that I was completely disoriented by now. She seemed to know where she was going, though. “His real name is Harry. Now it’s Frank… or, well, it was…”

            Mr. Cameron! I had almost forgotten about him.

            Wendy made another right and we were on a familiar street again. We passed the library to our left, and I saw that we were headed again towards Devon. The rain had subsided to a drizzle now.

            “Where is your dad?” I asked. “I thought you called him from the house and told him what was going on.”

            “We did call.” Wendy said. “He was out, so we left a message on his machine for him to come home as soon as he could.” She was silent for a moment and the full consequence of that sunk in. Quieter, Wendy added. “We didn’t know they would find us as quickly as they did.”

            We were moving along in first gear at about thirty-five, and the engine was revving high, but Wendy didn’t ask me to change gears again. We continued at that pace towards town.

            “Maybe we can get to the store before he leaves.” I said.

            “That’s what I’m hoping.” she answered gravely. “Second.”

            The car hesitated, then I slipped it into second and the gear caught again. We started moving a little faster and the engine didn’t sound so strained anymore.

            Wendy passed a stop sign at the next intersection, barely glancing to either side as she drove through it. We were about two blocks from downtown now. Mrs. Cameron sobbed again loudly. “Frank!”

            I glanced back nervously at the empty road behind us. Still clear.

            What if he’s already gotten the message and left? We couldn’t go back to the house? That would be suicide! On the other hand, we couldn’t just leave him…

            From a block away, I could already see the statue of Daniel H. Devon standing guard high above town. He had his back to us. An uncaring silhouette against the bleak gray sky.

            “First.” Wendy said in a hushed whisper as we approached town.

            I shifted into first gear and Wendy slowed the car to a cautious stop just before we entered the town square. Even Mrs. Cameron’s crying had stopped now as we all leaned forward and looked around the empty streets of the square.