The Quest for the Kid

by Adrienne Kress

  “And they think that since they’re adults, they know better than us.”

  That made Sebastian think hard for a moment. It was true that adults often did think they knew what was best. He thought of Suwon, the manager of the Lost Boys, who, in trying to give Sebastian a new family, thinking that was what Sebastian needed to feel better, despite his protests, had essentially held him prisoner.

  Evie finally sat down on the sofa with a “Harrumph” sound, crossing her arms over her chest.

  Sebastian carefully walked over to the couch and sat beside her.

  “Come on. Let it go. There’s got to be something useful and important we can do while they’re gone,” he said. Though, as he said it, he really couldn’t think of a thing. Or we could sleep, his brain suggested. That would satisfy both too.

  Evie sat frowning, and breathing loudly through her nose. Finally she exhaled a long slow sigh and looked at him. “Like what?”

  That, Sebastian didn’t have an answer to. “Well, we could maybe just relax a bit, recharge, appreciate being on solid ground and not being chased by those men in black for once,” he said. That sounded really good, actually.

  “Yeah…,” said Evie, but he could already tell she was thinking about something important.

  “What’s going on?” he asked.

  “I need to think for a second, about what you said about the men. Something kind of clicked right then, but…I can’t exactly figure out what. Let’s go to the pool,” she said, standing in a thoughtful daze.

  “The pool?” Couldn’t they just stay here, in the quiet? In the air-conditioning?

  “Well, it’s the only other place we’re allowed to go,” she said, and she made her way back toward her room.

  Why did they have to go anywhere, thought Sebastian. Wasn’t the point of “going” that once in a while you were allowed to stop going? If you never stopped, how would you know you were going in the first place?

  “Come on, Sebastian!” said Evie, poking her head around the corner. “They left swimsuits in our rooms. It’s a sign!”

  Sebastian nodded. It was time to get going again.

  * Me, I’d call it “not easy” just to make sure everyone totally understood what I was going for, but I get that not everyone is me. That would be weird. If they were.

  Well, if one has to not think, this is certainly the way to do it, thought Evie, closing her eyes and enjoying the sun warming her body. Sitting beside a rooftop pool, the gentle breeze blowing and Shirley Temple drinks being brought to her by smiling individuals in brown tweed was everything she never knew she’d been missing.

  She didn’t want to be disrespectful to the society headquarters on the East Coast, of course. That was her home. And she generally preferred its dark coziness. Besides, nothing could be better than a tree that burst out through the center of a building up through a huge skylight and housed a lovely tea tree house. That was awesome. But…second best might be a rooftop pool with a view of the Hollywood hills.

  Evie opened her eyes and glanced down at the little pug sleeping in the shadow of the umbrella they were sharing. He was clearly off duty, no longer in his brown vest but instead in a T-shirt that read PUG LIFE. Though he still managed somehow to look a little melancholy, despite his general contentment. She looked over at Sebastian sitting on the edge of the pool, dangling his feet very reluctantly into the water, gazing down. She couldn’t help but smile. If there was one person here who could make lounging by a pool look totally uncomfortable, it had to be him.

  She leaned back and closed her eyes again. She needed to think. That’s why she’d wanted the change of scenery. Like back in Australia when she’d sat on the beach to contemplate the existence of Steve the shark, there was something about being near water and in the sun that allowed her brain to work its magic.

  And there was something about what Sebastian had said that had stirred something inside her. Something about not being chased by the men in black…

  Should she be on the lookout? Is that what her brain was trying to tell her? Should she be worried the kidnappers would find them? Probably, though they had run away quite successfully. Still, those men were pretty great at finding people. Who were those guys? What was their deal with chasing them? Why did they act like that?

  Of course!

  She opened her eyes and sat upright. “Hey! Sebastian!” she called out loudly across the pool. A few heads on fellow lounging swimmers glanced up at the noise, but she didn’t really care. She knew she and Sebastian were already disliked, so what did it matter if she annoyed people further? Sebastian looked up. “Come here!” she yelled again.

  He pulled his legs out of the water and quickly came over to join her, as fast as he could without running. Evie smiled. Sebastian would never run around a pool’s edge. That was against the rules, after all.

  “Yes?” he asked, sitting on her lounge chair.

  “I realized what I realized!”

  “You did?”

  “Yes, when you said that thing about the men in black earlier downstairs. It just came to me now. It’s so obvious. Finding out who they are would be hugely helpful in finding out why they want the map, why they have my grandfather.” She was overcome with excitement.

  Sebastian thought about it, and then a small smile crossed his face. “That does make a lot of sense.”

  “Yes! It might even lead to finding him without having to put the team together. And if we can’t find the Kid and Doris, well, it would be good to have a Plan B!”

  This was such a good idea. She was seriously proud of herself.

  “That’s a really smart idea. I’m kind of shocked that this is the first time anyone’s actually asked that question,” said Sebastian, looking exactly as he’d described himself.

  “Well, I think it’s that sometimes we get wrapped up in solving what’s right in front of us and the bigger picture can get lost.” And sometimes, she thought secretly, so secretly that she only half allowed herself to think it, we focus on the now to avoid the bigger picture on purpose.

  Like, what would happen if she didn’t find her grandfather? Or worse. What if she was too late in finding her grandfather?

  “Okay,” she said, shoving the thought aside, “so let’s think for a second. What kinds of people are these men?”

  Sebastian contemplated. “They are all wounded somehow…and they like black leather jackets….”

  “Well, a lot of people like black leather jackets.”

  “Yeah…”

  “Maybe they’re soldiers! Maybe they got injured fighting!” That could totally be a possibility.

  “Maybe they’re gang members,” said Sebastian, sounding not nearly so enthusiastic at that thought. “Gang members also fight and get injured, from what I understand.”

  That was true. In fact, a lot of people fought, even people who weren’t part of organizations. And who was to say that’s how the men had gotten injured? Accidents happen. And Mr. M might even have been born with only one eye. Or maybe he actually had two eyes but covered one because he thought it was cool.

  “I think we should forget about their looks as a clue,” she said.

  “Yeah,” agreed Sebastian. “We need to think of it another way. We need to ask…why.”

  Evie thought about that. Why. “Why do they want my grandfather and the map?”

  “Yes. What kind of people would want access to a waterfall with supposed life-sustaining properties?”

  “Yeah…what kind of people?” What kind of people indeed. Well, there would be a lot of people who would want something like that. People who made medicine, probably. And people who just wanted to make a lot of money selling something that precious to the highest bidder. Possibly on something like the black market.

  “Scientists? Or people who work on the black market?” she said alou
d. She didn’t know what kinds of people did both and what those jobs would be.

  “Possibly,” said Sebastian. “The thing is—” He stopped.

  “What?”

  He looked around the pool, and Evie followed his gaze. They watched the few other explorers on the opposite side tanning themselves, and the one woman scuba diving at the bottom of the pool.

  “The Explorers Society is very secretive,” said Sebastian. “But the Filipendulous Five were famous….” It almost seemed like Sebastian was talking to himself, but he wasn’t, and she heard him and she understood what he was getting at. The question wasn’t only about who would be interested in the waterfall but who would also know it even existed in the first place.

  “But no one knew about the waterfall except the team, no matter how famous they were,” said Evie, thinking it through. “And Myrtle. She was already president of the society at the time, and banned them all for causing the tsunami.” Sebastian made eye contact with her once more. “The men had to have known at least one of the Filipendulous Five or her pretty well. To know about the waterfall.”

  Sebastian sat there for a quiet moment, and then, finally, he smiled. It was small and it was tired, but it was still a smile and it counted. It was so nice to see again. It had been a while, Evie realized.

  “They could be explorers,” he said.

  Evie smiled now too. “They definitely could be.”

  “We need to go to the library. We need to find a database of explorers!” said Evie, standing. Sebastian stood a little more slowly, unsure how they would manage to go to the library, considering it was off-limits. But just as he stood, someone sat down hard on the lounge chair next to them, and he turned to see Catherine in her usual Catherine attire: boots, khaki pants, shirt, and whip at her hip, looking more out of place than normal.

  “Hello, Catherine,” said Evie, sitting back down. Her tone was anything but friendly. She was clearly still holding a grudge from earlier.

  “Hi. This looks very refreshing,” said Catherine, matter-of-factly indicating the pool.

  “Yes. You can borrow a swimsuit if you like. They left some for us in our suite,” said Evie. Sebastian shook his head. Even when angry at someone, Evie was still accommodating.

  “Maybe,” said Catherine in that way that meant, “I’m not interested, thank you.”

  “What’s wrong?” asked Sebastian. He wasn’t great at knowing what Catherine (or really all that many people) was thinking, but he had a feeling that something was off. The fact that she had returned so fast from the stunt-car place might have been the biggest hint.

  “They were very unhelpful at the SRAC. They wouldn’t even let us in. Such a ridiculous reason,” said Catherine with a sigh.

  “Was it because you have to be a stunt-car driver to be allowed into the stunt-car society?” asked Evie.

  “Oh. Yes. How did you know?” asked Catherine, furrowing her eyebrows and looking at Evie with suspicion.

  “It seems to me societies have more fun keeping people out than letting them in. You and I both have experience with that,” she replied, and Catherine nodded slowly.

  “Yes. Yes, I suppose we do.”

  “Where’s Benedict?” asked Sebastian.

  “He’s having a rest downstairs. What do you think we should do now?” asked Catherine, awkwardly lifting her legs and stretching out on the lounge chair, but she looked so stiff that it almost seemed like she had no knees. The moment she was settled, the pug crawled onto her and happily curled up in her lap.

  Sebastian could tell Evie felt conflicted. He could understand why. On the one hand, obviously they needed to figure out a way to be allowed into the SRAC. On the other, she was probably feeling a little more than vindicated that things hadn’t worked out as the grown-ups had hoped. Maybe if they had actually invited her and Sebastian along, this wouldn’t have happened.

  Still.

  She wasn’t answering the question. He needed to do something.

  “Do we know any stunt-car drivers?” he asked, looking to Catherine.

  “The Kid was the only one. And we don’t even know for sure if he is,” replied Catherine.

  “Okay. So if we don’t know any stunt-car drivers and they already know that you guys aren’t, because I’m assuming you didn’t lie…” Sebastian trailed off. He really didn’t know what else to suggest.

  “Then I guess the only thing to do is for either me or Sebastian to pretend we’re stunt-car drivers,” concluded Evie, speaking up finally.

  What? No. That was impossible. “That’s impossible,” said Sebastian.

  “I mean, it’s not easy, but I don’t think it’s impossible,” replied Evie.

  “No. Sebastian’s right. You’re what? Eleven and twelve? Both too young to drive—and do either of you even know how to in the first place?” asked Catherine.

  “Well…I don’t.” Evie looked at Sebastian.

  “Are you kidding me?” asked Sebastian. He was completely aghast. “Do you think that, of all the rules out there, that’s the one I’d be interested in breaking?”

  “Well, we don’t have to actually drive,” replied Evie. “This is silly. We’re getting very…Oh, what’s the kind of acting that actors do when you pretend to be the character all the time even when you aren’t on set, like in your day-to-day life?” Sebastian didn’t say anything. No one said anything. They just stared at her. “Okay. Whatever. The point is, we don’t need to have any driving skills. We just need to be convincing as drivers. As kid stunt drivers. And I think that that could be a thing. I mean, there’s got to be movies where kids our age have to drive, and so maybe there’s a way to convince the association that we are those people.”

  “This is wacky,” said Sebastian, shaking his head. It was too much, even for an Evie suggestion.

  “I think if there is any place in the world to be wacky, it’s here in Hollywood. Besides, didn’t you tell me about how the Lost Boys had those cars and stuff? And they were all underage. Adults even ask kids to drive trucks around on farms, too. So why not in movies?” The more Evie spoke, the more confident she sounded. And the less confident Sebastian felt. “And don’t forget, we’re kids,” she added.

  “We’re…kids?” said Sebastian doubtfully. He didn’t understand. That is to say, he understood that they were kids but not what she was getting at.

  “Adults find kids confusing, I think. And sometimes cute and funny. And they make up excuses for us. We can get away with more, I think.”

  “No, Evie. Stop,” said Catherine, clearly wanting to stand up but frozen in place by the tiny pug cuddling in her lap.

  “No?” Evie asked.

  “You can’t do that. Let me talk with Benedict. We’ll figure something out,” said Catherine, scratching the pug’s left ear.

  “Why can’t we figure something out now?” Evie’s voice cracked just a little.

  “Because you need to let us sort out the details,” said Catherine.

  “Why?”

  Oh no, not again.

  “Because we have experience. We’re familiar with dealing with uncompromising people. This is what we did together as a team for years. Please, Evie,” said Catherine.

  “ ‘Please, Evie’ what? What? Am I being unreasonable? Are my ideas bad? You thought my ideas were good ones before. You used to be totally about my good ideas. What’s going on? Suddenly another adult shows up and…” Evie stopped. She took in a deep breath. Something inside her seemed to change then. She had a realization. “And now you don’t need me anymore. That’s it. You don’t need me. Us.” She glanced at Sebastian. He didn’t know what she wanted from him, and all he could do was return the look with one of desperate discomfort. “Sebastian and I are the reason we’re all here today, and now you want to push us aside because you have your old team member. Because we’re kids and yo
u’re not.”

  “Evie, we want your help—”

  “Only when it’s convenient. Otherwise you just sneak out to do stuff on your own. Even if it means a plan isn’t going to work and we waste more time not finding my grandfather.” Evie stood in a rush, teetering slightly as she did. When she regained her balance, she said, “Come on, Sebastian.”

  “Why?”

  “Because we’re not wanted!”

  Evie stormed toward the door to the building, hoping Sebastian was behind her. She paused at the exit and turned to look.

  Sebastian was standing back by the pool chairs, looking really confused, not following her. Fine! She’d storm off on her own. She could do that. She didn’t need help with that!

  Evie turned in a huff and walked into the cool white foyer that divided the changing rooms. She went through and out into another stark hallway, and suddenly she realized that she hated it. She hated all this white brightness. It wasn’t refreshing. It wasn’t open. It was cold. It was unfeeling. It had no personality, and while she was at it, maybe the society headquarters where she was supposedly living now had too much personality. Maybe everything was terrible.

  And why didn’t Sebastian care? What was up with him? Sure, when they’d first met at the beginning of all this, he’d been kind of careful and scared of taking risks, but he’d changed so much since then! And anyway, his participation in this adventure was technically his fault. He was the one who had seen her crying outside the old Explorers Society back home and asked what was wrong. He was the one who’d invited her over. He was the one who’d shown her her grandfather’s puzzle box. This was his adventure as much as hers!

  But now? Now he was acting weird. Not usual-Sebastian-weird, either. But unsupportive and quiet—not Sebastian quiet but regular-person quiet…and…and…

  She climbed into the elevator and pushed the door-close button. She stood for a moment catching her breath, calming her thoughts. Stop blaming him, she told herself. You’re mad at Catherine. You’re mad that your grandfather is in danger and people are wasting time not listening to you. You’re mad at yourself for getting mad. Be mad at the right people. No point in taking it out on everyone.