Back Before Dark

by Tim Shoemaker

  Lunk would seriously lose it if he heard one more kid say Did you hear what happened to Gordon Digby? Bad news travels fast, and at Plum Grove Junior High, the darkest news traveled at the speed of light.

  Mitch Robinson, Patrick James, and Brian Forrester caught Lunk just as he dropped his books in his locker. Hiro had different names for them. Curly, Moe, and Larry.

  “How did this guy get Gordon?” Mitch didn’t look all that concerned. Just nosey. “Did he offer him candy or something?”

  The other two snickered, but stopped the moment Lunk glared at them.

  Mitch didn’t budge. “You saw the whole thing, right?”

  Lunk sighed. There was no avoiding them. Just answer their question and get to the lunchroom. “Taser.” Lunk sidestepped them and kept moving.

  “Yeah, but still …” Mitch said. He trotted alongside Lunk and stepped in front of him. “Let some guy taser me and try to get me into his car, and I’d have fought him off.” Mitch looked at Patrick and Brian for approval.

  “Not likely.” Lunk could feel his cheeks getting warm. “You’d have been shaking on the ground—drooling and wetting your pants.”

  Mitch’s face reddened.

  Good. A direct hit. Lunk tried to step around him.

  Mitch blocked his path. “So if this guy had a taser, how come Cooper got away?”

  Lunk stared at him. “Coop wasn’t trying to get away. He was trying to get there to help.”

  “Tried hard, I’ll bet—him being the big hero and all. Maybe his cape slowed him down.”

  Ah, yes. That’s what this was about. He was still jealous about last fall when Frank’n Stein’s was robbed. Cooper got a lot of attention he never wanted—just the kind Mitch would love to have. And if Lunk stayed any longer, Mitch was going to get the kind of attention he wouldn’t want. Like a punch to the kisser. But then Lunk would end up in the principal’s office instead of in the lunchroom with Coop. “I gotta go.”

  Lunk stepped around the Three Stooges and bee lined it for the cafeteria. He didn’t look back. He was free—for the moment. He had to get to Cooper. Help somehow. But Cooper just lost his best friend. There was no way Lunk was going to take Gordy’s place. A year ago Lunk used to bully all three of them. At a time like this, would Coop even want Lunk around?

  CHAPTER 9

  Cooper felt like a prisoner in his own school. He wanted to get out and look for Gordy. But his parents wouldn’t let him bike to school. Not today. Obviously they were worried the kidnapper was still around. And maybe they had a hunch that he’d hop on his bike and go looking for Gordy before school was out. But whatever their reasons, the result was the same. He was stuck at school. From the moment he got on the bus this morning he felt trapped.

  Hiro sat across the lunch table from Cooper and picked at her food. “I talked to my brother last night.”

  Cooper took a bite of his sandwich and listened.

  “He was on duty when Arlington Heights police got the word. Every cop wanted to find that van.”

  But none of them had. Neither had the Rolling Meadows police, the state police, or the Cook County police. Hoffman Estates and Barrington cops came up empty-handed as well. The ghost-van totally vanished.

  And it didn’t help that some bozo couldn’t remember the license plate numbers. Deep down he felt that would have made all the difference. He knew it would. If he had gotten it right, Gordy would be safe now.

  “Did you sleep last night?”

  Hiro’s question pried him from his thoughts.

  “I went to bed. Not sure if I slept.”

  Hiro shrugged. “Same here.”

  Lunk approached the table, food tray in hand. He hesitated, like he wondered if he was interrupting something important.

  The old enmity between them was long gone, but sometimes an awkwardness still hung on, especially around Hiro and Gordy.

  Cooper motioned for him to sit down. Hiro moved to give Lunk room, but she didn’t look thrilled about it.

  “Hiro,” Cooper said, “do you have a feeling about this?”

  She looked at him and tilted her head in a questioning way.

  “You know,” Cooper said. “Your woman’s intuition thing.” That spooky sense of knowing something before it could really be known. Like how she’d sensed something was fishy with the whole backpack thing and tried to stop Gordy. And like she had at Frank’n Stein’s before the robbery last fall.

  She shook her head. “Nothing. One minute I’m consumed with fear. I pray. I feel hope. Then the fear seeps back in.”

  Cooper shifted. “I actually tried to communicate with Gordy last night.” He looked at Lunk, then back at Hiro. If either of them thought he was crazy, they were good enough not to let it show.

  “I mean, I figured we’ve been best friends as long as I can remember, and we’re cousins too. Maybe we could sort of communicate with each other.”

  “Mental telepathy.” Lunk nodded. “I’ve heard twins can do that. They know when the other is in trouble. Stuff like that.”

  Hiro frowned. “Telepathy. That sounds kind of creepy to me. I definitely wouldn’t go there. What kind of message did you try to send him?”

  “That we were going to find him. And everybody was looking for him. Told him to hang in there—and send me some clues if he could.”

  Lunk stared at his plate like he was trying to send a message of his own. Then again, maybe he thought the whole thing was totally stupid and didn’t want Cooper to see it in his eyes.

  “So,” Hiro said. “Did you get anything?”

  Cooper shook his head. “Zip.”

  “Which means …” Lunk looked at him and just let the statement hang there. “Maybe he can’t hear you—or anyone anymore.”

  Hiro jabbed an elbow into his ribs. Lunk winced slightly.

  “Or maybe,” Hiro said, glaring at him, “it just proves mental telepathy doesn’t work.”

  Gordy would have loved that moment. Seeing four-foot-something Hiro take on Lunk. The thought made Cooper hurt even more for his cousin.

  Lunk took a bite of his burger. “No ransom call, though, right?”

  Cooper shook his head. “Unfortunately.” Which was a total understatement. “My mom stayed with my aunt all night. No call. My dad and Uncle Jim cruised all night, looking for vans.”

  That was part of what kept him awake. He wanted to do something. Help somehow. Not be left at home to babysit Mattie.

  “Maybe a ransom call came in after you went to school.”

  Was Lunk trying to cheer him up? Cooper fished his phone out of his pocket. “My mom promised to text me with any news.” He checked the screen. “Nothing.”

  Hiro checked her phone. Cooper watched her, hoping maybe her brother might have sent her some kind of inside scoop from the police side of things.

  “Did your brother say anything else? Any leads at all?”

  Hiro looked down.

  That pretty much said it all as far as Cooper was concerned. “Why hasn’t somebody called for a ransom?”

  Lunk locked eyes with him. He obviously knew the answer to the question, and so did Cooper. The truth was, if a call didn’t come soon, it never would. Cooper didn’t want to go there.

  “We still have time for a call,” Hiro said.

  Cooper wanted to believe that. But part of him was afraid Hiro was just trying to make him feel better, which is not what he wanted at all. He wanted to feel pain until Gordy was found. “How much time?”

  “I’m not sure. But Ken said something about twenty-four hours.”

  Okay, so Ken was a cop, and he should know. Unless he was just trying to encourage his little sister. “Why would a guy wait that long to call?”

  “To make the parents sweat. To make them desperate enough to pay any kind of ransom he demanded.”

  Cooper could buy that. Maybe. But Uncle Jim and Aunt Cris couldn’t possibly be any more desperate than they were right now. None of them could. And wouldn’t waiting longer bring in more
heat? The FBI maybe? Cooper thought about the index card in his pocket. He wanted to hand it to Gordy now. This afternoon.

  Candy Mertz, Lissa Bowens, and Katie Barbour sauntered toward them. They walked so close it was a wonder they didn’t knock one another’s trays out of their hands.

  Candy’s eyes met his. She smiled like she thought he was watching her. Like she probably figured all the guys watched her. He looked away, but not quick enough.

  “Hey, Cooper,” she said. “Sorry to hear about Gordy. You two were close, weren’t you?”

  Just the way she said it—in a past tense like that—as if he were already dead. A statistic. It made his stomach churn.

  “He’s my cousin.”

  Candy tilted her head to one side. “Awww.”

  Pity. Just what he didn’t need—especially from her.

  “Seriously, though,” Lissa said. “I hate to say it, but—”

  Cooper held up his hand. “Then don’t. Don’t say it.”

  Lissa looked startled, but Cooper didn’t really care. Why did people always say something like “I hate to say it” when the truth is they can’t wait to say it. If they really hated to say it—they wouldn’t say it. And the truth was, she was probably going to say something about how they shouldn’t have approached a van like that. He’d heard that enough today, and he didn’t need the reminder.

  “I just don’t see how it could have happened.” Candy shifted her food tray. “Didn’t anybody ever tell him not to talk to strange people?”

  “Of course,” Hiro said. Fire sparked in her eyes. “In fact, that’s what I told Gordy every time he wanted to talk to you.”

  Lunk snorted. He’d just taken a gulp of milk, and even though he clamped a hand over his mouth, it spewed all over his tray.

  Candy looked disgusted and just sort of sauntered off with the other two girls.

  “Nicely done,” Cooper said. He was still shaking inside, but that was classic.

  Lunk grabbed a handful of napkins and mopped off his face. “That was beautiful. A perfect zinger.”

  Cooper wished he could have fully enjoyed the moment. He picked at his food while scanning the room. Kids talking. Laughing. Guys showboating in front of girls. Lunch as usual.

  But there was nothing normal about this day. Why didn’t it seem like anybody else was mourning? Because nobody really cared. What happened to Gordy was a juicy story for them. Something to talk about. But when it came right down to it, their best friend wasn’t the one who was missing. “I shouldn’t even be here,” Cooper said.

  Hiro eyed him.

  “I mean, what are any of us doing here? I can’t study. And we’re losing time. Gordy needs us.” He stood.

  Hiro didn’t move. “What are you going to do?”

  “Leave.”

  “Cooper, use your head.”

  “That’s exactly what I want to do. Get out of here and think. Figure out a way to find Gordy.”

  Lunk got up and stood next to him.

  Hiro leaned forward. “So you’d just walk home, is that it?”

  “I’ve done it before.”

  “Not in the middle of a school day. And what do you suppose will happen when you don’t show up for class?”

  “I don’t care.”

  Hiro stomped around the table and stopped directly in front of him. “Think.” She tapped the side of his head. “There’s been a kidnapping. The teachers are on high alert. In two of my classes this morning, we spent the entire time talking about how to avoid abduction and what to do if you are snatched.”

  Cooper picked up his backpack and swung it over his shoulder. “You don’t think I can get out of here?”

  “I don’t think you should. They’ll know you’re gone. And then they’ll call your parents. What do you think will happen when they hear you’re missing?”

  They’d die. And be totally distracted from what they really needed to do: look for Gordy. And if he called them, they’d tell him to march right back to school.

  Hiro must have sensed his second thoughts. “We have three more hours. Then we’re out of here. If there still hasn’t been a call from Gordy, we’ll figure out how to help.”

  She was right. He hated to admit it. He slid the backpack off his shoulder and dropped it onto the table. “We’ll meet at The Getaway right after school.”

  Hiro nodded like the old cabin cruiser sitting squarely on the trailer in Cooper’s backyard was the only logical place to meet.

  Cooper looked at Lunk. “Want to join us?”

  Lunk leaned in close. “Okay, but I like your first idea better.” He nodded toward the exit. “If you change your mind, I’ll leave with you.”

  CHAPTER 10

  An unscheduled assembly took the place of seventh period. Any kind of assembly was usually a reason for Cooper to celebrate. But not today.

  Hiro sat beside him, and it didn’t take long for Lunk to find them. He lumbered up the bleachers and nodded but didn’t say anything. He sat on the other side of Cooper like a personal bodyguard.

  Mr. Shull took his job as principal seriously. He covered the same ground Cooper had heard in every class he’d been in that day. Be careful about helping someone that you don’t know—even if they seem to be in need. Don’t go to the park after dark. Don’t ride your bike after dark. Stay away from strangers. Don’t go anywhere alone.

  Like that had done Gordy a lot of good. He was lured out of a group of four. Cooper had nearly made it to the van before the scumbag pulled away. Whoever grabbed him didn’t seem to care if friends were nearby. But Cooper should have seen the danger sooner. Should have ridden with Gordy all the way. Eh, amigo?

  Lunk leaned toward Cooper. “He forgot one.”

  “One what?”

  “Safety tip,” Lunk whispered.

  Hiro glanced his way. “So what is it? The safety tip.”

  “Carry a weapon.”

  Cooper looked at Lunk. He was serious. What? Had Rolling Meadows turned into a Wild West town all of a sudden?

  Hiro leaned across Cooper. “Great idea, Lunk.” She made the shape of a handgun with her thumb and forefinger. “Maybe my brother will let me borrow his Glock. And I’ll grab my dad’s old Smith & Wesson for Coop.”

  Hiro’s sarcasm didn’t seem to faze Lunk. “Would have saved Gordy.”

  Cooper couldn’t even imagine the thought of carrying a handgun—much less using one.

  The principal went through a whole PowerPoint presentation. Good information—every bit of it. Just too little, too late to help Gordy. Why did the school wait for a kidnapping before they took time to warn other students? Or was it just that students never paid attention until something bad happened? Likely it was the second option.

  Would any of this have helped Gordy? Cooper wasn’t sure it would have made any difference. Gordy would never have approached a van like that. Nobody in his right mind would. But that lousy backpack trick proved to be a perfect decoy. A trap set for any decent kid who might care enough to help.

  And now Gordy needed his help. God, what am I supposed to do?

  The principal introduced Officer Sykes, a policeman assigned to Plum Grove. Hiro had talked to him before and thought he was a good cop. And not the kind of guy to mess with. He’d been around since January. Patrolling the halls during classes. Standing at the doors when kids came into the school and when they left. Beefed up security. A sign of the times.

  A picture of Gordy flashed on the screen. White, blonde hair blowing. Grinning just the way he always did. Like he did when he took the challenge to chase the van. Tears blurred Cooper’s vision. He tried blinking them back, but they kept coming.

  Cooper’s body shook in sobs that he fought to keep silent. He felt kids turning and looking at him. But he didn’t care. Okay, he did care, but he wished he didn’t. He felt a strong arm around his shoulder. Lunk.

  Officer Sykes took the mike. “You’ve all heard some really solid information about how to keep safe. Not much I can add to that. But
there’s more for you to do than just keep safe. We need your help to find Gordon Digby.”

  He had Cooper’s full attention now.

  “And it doesn’t matter if you know Gordon well or not. He is one of our own. One of you. And if someone messes with one of us, they’ll have to deal with all of us.”

  Cheers and applause erupted. Sykes held up one hand to quiet the students. Cooper hadn’t paid much attention to the policeman when he’d seen him in the halls. He seemed friendly enough, but to Cooper the whole idea of having a cop around full time seemed like overkill. Especially at Plum Grove Junior High. Obviously Cooper had been wrong. About a lot of things.

  Somebody snatched a Plum Grove student—and Officer Sykes took it personally. He looked like he’d like to get his hands on the guy who did it. Cooper hoped he’d get to see that happen.

  “We start with awareness.” Sykes held up a flyer with the grinning picture of Gordy on it. “I’m going to have flyers at each door on your way out. Take as many as you’re willing to distribute. Put one in the front window of your home. Ask local businesses if you can put one on their doors. I want at least one picture of Gordon Digby on every light pole in Rolling Meadows. I’m going to be out there after school today with a roll of tape and an armful of posters. Show of hands … who else can I count on?”

  Hands shot up all over the bleachers. Cooper stood and held up his hand. He felt something stirring inside him. Not one person sat with their hands on their lap. Whether they felt pressure to raise their hands or it came from the heart, Cooper felt encouraged by the number of volunteers.

  “Thank you.” Officer Sykes nodded. “Now this investigation is officially being handled by the police, and you’re not to get in their way.” He brought the mike closer to his mouth. “But you’re not going to sit around with your hands in your pockets either.”

  A burst of applause. Cooper’s whistle pierced the air right along with the others.