Bradley Wallace Murphy just turned thirteen, and he's not happy about it. He doesn't fit in at school, he's no good at sports, a bully torments him, he's a disappointment to his parents, and his only "friends" are fictional characters on a TV show c...
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CHAPTER 9
Paradise
Marge's brother, Uncle Joshua, a big, blustery man with a voice like a foghorn, drove the Murphy's to the airport early the following morning for their nine o'clock flight. Whilly had already departed, assuring a nervous Bradley Wallace that the plane would pass him up along the way and he could follow it easily from there. The boy still had misgivings and made the dragon promise not to go exploring the island until after they reunited. Whilly agreed.
The weather was sunny and warm under a cloudless sky. The perfection of nature coupled with the thrill of take-off lifted Bradley Wallace's dipping spirits. He did wish he could be flying over on Whilly's back but somehow didn't think he could explain to his parents how he managed to get there. As the plane rose high above the city, he could sense the dragon's presence, almost like the distant echo in a vast canyon. But even with the great distance between them, Whilly still gave him a warm feeling of security and he pushed back his seat and tried to relax.
Unfortunately, he had been forced to sit beside Katie and that didn't excite him. At the moment, she was reading, so he decided to do the same. He dipped into his Pan Am flight bag (making certain to keep the logo hidden, since they were flying United this time) and pulled out the latest (#19) Dark Shadows book, Barnabas, Quentin, and the Crystal Coffin. He glanced out the window at the sea of sun-drenched clouds below, opened the book, and began reading.
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He awoke with a start, the book lying closed in his lap, a strange, troubled sensation tickling his mind.
He must have been dreaming, he realized, because it'd seemed like Whilly was right outside his plane window. Glancing out the small, dirty oval of glass, he sucked in a sharp, fearful breath. The dragon was there! The fool hovered playfully alongside the plane, sending silent, cheerful greetings into his mind. Bradley Wallace waved his hands upward and sent urgent messages for the dragon to move away from the plane before he was spotted.
*Just wanted you to know I was all right,* Whilly sent back before floating up out of sight.
Bradley Wallace heaved a sigh of relief and dropped back against his seat.
