After a while in the chapel, I sort of came back to myself and realized I’d been sitting there longer than I’d meant to. I jumped up and headed back out to the airport concourse. I checked the departure signs and saw that my plane to Los Angeles was already beginning to board.
I didn’t have much time before the plane took off, but I did want to say good-bye to Meredith and Palmer. I had learned a lot from both of them and they had both saved my life.
The gate for Meredith’s flight wasn’t far away. I ran down the concourse to reach it, weaving through the crowd. But just as I got to the right place, I pulled up short.
Meredith’s flight to Denver was boarding now too. The line of passengers was moving through the door to the Jetway. But Meredith had not left the airport yet. She was still there, standing a little off to one side in front of the window facing the airfield. She was standing there against the backdrop of the runways, a 707 jet taking off into the sky behind her.
She was there with Palmer. He had her in his arms. They were lost together in a long, deep kiss.
So—yeah—what do you think?—I walked away. I walked off quickly to catch my plane home without saying good-bye to either of them. And I’ll admit it: my heart felt a little heavy inside me. Because, you know, Meredith was with Palmer and would never be with me. And yes, yes, yes, I know: it was supposed to be that way. I was only sixteen, after all. I wasn’t ready for anything that serious in my life. And Meredith and Palmer—well, they were made for each other. Anyone could see that.
But my heart felt a little heavy inside me all the same.
As I walked off to catch my plane, I tried to tease myself out of my mood. I told myself: Hey, to win a woman like Meredith, you have to be a hero—like Palmer. And you’re no hero, that’s for sure. You’re just an ordinary kid.
I reached my gate. There was Nicki standing next to Jim on his crutches. She was waving to me urgently, telling me to hurry.
As I jogged toward them, I sort of answered myself. I thought, Well, okay, I’m no hero now. But I’m still young. I might get to be a hero in time.
And you know, I might. It’s possible, anyway. I mean, that’s the whole thing about the future, isn’t it?
You just never know.
READING GROUP GUIDE
1. While in the jungle, Will remembers Ernest Hemingway’s definition of cowardice: “a lack of ability to suspend the functioning of the imagination.” What does this mean to Will? Have you ever needed to restrain your imagination to keep it from running wild?
2. Did Pastor Ron do the right thing by trying to reason with Mendoza and the rebels? Why or why not?
3. After being rescued from the firing squad, Will says, “It’s too bad you can’t always live as if it were the last moment of your life.” What does he mean by this? How does Will experience the world right before he thinks he’s going to die?
4. How do Nicki and Jim change throughout the story? What are the lessons they needed to learn?
5. Will acts heroically throughout this story, as do the other characters. In your opinion, which moments would have required the most courage and/or selflessness?
6. At first, Will finds Palmer Dunn to be arrogant and unlikeable; but by the end of the story, we know a very different side of Palmer. Have you ever met someone about whom your first impressions were completely wrong?
7. Will recalls Pastor Ron once saying, “Don’t worry about anything. Pray about everything instead.” How does this help Will along the way? How could this saying help you through trying times?
8. Meredith acts fearlessly on more than one occasion, and the people around her notice. Do you have to go through something tragic like she did in order to become a fearless person? Why or why not?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Andrew Klavan was hailed by Stephen King as “the most original novelist of crime and suspense since Cornell Woolrich.” He is the recipient of two Edgar Awards and the author of such bestsellers as True Crime and Don’t Say a Word.
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