Fantasy

39 - Jayce

Randy and I then realize the same thing at the same time. "Where's Jenna?" Randy asks.

"Didn't she run behind you?" I remember.

"Uh, yeah, but do you know where she went after that?" I shake my head.

"Can you track her?" I ask Randy.

"Maybe...do you know her last name?"

"Um...no."

"Well, then I can't track her." Well that's just wonderful.

"Do you at least know what direction she went?" Randy shakes his head. "Where's Levina, then?"

"Uh, I think we passed her because now she's behind us. It's not by much, though, and they're still headed northeast."

"I wonder if they have a specific goal in mind," I say. I've just kind of assumed their only target is to get away from the CMRA, and I suppose that could still be their goal, but if Randy is right and they keep going almost exactly northeast....well, where are they going?

"They could, and if they do, it might be easier to just meet them there."

"Yeah, but where is 'there?'"

"I don't know—you suggested it. What's beyond the woods that they could go to...oh, well, there is this strip mall up here where Abby's dad's hunting supply shop is, but Levina wouldn't know about that."

"Where's Abby?" I ask Randy.

"She's, um, with Levina...oh. And come to think of it, Abby said something about her dad's shop being the old World Defenders headquarters. I thought she was making it up at the time. Yeah, they're probably heading for the shop."

"Cool, so we should go there, then?"

"Yeah, I mean, even with my power it could be near impossible to find them in the woods. If we go to the shop we'll meet them when they arrive, which won't take long."

"Jenna!" I shout a bit reluctantly. "Jenna, can you hear me?" When no one answers, I conclude, "Okay, so I say we head to the shop. We just can't go on a wild goose chase to find Jenna, not when we're this close. Maybe she'll figure out where to go on her own."

"Yeah," Randy agrees a bit skeptically. Granted, Jenna was annoying, but I really do hope nothing bad happens to her; we're pretty much at the edge of the trees, so she's got a chance.

"Alright, let's go." We walk out of the forest and onto a crudely paved road. To the right there is a small stoplight intersection with only a few cars around it, and to the left is an empty stretch of road. Randy leads me down to the intersection and across the street. We walk up the road only a short distance before reaching the strip mall parking lot on our left. Along the whole mall, windows are boarded up and For Sale signs are posted on doors. The only shop still in business is the one on the very end of the left side.

In big plastic letters over the top it says Worldd's Hunting and Fishing Supplies. The second d in Worldd is hanging slightly sideways. From what I can see through the windows, the inside of the shop is dark. We walk to the front glass door and I try to peek in, but the other side is covered with a long roller blind. I try to open the door, but it's locked. "Would it be illegal for me to pick the lock?" I ask Randy.

"Yeah, but where else are we going to go?"

"Are you sure this is the place?"

"I'm not sure of anything; all I know is that it says Worldd on the top and Marie and Sarah have mentioned it once or twice." I take a deep breath, reach into my pocket, and pull out a lock-picking kit. I grab a tension wrench (a piece of metal bent into a right angle) and a pick (a piece of metal with a slightly curved end) and insert them into the lock. With the tension wrench I turn the lock clockwise, which I can only hope is the right direction, and push the pins up with the pick, one by one. When they all click into place, I turn the tension wrench and then the door opens freely. I slide the tools back into my jacket and take a step in. Randy is right behind me, and I can hear the door shut behind him. I don't even get a chance to turn on a light before I feel the barrel of a gun press to my head.

"Don't move," a voice says.