Chapter 11: Aiden

It feels like we’ve been walking for days. My feet ache, and the uneven terrain doesn’t help. Not to mention we haven’t seen a single thing this entire time. Nothing except grass and dirt and trees and ponds of water. Everything looks exactly the same, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think we were walking in circles. I haven’t even seen so much as a squirrel, which is really disturbing. And now that I’m aware of it, I don’t hear any birds, either.

How much further are we going to go before we realize there’s nothing out here? I glance around at the rest of my group. Larry is trudging forward, seemingly oblivious to everything around him. Tom’s head is on a swivel, like he’s trying to see everything at once. Emily is in step beside me, acting like she’s actually looking for something useful. Should I speak up and say something, suggest we head back? I don’t think any of them will get mad, but Tom gave us explicit instructions. And I bet Jason will be disappointed if we come back with nothing.

When Larry and the twins are far enough ahead of us, I tap Tom on the shoulder. “What happened this morning?” I whisper.

He glances forward then back at me. “I snuck off last night, after everyone was settled. I didn’t want to wait.”

“Oh.” I step over a fallen log and motion to it so Emily doesn’t trip. “Did you find anything? Do you know where we are?”

He looks over his shoulder then to his right. Paranoid much? “I found a lot, actually. But not here. I’ll find you later.” And then he picks up his pace, leaving me staring after him. I shake my head, wondering if my initial impression of Tom is right.

Emily sighs. “Any idea what time it is?”

I snap out of my thoughts. “No, but it feels like we’ve been out here forever.”

She chuckles. “I know, right? I’m starving, and my mouth is dry.”

I haven’t really thought about food or water until she just said something, and now it’s dominating my thoughts. My stomach growls. I lick my lips and suppress a groan at the knowledge we’ll have to turn around and hike all the way back, too.

“So, what was that about with Tom?” She inclines her head in his direction. “Why’d he ditch us this morning?”

I shrug. “Said he didn’t want to wait so he hiked out last night. Alone.”

Her eyebrows shoot up, and she clutches my arm. “Are you serious?”

“Yeah. He said he’ll catch up with me later.” I kick at a stone on the ground. “I mean, I don’t know him, but he’s acting crazy paranoid.”

“Can you blame him?” She holds her arms out then drops them to her sides. “Look around. This place isn’t exactly happy.”

“I know.” We fall silent, both of us looking for something—anything—that will give us a clue as to where we are.

“This silence is killing me,” Emily mumbles after several moments.

“So, let’s talk.” I smile.

“Okay, how old are you?”

I raise an eyebrow and grin. “We’re going to play twenty questions?” Not exactly what I had in mind, but if it passes the time, I’m game. And besides, I want to get to know her better.

She playfully shoves me. “No, we’re going to play Q and A until we get back to the beach.”

“Fair enough. I’m seventeen. You?”

“Seventeen. I know you were born and raised in Alaska.” She gives me a sideways glance that I can’t quite interpret, but it’s fun and a little flirty, so I don’t worry about it too much. We slow our pace as the rest of our group moves ahead. “I know you don’t have a girlfriend.” She laughs. “I assume you’re a senior in high school?”

“Yup.” I nod. “Would you like to know my SAT scores? They’re pretty good, and I’m very proud of them.”

She gives me a dirty look. “I didn’t take the SATs.”

I almost trip over a large rock but catch myself before I do. “You didn’t? Why not? Don’t you want to go to college?”

Emily shrugs and shoves her hands in her pockets. “College really wasn’t that high on my priority list. I was too involved with other things to really care, but now…”

We walk a few steps in silence, and when she doesn’t continue, I prod. “Now what?”

“I think I’d like to go to college. God knows I can’t keep going on like I have been. My parents will never let me come home.”

I frown, remembering what she’d told me about the party and getting into trouble, her parents sending her to stay with her grandparents. If anyone can relate, it’s me. I know what it feels like to have parents bail on you, not want you, think you’re nothing but a mistake and a problem. I hate that she knows how that feels. I don’t wish it on anyone, least of all her.

“Well,” I sigh, “it’s never too late to change. You can always take the SATs when we get home and apply to colleges.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” She’s thoughtful for a moment then says, “Okay, tell me your favorites.”

“Favorite what?”

“Everything. Colors. Movies. Food. TV shows. Music. Books.”

“Okay, okay.” I laugh, interrupting her rambling list of items. “My favorite color is green. I’d eat pizza every night if I could get away with it.” As if on cue, my stomach growls again. Man, I hope we get out of here soon. “I like reality shows, 'Living in the Wild,' 'Rat Race,' 'The—'”

“'Search for Love'?” Her eyes widen, and she giggles, pointing at me. “Admit it, you watch 'The Search for Love.'”

I stick my tongue out at her. “No! I was going to say 'The College Life.'”

“Uh-huh,” she says with disbelief.

I roll my eyes but can’t stop from smiling as I try to remember what else was on her list… “Movies. Action. If they don’t have a lot of action, I get really bored. I like all sorts of music.” I laugh. “Punk rock, alternative, country, even love songs. They get me every time.”

“Yet you don’t watch 'The Search for Love.'”

I glance over at her, shaking my head. “What is with you and that show?”

“Nothing.” But there’s a distinct twinkle in her eye that says otherwise. “So, do you have any hobbies?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I wink, fighting back another smile. “I like to crochet hats and booties for newborn babies.”

Emily stops abruptly and stares at me, her mouth agape. I can’t help myself. I fling my head back and laugh. She scowls and then smacks me.

“Sorry.” But I’m really not. “Seriously, though, I like to play soccer. I’m not on a team or anything, but I’ll get together with some of the guys and we’ll play. Oh, and I’ve been volunteering at an old age home since I turned fifteen. I help with repairs and lawn maintenance and will sometimes read to the residents. And, of course, there’s youth group. I do a lot of stuff with them—camping, hiking, community service. Y’know, the normal stuff. So, what’re your favorites?”

She doesn’t speak for several moments, and I open my mouth to ask what’s wrong but don’t get the chance. “Wow. You’re like the perfect child or something. You go to church and volunteer and don’t party.” There’s a harshness in her tone that I don’t like. “Are you sure you want to be associating with a screw up like me?”

Whoa. Where did all this come from? Does it really bother her that I go to church? “You made a mistake.” I grab her arm to turn her to me. “That doesn’t make you a screw up.”

She grunts and pushes my arm away. “Yeah, right. If you only knew.”

“So, enlighten me.” I gently bump her shoulder with mine, hating how she’s suddenly so upset. Our situation is far from ideal, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make it bearable, and the best way to do so is to keep things as lighthearted and fun as possible. And I’m going to do whatever it takes to make that happen.

Taking a deep breath, she shakes her head. “Trust me, if you knew, you wouldn’t want anything to do with me.”

“Try me.”

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” She keeps her gaze everywhere but on me as she begins to speak. “I’m the type of girl who likes to have fun. Partying, drinking, doing drugs. If others were doing it and it looked fun, I had to do it, too. The last party I went to got really out of hand, but that’s a long story for another day.” She twists her hands in front of her, clearly very nervous. “Last year, I was literally flunking school because the parties and my friends were the most important thing to me. I got kicked off the cheerleading squad, almost got expelled from school.” She kicks at a rock and glances up at the rest of our group, which is several feet ahead of us now. “My parents threatened to send me to Alaska then, too, but I pulled myself together, and I was doing good for a while. But then… Well, I’m here, so I guess that’s all you need to know.”

I let her words sink in for a few moments before responding. The whole party scene wasn’t ever my thing, but I have friends who are a lot like Emily. And I pray for them every day. I’m going to start doing the same for her. I don’t know her very well, but she strikes me as smart and compassionate, and I know she can do a lot with her life if only she’d give herself the chance.

“Told ya it was bad,” she mutters.

“It could be worse,” I say, hoping to cheer her up a bit. “You still have to give me your favorites.”

She laughs and shakes her head in disbelief.

“What?” I ask self-consciously.

“I just told you I’m into some really crazy stuff, and all you can think about is knowing my favorites. Most people who know me or hear my story run in the other direction. I’m trouble with a capital T.”

“Nah, I don’t buy it.”

“Then maybe you’re not as smart as you think.” The corner of her mouth lifts in an almost grin, and I know she’s teasing. “Seriously, Aiden, I’m not a good person, and you’ll be a lot better off if I’m not in your life.”

Wow. She really believes that! I don’t know which is sadder—that she thinks of herself so poorly, or that she believes others think that way of her. “Well, I’m probably a lot smarter than I think I am, and I know I’m capable of making my own decisions about people. And like it or not, you’re not getting rid of me so easily.”

Finally, she glances at me and smiles gratefully. “Thank you.”

I shrug. “No reason to thank me.”

“Okay, so my favorites… Music is E-D-M all the way.”

“What on earth is E-D-M?”

“Electronic dance music.”

“Oh.” I’d never heard it called that before, and now I feel a little stupid for asking.

“I have a weakness for pasta and French fries, but not together.” She makes a disgusted face. “Eww. That would be gross.” She laughs. “Um, I don’t really watch a lot of TV, but when I go to movies, I like romantic comedies. And I’m embarrassed to admit I don’t read all that much and never anything that doesn’t come with CheatSheets.”

I chuckle. “I hate CheatSheets.”

Emily jerks her head around to glare at me. “How can you possibly hate CheatSheets? They’re the greatest thing since…well, nothing. There’s nothing better than CheatSheets.”

“If you say so.” I wink again.

We catch up to the rest of the group only to find they’ve all stopped. Larry is crouched on the ground, head tilted to the side. “I think I found something,” he says.

It’s about time! I seriously didn’t think we’d ever find anything. “What is it?” I ask, trying to get closer.

“A shoe.” Larry pulls it from the mud and it’s faded, crusted with dirt.

Tom’s gaze darts around nervously. “Could it be from someone on the plane?”

“Could be. We landed really hard,” says one of the twins.

“Yeah, maybe someone was thrown from the plane,” says the other twin. “Maybe we should look for the owner.”

Emily rolls her eyes and mumbles something under her breath that I can’t quite make out, but she’s probably thinking the same thing I am—the twins, unfortunately, live up to the dumb blonde stereotype.

“I highly doubt that,” I say, nodding at the shoe. “It looks really old, as if it’s been left here for years. If it was from the plane, we’d see some burn marks or something, right? And it certainly wouldn’t have gotten buried and covered with that much dirt overnight.”

“Aiden’s right,” Emily says. “That shoe’s been here a long time.”

Larry stands. “I agree. All right, let’s search this area a bit more, see if we can find anything else, then we’ll head back to the beach.”

We split up into pairs and search the surrounding area, careful to stay within sight of everyone else. A shoe left in the middle of nowhere like this is really creepy because it only means one thing: someone was here. But who? When? And more importantly, what happened to him or her that a single shoe would be the only evidence left of their time here?

“Tell me you’re not a little freaked out,” Emily whispers to me.

“Will you be mad if I lie?”

She frowns.

“I’m kidding,” I say. “Of course I’m a little freaked out. Who wouldn’t be?”

“Hey, guys.” Tom taps his watch. “It’s getting close to noon. I think we should head back. Has anyone found anything else?” Everyone takes a turn saying no. Tom nods. “All right. Larry, mark the spot where we found the shoe just in case we decide to come back for any reason.”

“You got it,” Larry says.

I stifle a groan at the thought of trekking all the way back out here again anytime soon. But if rescue doesn’t show up… I shake my head. No, that won’t happen. We will be rescued today. We have to be.

“All done,” Larry announces and wipes his hands on his jeans.

Tom waves his hand to indicate we should follow him, and we all do. Without question. I really hope we have the chance to talk once we get back to the beach, because I have a lot of questions for Air Marshall Tom Davis.