Chapter 20

Parker sat in the dirt, swatting at the mosquitoes who were treating him like a banquet. He had seen a small plane fly overhead half an hour before, but all had been quiet since. Well, he had wanted alone time, and he certainly had plenty of that. Parker wouldn’t be surprised if Ruby never talked to him again after this. Heck, he might not even have a crew for his flights anymore. He knew he had been reckless and stupid. Anger and grief did that to people.

Knowing that not only was his parents’ marriage a mirage, but he had probably blown any chance he had with Ruby and possibly lost his two best friends—it was too much. He had tried to keep his emotions in check, but he couldn’t do it anymore. He allowed himself to cry. No, sob was more like it. All the despair broke through the barriers he had set up and flooded the dirt with his tears.

If they managed to find him, Parker swore he was going to do better. He was going to be a better son and brother, visiting more often and being the best uncle his nieces and nephews could ask for. He needed to show his family that, even though their parents were splitting up, Parker was going to put their family first, because that was what was most important.

And he wasn’t going to let Ruby go again. Not this time. He was going to tell Ruby how he didn’t need a perfect relationship, he just needed her.

It wasn’t until Parker heard voices in the distance that he managed to get ahold of himself. He splashed cold lake water over his face, then dried it with his T-shirt. Hopefully they wouldn’t notice his puffy red eyes. But even if they did, it didn’t matter. They had found him. And now he could make things right.

“Found it,” someone called. Andy and Rafael burst into the clearing.

“Well, looks like you survived after all,” Andy said. “You stopped answering your radio.”

Parker looked around, then noticed the radio half-submerged in the water. He wasn’t sure when that had happened. Maybe one of the times he had gone Karate Kid on the mosquitoes. “Sorry,” he said with a sheepish grin. This wasn’t like him; normally he was so put together. “Where’s Ruby?” Parker asked. He looked past his friends and saw a few emergency guys working their way toward him, but he didn’t see her. He’d known she would be mad, but he’d still expected her to be there.

“Back at the motel,” Andy said. “But first things first.” He walked around, surveying the situation. “What to do about this balloon.”

“Shouldn’t the first thing be making sure Parker is okay?” Rafael asked, as if Parker couldn’t hear him.

Andy waved off the suggestion with a dismissive hand. “He brought this upon himself, but the balloon didn’t deserve what it got.”

Parker laughed, then wrapped Andy and Rafael in a hug. “It’s good to see you guys.” He didn’t dwell on the pain that Ruby’s absence caused. “How are we going to get the balloon back to the truck, though?” he asked, turning his attention back to the current problem. “You guys must have walked for miles, and there’s no way we’re going to be able to drag this thing more than a few yards.”

Andy and Rafael burst into laughter, and Parker frowned. He didn’t understand what was so funny about the prospect of losing his balloon.

“Let me show you something,” Andy said. Parker followed him out of the clearing and into the woods. They had only gone about thirty yards when they came to—

“There was a road here this whole time?” he asked. He felt like such an idiot. “But I didn’t hear a thing.” The road wasn’t just a dirt one either; it was nice and paved.

“Not a lot of people come this way,” Rafael said. “But you’ll notice the road marker here.” He leaned on a sign with a number on it.

“Which means if I would have just walked a ways, you guys could have been here hours ago,” Parker said with a groan.

Andy slapped him on the back. “No worries, my friend. We’ll just hold it over your head for the rest of your life. It almost makes all of this worth it.” He grimaced. “Almost.”

Between the three of them and the emergency personnel, it didn’t take long to pack up what remained of the balloon and haul it into the truck. Parker climbed into the back seat. “To the car?”

“To the motel,” Rafael corrected. “You need to rest.”

“The EMTs checked me out and said I’m fine,” Parker protested. “I’m obviously not flying tomorrow and would rather get the car while we’re already out.”

“To the motel,” Andy reiterated.

What was with these guys? They usually just told him to suck it up and keep going. Once, Parker had broken his arm and Andy had convinced him to fly one-handed. That was the cost of being able to fly, Andy had told him.

Parker didn’t ask about his car again, and when they reached the motel, he was thankful they had driven straight there. The sun was beginning to set and he was exhausted, not to mention hungry. But then he thought of Ruby, waiting in the motel room, and he doubted he’d be sleeping anytime soon. Parker hoped she’d understand when he explained why he had taken the balloon up.

He grabbed his backpack from the back seat, but as he trudged toward the motel, Rafael said, “Your car. It’s not here.”

“Of course not. We left it in the valley, remember?” When he glanced back, Rafael’s guilty expression told him there was more to the story than they were telling him. “Where is my car?”

“It’s supposed to be here. Ruby rented a plane so she could see where you were from a bird’s eye view. Once she landed and knew we’d found you, the owner of the plane gave her a ride back to the car so she could drive it back to the motel. She was supposed to meet us here.”

Parker felt the blood drain from his face. “She doesn’t drive. Not anymore. She doesn’t even have a license. How did she get a key?”

“I gave her the emergency one you left with us,” Rafael said, shuffling his feet.

Panic welled in Parker’s chest. “What if something happened to her?” He whipped out his phone and called Ruby as he ran up to the motel room. Her phone went straight to voicemail. Parker burst into their room. She wasn’t there. But on closer inspection, neither were any of her things.

Rafael and Andy stopped in the doorway. “She’s not here?”

Parker shook his head and drew in a deep breath. “It looks like my car has been stolen.”

“By who?” Rafael asked.

Parker gestured toward the empty room. “Ruby.”