by Vera Strange
“But I have to go home!” Barrie pleaded. He wriggled his hands, trying to escape. One of his wrists slipped free from the ropes. “My parents will miss me. Even my sister. They’ll look for me—”
“Silly boy, soon enough they’ll forget all about you,” Hook said. “You’re the one who didn’t want to grow up, remember? When we get there, you can walk the plank. Let it be a lesson to all the scurvy brats not to mess with Captain Hook.”
“But sir, you got what you wanted—I brought the hook back,” Barrie said, feeling tears prick his eyes. “You can let me go. I swear, I won’t tell anyone you kidnapped me. You can get away—”
“What I wanted, blithering idiot, was revenge!” Captain Hook yelled.
“Wait, that’s right,” Barrie said, thinking fast. “You said I wasn’t the first kid to play a childish prank on you. Who was the other kid? Did he get away?”
“Oh, I’ll still find him and make him pay,” Captain Hook ranted. “Thinks he can play a prank on Captain Hook?”
While he continued ranting about the kid who’d gotten away, Barrie wriggled his wrist, getting it free from the ropes. Then he reached for the hook, snagging it from the desk. He used it to saw at the ropes at his ankles, cutting himself free from the chair.
The ropes hit the floor with a thud, drawing the pirate’s attention.
“Come back, thief!” Captain Hook screamed. But Barrie didn’t wait.
He leaped up and darted for the door. His sweaty hands slipped on the doorknob. A dagger whipped by his head, hitting the door by his ear.
Thunk.
But he finally got the doorknob to twist. The heavy door squeaked open. He bolted through it, slamming it shut behind him. He heard the pirate’s heavy body slam into the door as the ship rocked dramatically, throwing them around.
Barrie staggered back to his feet and ran for the stairs. He bolted to the upper deck. The turbulent skies had started spitting rain. It hit the ship and stung his face. The white sails were unfurled, whipping in the strong winds.
His eyes fixed on the marina in the distance, fading away behind them. The ship was moving fast. He didn’t have much time before they left the safety of the bay. Out in the storm, the open ocean would be far more dangerous.
Barrie ran down the ship’s deck, looking for a life raft or escape boat—or anything that could help him get to safety. He was running past the plank when suddenly something snagged his neck, jerking him back.
“Got you, blasted kid!” Captain Hook hissed in his ear. He held Barrie by the neck. His grip was iron-tight.
Barrie was trapped. There was no way to escape now. Then, suddenly, that dark shadow swam past the ship, cutting through the water and circling by them.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
The ticking noise echoed out of the waves.
That was when the strangest thing happened—Captain Hook released his grip on Barrie’s neck. The dark shadow in the water made another pass by the ship.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
The pirate cowered back from the water. “No, he wants the rest of me!” Captain Hook whined, sounding petrified. “Get him away from me! Help me, I’ll do anything!”
Barrie felt confused, then it dawned on him. He remembered how Hook had vanished from the library when he heard the ticking of the clock on the wall. He was terrified of that sound.
And probably for good reason.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
Barrie fixed his eyes on the water, where the dark shadow circled the ship, hunting for its prey. Suddenly, razor-sharp teeth broke through the surface, gnashing at the air.
Hook yelped and cowered back. “No…please…don’t let him get me!”
The fierce pirate captain—the one who had been terrorizing Barrie ever since that fateful trip to the museum—now looked like nothing more than a scared little kid.
“Wait, you’re afraid of it, aren’t you?” Barrie said. “Whatever is down there?”
Barrie stood up, feeling how unsteady his legs were. They were shaking from adrenaline and fear, a potent combination. But he also felt a strength in them that he didn’t know he had. He clutched the hook in his hands. Rain pelted his face, soaking his clothes and hair.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
“No, he got a taste of me!” Captain Hook screamed. “He wants the rest.”
Barrie stared down at the pirate, who no longer seemed so terrifying. Everything suddenly made sense as all the pieces clicked into place in his head.
“Is that how you lost your hand?” Barrie asked, raising his voice to be heard over the storm.
“That’s all he got,” Hook cried out, brandishing his bloody stump. He clutched it closer to his chest, shivering from fear. “But he won’t stop until he’s got the rest.”
Suddenly, Barrie realized something amazing—he’d just solved his first real mystery. And not just any mystery, but the mystery of Captain Hook and his missing hand. He was just like the kid detectives in his books. He’d solved a case that even real historians couldn’t solve. He felt satisfaction course through him, but then a rush of fear snapped him out of it.
Barrie fixed his eyes on Captain Hook, who continued to grovel in the shadows, cowering back from the water. Hook was afraid of the ticking and the water, but as soon as that creature left, the pirate captain would recover—and he’d probably be even angrier than before.
Barrie felt afraid, but solving that mystery had given him a boost of courage. He fixed his eyes on the dark water. He knew that he had only one choice—and one way out.
He stepped onto the plank.
It wobbled under his feet. Below him, the waves frothed and churned angrily. The dark creature continued to circle.
Tick-tock. Tick-tock.
Barrie took a deep breath, inching out to the end of the plank. He waited for the next pass—tick-tock—then he tossed the rusty old hook into the water to distract it.
The creature thrashed in the waves, darting after the hook.
“Noooooooo—” Captain Hook screamed.
Barrie dove into the ocean, feeling the sharp sting of cold water envelop him. Right then, a huge wave slammed into him. The riptide caught his body, sucking him downward. He felt himself sinking further and further. He struggled to breathe but choked on more briny water.
White stars danced in front of his vision. He started to lose consciousness. His lungs were running out of oxygen.
This is it, he thought. I’m going to drown.
Barrie sank deeper into the black water. It choked him and clogged up his throat.
Panic gripped his heart and squeezed it tight. His body went rigid with fear. The water was opaque, almost black. Anything could be lurking down there—including that shadowy creature with the razor-sharp teeth. The hook had distracted it…
But for how long?
He gulped for oxygen, but only swallowed more salt water. It filled his lungs, bloating them. He couldn’t tell which way was up. He thrashed around helplessly and started to black out, but then lightning pulsed overhead and helped to orient him.
He swam toward the light, fighting against the churning water, pumping his arms and struggling toward the surface. He swam harder and kicked his feet, propelling himself upward.
Right when his lungs were burning and starting to convulse, he burst through the surface and gulped down air, which tasted sweeter than any candy. He flailed around until he spotted the lights along the shoreline, and then he swam for it.
Waves slapped at his face. He sputtered but had no choice but to keep swimming. The only other option was to drown.
* * *
He glanced back. Behind him, the Jolly Roger continued to sail away, off toward that strange place from the map.
The place where you never grow up.
The ship bobbed and crested the waves, cutting through them like they were butter. Candlelight flickered in the captain’s cabin. He could see Captain Hook’s silhouette framed in the window.
Barrie felt
a jolt of fear and dragged his gaze away. He’d escaped from the ship just in time. Now he could grow up and join his friends in junior high in the fall, and eventually in high school, like Rita. He didn’t care if it involved algebra and SAT prep classes, as long as he got to keep his friends. That was all that mattered.
He’d do a million math problems to keep Michael and John in his life.
That thought kept Barrie going, even as his arms burned from swimming and fighting against the waves. He finally reached the shore, climbing out and dragging himself onto the rocky beach.
His legs wobbled as he stepped onto the pebbles. It felt like he was still out at sea, rocking on the pirate ship, even though he was standing on dry land.
He climbed up the embankment and clambered onto the sidewalk, dripping a trail of water behind him. The marina was mostly deserted now. It was late. A thin sliver of moon hung in the dark sky.
He expected Michael and John to burst out of hiding and greet him. Now that he was safe, he was excited to recount his adventures battling Captain Hook. It was like one of their video games, except this was real.
He looked for Rita’s car, which should be idling by the side of the road. She’d be annoyed that he was late, but mostly relieved that he was okay. Not because she cared about him—but because their parents would definitely ground her if she lost her brother at the marina.
The last thing she wanted was to get grounded and not be able to smooch Todd.
But there were no signs of Michael and John, or Rita and her car, which was easy to spot due to its bright blue paint. In fact, the whole marina was eerily deserted. Streetlamps shone down, creating pools of light. The streets were empty. The shops were all closed.
How long was I on that ship?
Barrie racked his brain. He couldn’t be sure, but it wasn’t more than two hours. Right?
“Michael! John!” Barrie called, searching the marina. “I made it—our plan worked. You can come out now!”
But still nothing.
Where did they go?
He scanned the area again for any sign of his friends. Then he tried again. “Hey, I’m right here. You can come out now—”
Suddenly, a dark shadow fell over him.
“Kid, what’re you doing out here?”
Barrie whipped around, expecting Captain Hook. But his eyes fell on—
A security guard.
He breathed a sigh of relief. This was a different guard from the one who had been patrolling the marina earlier. He was tall and skinny with a bushy mustache and a Pirates baseball cap.
“Hey, kid, the museum’s closed,” the guard said, glowering at him. “You can’t be out here. Especially in this storm.”
Overhead, the sky crackled and rumbled with lightning and thunder.
“Sir, I’m lost…and my ride isn’t here for some reason,” Barrie said. “I need you to help me get home.”
The guard looked suspicious for a moment, but then he softened. “Okay, kiddo. What’s your parents’ number?”
Barrie recited their numbers by heart and waited while the guard tried them.
I was probably just on the ship longer than I realized, he thought. He had lost consciousness, after all. Most likely, Rita had taken Michael and John home before they missed their curfew. She’d come back and get him. But Barrie was freezing and soaking wet. He didn’t want to wait for her. He wanted to go home now. Nothing sounded better right now than his own bed.
The guard waited while the phone rang. Then, he lowered it from his ear.
“Kid, there’s no answer at these numbers,” the guard said, disconnecting the second call. “Look, I’m not falling for this prank again—”
“Sir…it’s not a prank,” Barrie stammered. “I swear I’m really lost. The storm probably messed up the phones. Look, please gimme a ride home.”
The sky was still thick with clouds. Lightning pulsed, illuminating the bay at random intervals, while thunder rocked the ground. Wisps of rain pelted the marina, whipped up by the wind.
The guard narrowed his eyes. For a second, Barrie thought he was going to tell him to get lost. But then he softened.
“Fine, let’s go,” he said, leading Barrie to the parking lot. They piled into his patrol car, which wasn’t very impressive.
Barrie watched as the lights of the bay faded out of sight, as the car wound through their quaint town heading for his home. But before they vanished, he could’ve sworn that in a flash of lightning, he spotted the Jolly Roger bobbing in the distance, heading for the open ocean.
But in the blink of an eye, the ship was gone, as if it had vanished from this world altogether.
* * *
A few minutes and several turns later, the guard pulled into the cul-de-sac and around to the front of Barrie’s house. The porch light was on, welcoming him home.
“Is this it?” the guard asked, tipping his hat toward the front door.
“Yes, sir,” Barrie said, reaching for the door handle. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Don’t mention it,” the guard said with a stiff nod. “Just be more careful, especially when there’s a storm brewing. Anything could’ve happened to you. The marina can be a dangerous place for lost boys. We had a kid go missing some years ago. Terrible tragedy.”
You have no idea, Barrie thought, remembering Captain Hook and the strange creature in the water. But he knew better than to mention any of that. Nobody would ever believe him.
Except for Michael and John, of course. That’s why they were best friends.
“I will. I promise,” Barrie said instead. And he meant it.
He’d had more than enough adventures for one day. No, scratch that.
For one lifetime.
As he climbed from the patrol car and watched it speed away, Barrie had never felt so glad to be home. Every muscle in his body screamed in pain from his swim through the bay and his narrow escape from Captain Hook. His clothes were still sopping wet and growing stiff from salt.
I’ll even be happy to see Rita, he thought with an incredulous smile as he headed for the front door. And he’d never—like never ever not even once—felt happy to see his sister before.
But her sky-blue car wasn’t parked in the driveway.
Strange, he thought with a frown. She always parked there, while his parents used the two-car garage. But maybe she’d ended up going out with her friends. After all, she did have a later curfew now that she was sixteen. That could also be why she had forgotten to pick him up. Todd probably distracted her.
Ugh, gross.
Barrie reached the front door and fished his keys out of his pocket. He slid the key into the lock, but it didn’t fit. It wouldn’t even slide into the slot.
What the heck? He retracted it from the lock and examined it.
It looked normal enough, but maybe it had gotten damaged in the escape?
He rang the doorbell and knocked a few times, then waited. A few seconds later, he heard footsteps padding up to the door. Then the deadbolt twisted.
The door cracked open.
Warm light spilled out onto the porch. Barrie was momentarily blinded. But then, when his vision cleared, what he saw shocked him.
An older woman’s face peered out of the crack in the doorway.
“Uh, can I help you?” she asked, sounding worried. “What’s a nice young man like you doing out so late?”
“Right…I live here,” Barrie said, backing away. “This is my house.”
He scanned the address, but he was sure this was the right place. He knew his own house. He’d lived there his whole life.
“What do you mean?” the old woman said, adjusting her glasses. “I think you’ve made a mistake. Young man, are you feeling okay?”
“Wh-where are my parents?” Barrie stammered, feeling alarmed. “Where’s my sister? What did you do with them?”
“Do with them?” she asked with a frown. “Why, whatever do you mean?”
“The Darlings,” Barrie said, plowing ahe
ad. “This is our house! Where are they?”
“Oh, that name does ring a bell,” she said with a curt nod. “We bought the house from them. But that was ages ago—”
“No…that’s impossible,” Barrie said. “I was here earlier today! My family lives here. This is our house!”
“Well, there must be some mistake,” she said, pursing her lips. “The Darlings haven’t lived here in a very long time.”
“Wait…what do you mean?” Barrie said, his mind reeling and struggling to process what she was saying.
“I believe they moved into the retirement community across town,” she went on. “The nice one across from the park. I heard their daughter married a local fellow and lives in another state with her husband and kids. Let me see what was his name? Oh, Ted…or Todd…something like that. You know how these real estate agents love to gossip—”
“Retirement community?” Barrie said, realizing what this meant—his parents had grown old. “Rita? Married? Kids?”
The horror of that struck him like a dagger to the heart.
“Come to think of it, there was this local tragedy a while back,” the woman continued with a sad shake of her head. “Read about it in the papers long before we bought the house from them. They had a son. He was about your age, I reckon.”
“A son?” Barrie choked out. Tears pricked his eyes.
“Yeah, he went missing down at the marina during a bad storm,” she said. “But that was a few decades ago.”
“He went missing?” Barrie repeated, his brain reeling from the information. Suddenly, he remembered what the security guard had said about the marina being dangerous for lost boys.
“Yup, he surely did,” the woman said. “His name was…Barrie. Yes, that’s it. Barrie…Darling. It was an awfully long time ago. But you don’t forget something like that. Terrible tragedy, that was.”
“They never found him?” Barrie said, the words coming out in barely a whisper.
She shook her head. “Nope, they never did find him. Not even a body. They think he must’ve fallen into the ocean and drowned. Awful, just an awful tragedy.”
“No…he’s alive,” Barrie gasped. The words were almost inaudible. “He didn’t die…he just got a little lost…but he came home…”