Storming the Kingdom (34 page)

“And then she said that she didn’t want to see any of us get hurt and that she could help. She said she loved you and that she knew you still had feelings for her.” Shep was talking so fast you almost couldn’t tell when one sentence ended and the next began. “She said she knew you were with Kate Young now, but she wanted to make sure you stayed safe. Kiran told me I could help make that happen.”

“How?” Even as Hawk asked, he knew the answer.

“All I had to do was help her find the secret you were looking for, and she would make sure the assassin stayed away and that the killing would stop. When you realized there was more than one group after you, it dawned on me that either she was lying to me, or there was another group that was getting too close…I was helping her, but I was doing it to make it all end, to get this over with.”

“And then you figured out she was using you.” Hawk’s anger still was burning, but he was reminding himself of the Shep he knew and loved. He had always known that Shep had a good heart and the desire to do the right thing…at least the Shep he thought he knew was that way.

“Yes, I didn’t know she wanted to kill you and Kate.” Shep sobbed. “I am sorry. So sorry. Instead of helping make things better, I just made everything worse. I didn’t know how to tell you, I was scared, I messed up. Can you ever forgive me?”

CHAPTER FIFTY - FIVE

Storm Day
12:45
A.M.

H
awk’s pulse was racing. The rage that had seized control moments ago now was ebbing away. Inside he was torn. Shep was one of his closest friends in the world. He was closer than a friend; Hawk considered him family. Yet for the past week, he had been betrayed, and the price of that betrayal was too high to calculate. Now, Shep was asking to be forgiven. The preacher in him, the follower of Jesus in him, knew that he had to forgive because it was the right thing to do. Forgiveness is really not as much about the one you are forgiving as it is about you being able to move forward. If you can’t forgive, a piece of you dies inside, and you will never live the life you were created to live. The inability to forgive others robs you of the joy of living each day as a gift.

The sounds of the storm outside rumbled, softening the sobs coming from inside the room. Shep had buried his face in his hands. His body was shuddering.

Hawk lowered his head and closed his eyes. He moved past Juliette and walked behind Shep’s chair. Jonathan moved aside for him, and he and Juliette watched carefully as Hawk slowly reached out and placed a hand on Shep’s shoulder. He gave it a reassuring squeeze and then leaned forward just a little bit.

“Shep, I want you to do something for me,” Hawk said softly.

Shep slowly lifted his face and turned toward his friend. He nodded silently.

“I want you to contact Kiran.” Hawk spoke calmly. “I want you to keep helping her.”

“But I haven’t talked to her since…” Shep shook his head. “No,” he whispered.

“Quiet,” Hawk insisted. “I want you to contact her. Tell her that I still have not learned my lesson, and you want to help her so we can all go back to our old lives.”

“Hawk, she’ll try to kill you again. I can’t—”

“You can and you will. “ Hawk tightened his grip of Shep’s shoulder. “You are going to tell her that she still doesn’t have the secret. Tell her that I am going to find it tomorrow. You don’t know what it is, but you know I am going to Tom Sawyer Island in the Magic Kingdom in the morning, and while everyone is digging out after the storm, I am going to finish solving the mystery.”

“Hawk, I don’t know what the secret is, and I can’t…I don’t want to.” Shep stood up to face Hawk.

“I am not overly concerned right now with what you want. You call her and tell her what I told you, and then you tell her you are finished helping her.” Hawk was expressionless as he stared at Shep. “Go now, call her, tell her, chitchat with her…do whatever it is you have been doing.”

Shep looked toward Jonathan and Juliette, who said nothing. They had listened, they had heard, and they were still stunned by the events that had been unfolding over the past few moments. Shep looked back at Hawk, who still stood stoically in front of him. With a slight nod, Shep excused himself and exited the office door. They watched him leave, and all three stood staring at the empty doorway.

“I don’t know what to say.” Jonathan spoke first. “I don’t think his intent was evil. It’s Shep. He was misguided, foolish, and irresponsible to be sure. But I don’t think he wanted anyone to get hurt.”

“Of course he didn’t,” Juliette added. “He’s heartbroken.” She looked directly at Hawk. “And you have him calling Kiran again.”

“That’s right, I do.”

“Why?”

“Because I want him to call her and tell her what I said.” Hawk sighed. “None of you realize what this quest has been about. None of you have any idea what this secret of Walt Disney’s really is. And it’s better that way.” Hawk paused. There was a part of him that desired nothing more than to tell them all he had discovered. But this had been the dilemma for Walt himself so many years ago. Walt had chosen to protect the secret and protect those he loved. Now Hawk was facing the same kind of decision. He ran his hand through his hair before continuing. “So I need Shep to tell Kiran what I am going to do next.”

“So you really are going to Tom Sawyer Island?” Jonathan quizzed.

“Yes.” Hawk rubbed his temples. “I am going to Tom Sawyer Island.”

“But Kiran will come after you and this secret.” Juliette stepped back and studied Hawk. “And you want her to come.”

“Yes, but not just her.” Hawk smiled faintly. “I want the assassin to come as well.”

“Why will the assassin be there?” Jonathan wondered.

“Because…I have a theory—but I won’t be sure until tomorrow—I think the assassin has been tracking me through Kiran. She shows up, and the assassin seems to be able to zero back in on me. I have no idea whether she is aware, letting him, or wanting him to…but I am thinking she is not. I think the assassin is tracking me because he has figured out how to track her.”

“So you want them both on Tom Sawyer Island,” Jonathan said.

“Exactly.”

“That’s not smart. They will both be there trying to kill you,” Juliette said.

“I’m counting on it,” Hawk said resolutely. “Their time to storm my kingdom is done. Tomorrow the aftermath of the storm begins. And I am going to start cleaning this mess up.”

CHAPTER FIFTY - SIX

Storm Day
8:30
P.M.

H
urricane Ginger had finally left the Walt Disney World Resort. The resort had survived the storm. There were trees that had been sawed off by the force of the winds, the rain had caused some flooding, but the early reports indicated minor damage. All of the theme parks had fared well through the storm; and as tomorrow came, there would be time to evaluate carefully in the light of day how best to go back to full operations as soon as possible. Thousands of guests had their vacations interrupted by the uninvited visitor named Ginger. The cast would do its best to make the rest of the experience much more pleasant.

Tom Sawyer Island is one of those places that has not changed a great deal over the history of Walt Disney World. Walt Disney himself designed the original Tom Sawyer Island for Disneyland in California. The Orlando version of the attraction stayed very true to those original ideas. Attractions and remodeling had been done all around the island, nestled in Frontierland, surrounded by the Rivers of America, but not much had been done to the island itself. Hawk loved the fact that the attraction hadn’t changed much. It was a throwback to a style of Imagineering that Walt himself had taught his people. It was storytelling at its finest. The island was the environment; they had added some places and things to spark the imagination, and the adventure the guests could have was entirely up to them. Hawk was amazed that many guests never even visited the island. To get there, you had to board natural gas-powered rafts. The landing to get to Tom Sawyer Island was right next to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Since you had to get to and return from the island by raft, there was a feeling of isolation to the place, which was an unusual sensation in a theme park crowded with people. Yet those who did visit would find things they would remember forever.

Hawk loved to climb through the island’s old grist mill. The creaks and groans of its gears subtly performed the song “Down By The Old Mill Stream” for those who listened closely. Those were the details he loved. The little bird in the cogs of the mill is from the 1937 cartoon
The Old Mill
. He smiled each time he saw the little feathered resident and was amazed that so many didn’t appreciate the care that was taken as it was created.

Caves, tunnels, forts, and bridges wrapped their way through and around the island; this was where he hoped the maze of treachery would end. He was alone in the Magic Kingdom. Once the storm had stopped, he had immediately left to head back to his Main Street apartment. Guards were posted at the base of the stairway, but as he had done so many times before, he used the alternate exit, so the security team was keeping his empty home safe. He had been busy, taking advantage of the emptiness of the Magic Kingdom, to get the island ready for the aftermath of tomorrow’s storm. It would be much more dangerous than Hurricane Ginger.

He leaned against the Alligator Swamp shack on the edge of the Rivers of America. Looking across the river, he could see the island where he’d spent the past few hours. After slipping out of his apartment, he had made his way to the dock and then swum to the island and returned to where he had started. He was soaked through, since he had chosen to swim from Tom Sawyer Island to this dock rather than taking a raft. As he dripped dry in the warm night air, he closed his eyes. His mind flooded with thoughts of Kate. He replayed her last few moments and quickly opened his eyes in an attempt to turn off the memory. It didn’t work, and he felt himself give way again to the heaviness of losing her. Kiran had tried to kill her; the assassin had succeeded. Although Hawk had been the real target, she was just an added bonus for both of his enemies. He had invited Kate to get back to Walt Disney World because it was the best place to ride out a hurricane. She would have been safer facing the storm surge in Miami than coming to be with him. Guilt and blame whispered in his head that her death was his fault, just like the death of his family years ago, just like the deaths of his friends now.

He sat by the edge of the water in the Happiest Place On Earth, feeling anything but happy. Hopefully Shep had placed his call to Kiran. He guessed she was already formulating her plan to get to Tom Sawyer Island. The Magic Kingdom was still going to be closed tomorrow for some time so they could make sure it was ready for guests to return to. He wasn’t worried about whether she’d come; she had worked there, given tours there, and knew her way around the theme park perhaps better than he did. She could find a way to get there. The dark-haired assassin had already proven he knew how to get into the park when it was closed. Hawk was confident that both would show up at the island. He was counting on it.

He glanced over toward the loading dock, where guests would board rafts to travel to Tom Sawyer Island. Standing there were Jonathan and Juliette. Hawk yelled to them, and they turned with surprise to see him sitting downriver from them. He motioned for them to meet him and got up and made his way up toward the railroad tracks to walk toward Frontierland Train Station. They headed the same direction. In a few minutes, he could see them walking down the railroad tracks toward him. As they met, he greeted both with a long hug. They didn’t seem to mind that he was wet from his swim.

“I wish things had turned out differently for you and Kate,” Juliette said as they all began walking along the railroad tracks. “I’m so sorry she’s gone.”

“I don’t know how to help you.” Jonathan clasped his friend over the shoulder.

“You are helping me,” Hawk said. “You love me, you’re praying for me, and you’re here. That’s all I could want. Thanks.”

They walked in silence for a long time. They traveled along the railroad line toward the front of the Magic Kingdom. Eventually they would arrive at the Main Street Station. But long before they got there, Hawk would venture off the tracks, enter an unmarked doorway, descend to the Utilidor, and then travel back through the underground maze to get to his apartment undetected.

“Is this plan of yours going to work?” Jonathan asked as they came to the place where Hawk was going to leave them and head back home.

“I’m not sure.” Hawk shrugged as they all stopped walking. “But I don’t have a better plan, so we’ll go with this one.”

“Some plan is better than no plan at all.” Juliette patted him on the arm. “It’ll work. You’ll see.”

“I just would like for there to be an easier way or a safer way,” Jonathan added.

“When people are trying to kill you, there are no safe ways,” Hawk said.

“But you can be careful,” Juliette cautioned.

“Tomorrow, the advantage I have is that I’ll be the only one to know where I am, what I’m trying to do, and for a few moments…I hope that advantage will make me successful. If it doesn’t, then things might get ugly.”

“What about Walt Disney’s secret?” Jonathan asked.

“I know this…they will never find it.” Hawk stepped away from his friends. “And if I get killed, no one will ever find it. Because I am the only one who knows where it is. See you tomorrow.”

Hawk left his friends standing on the railroad track and slipped into Tomorrow-land.