Back Before Dark (32 page)

“There is
one
thing Coop would never do when it comes to a friend.” She pulled a pen out of her back pocket and scribbled something on the palm of her hand, cupping it so nobody could read it.

Cooper wasn’t sure he wanted to know what she wrote. But there was only one thing that came to his mind. One thing he’d learned that he’d never do when it came to a friend. But he didn’t actually want to say it. It wasn’t the kind of thing you told others about. It was something you
showed.
By your actions.

“Okay,” she said, balling her hand into a fist. “To prove I know you as good, or
better
, than you know yourself”—she tucked her pen in her back pocket—

“Oh, great,” Gordy said. “Here we go.”

Hiro ignored him. “All you have to do is finish the sentence.
The only thing I wouldn’t do when it comes to a friend is
…”

She held her fist in the air, waiting for his response.

Cooper paused. Not so much for dramatic effect as to be sure he meant it.

“Say it, Coop,” Hiro said. “The thing in your head right now.”

He did not want to do this. He looked to Lunk for a little backup.

Lunk shrugged. “Better do it, Coop. She’s not letting go. And we all know how Hiro gets when she’s got her mind made up.”

“I’m thinking the one thing he wouldn’t do—even for a friend—is miss a chance for a monster shake,” Gordy said. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong,” Hiro said. “We’re talking about Coop here, not you.” She locked eyes with Cooper. “Just finish the sentence,” she whispered.

“The one thing I wouldn’t do when it comes to a friend is …” Cooper swallowed. “Give up on them.” He knew it. More than ever. “I’d never give up on them.”

Hiro smiled, her eyes alive. She opened her fist and held her palm out to him.

Cooper read it and shook his head. How
did
she do that?

Thanks for giving me so much material to work with!

Special Thanks to …

Frank Ball … for his skillful help fine-tuning the mechanics

of
Back Before Dark

Dr. Dale McElhinney … for his expertise adding realism

to two scenes

Rich Hammer … for his time, undying support,

and valuable input

Jeff Aiello … for his endless fight to protect kids,

and for helping me to do the same

Mrs. Wendy Fanella and her enthusiastic students …

for making this series a special part of their class

Nancy Rue … for her encouragement and expert advice

Kim Childress … for her insight and flexibility

with the content and edits

Nathan Williams … for a great quote that inspired

the tagline of this book

Cheryl Shoemaker … for never doubting—even when
I
did

Bro. Bud. Crony. Amigo. People use lots of words to describe their friends. But what does it take to be a good friend—and will we have what it takes when it really counts? Cooper took huge risks for Gordy—and it gives us a good feeling to think we’d do the same. However, not many of us will face a situation where a friend has been kidnapped as Gordy was. But our friends or family can still be “taken” in
other
ways.

The truth is that we live in a pretty messed up world. There are all kinds of ways friends can be lured into traps that will hurt them or even take them captive. You could probably make a list of things right now. What should you do if you have a friend who is making a bad choice or a wrong move, or is drifting from the truth? Should you let it slide? Cover for them? Pretend you don’t notice? Distance yourself from them? If you really want to be a good friend, your course of action will likely need to be different from the ones I’ve just listed.

Some answers, at least partially, are found in a conversation between Hiro and Lunk in
Back Before Dark.
Remember when Hiro worried about Cooper taking crazy risks in his efforts to find Gordy?

Hiro’s eyes flashed. “A real friend helps keep his friend from walking into trouble.”

“Sometimes.” Lunk nodded. “Or is willing to walk through the trouble
with
his friend, if he has to.”

Let’s take a closer look at these two different points of view.

“A real friend helps keep his friend from walking into trouble.”
In many ways Hiro was absolutely right. Sometimes we need to actively protect our friends and family by stopping them from continuing down a dangerous path.

Remember what Hiro, Cooper, and Lunk did when they realized Gordy was heading into potential danger? They urged him to
stop. Tried to warn him. They chased after him in an effort to keep him from making a huge mistake.

You can do that with your friends or family. There are times when you’re going to see more clearly than they do. You’ll sense they’re making a bad decision. A compromise. Or a mistake. And that will often lead them to pain and regret. As a good friend, you’ll want to warn, urge, and encourage your friends to change their course. It’s as simple as that.

Sometimes you need to be the voice of conscience for a family member or in your friend’s life. You need to be the type of friend who can come alongside them and help convince them to make good choices. It isn’t always easy—but then, being a good friend isn’t exactly an easy job.

But remember this. Your job is to warn your friend if you feel they’re taking a wrong or dangerous path. Your job is to encourage your friend to do the right thing. However, you are not responsible for the decision your friend makes. Sometimes, your friends may make bad choices no matter how hard you try to convince them to do the right thing.

“Or is willing to walk through the trouble
with
his friend if he has to.”
That was Lunk’s response to Hiro. Gordy approached that van despite the warnings from his friends. And he got himself in trouble. Cooper, Hiro, and Lunk didn’t abandon him, though. They went after him. Tried to find a way to rescue him.

We can do the same thing. If a friend has gotten himself in some kind of trouble or made some bad choices, sometimes he can’t get himself out of it any more than Gordy could escape from that basement. He needs friends who will do everything they possibly can to rescue him.

And sometimes “walking through trouble with them” plays out in different ways. Gordy wasn’t the only one in danger. Cooper was going through a tough time because of what happened to Gordy. Hiro and Lunk tried to stay close to him in their own ways. To walk with Coop as he went through the trouble. To be there for him.

Sometimes friends go through hard times. They need us to stay close. To listen. To help give them perspective and hope. To keep them from doing something really stupid. That’s what good friends do.

Get the motivation right.
What motivates you as a friend? Throughout a lot of this story, Cooper’s own sense of guilt was the driving force to find Gordy. While that was understandable, it definitely wasn’t the best motivator. Eventually Cooper discovered what his real motivation needed to be. Love.

Dr. McElhinney summed it up pretty well.

“There are many things that motivate people. Greed. Power. Hatred. Guilt. Fear. Revenge. But there’s one thing you must know about love. Love is stronger than all of them combined.”

Love is the purest motive. And the most powerful. And if we want to be a really good friend, we need to make sure our words and actions are fueled by love.

“Sometimes rescuing a friend from darkness means going in after them.”
Cooper made this statement just before he risked it all to rescue Gordy. Sometimes our friends need us to take risks to save them. Motivated by love, we risk embarrassment, ridicule, and maybe even the friendship itself in order to rescue someone from a trap or from taking a wrong path. That’s what good friends do.

But know your limitations.
Following a friend into a dangerous environment is rarely going to do any real good. It will likely get you in trouble—like when Coop got himself kidnapped. So be careful. Get advice from your parents or other wise people you respect and trust.

You’ll probably never have a friend who gets abducted. But you’ll have friends who make bad choices that will leave them hurting or chained to sin. As a good friend, you can warn them about bad choices, and you can be there to help them if they want to change.
But be very careful they don’t drag you into the consequences of their own destructive choices.

“The one thing I wouldn’t do when it comes to a friend … is give up on them.”
Cooper said that at the end of the book, and
that was really his mindset all along. Our friends need
us
to be that kind of friend. Is there ever a time to walk away from a friend? Yes. Sometimes we will have friends who won’t listen or won’t turn back from bad paths or choices no matter how hard we try to convince them. Sometimes we must distance ourselves from them to keep from falling into the same trap. We won’t do our friends any good if we wind up in the same dangerous situation that they’re in.

In the early chapters of
Back Before Dark
, Cooper felt that the dark had swallowed Gordy up. In real life, we’ll experience that. We’ll see friends lured into darkness. I hope you’ll be the type of friend who doesn’t compromise or cover for them. I hope you’ll love them enough to warn them. Be the kind of friend who will do all you can to rescue them from darkness. And when you do, you’ll have good reason to celebrate. Go out and treat yourself to a monster shake and fries!

Oh, and one more thing. Guess what I’m working on right now? The third book in the
Code of Silence
series. The title is
Below the Surface.
Your friends Coop, Hiro, Gordy, and Lunk will be back for yet another adventure. And this time they’ll be taking a vacation on
The Getaway.
I think you’ll love it!

—Tim

 1. An innocent-looking backpack on the roof of the minivan was really a trap to lure Gordy. What are some seemingly innocent things that can lure us, or our friends, into danger?

 2. Cooper, Hiro, and Lunk all warned Gordy to back away from the van, but Gordy ignored their warnings because he didn’t see the danger. What warnings from friends or family have you been discounting or ignoring?

 3. By the time Gordy realized the backpack was a trap, it was too late to escape. How does that happen to people in real life?

 4. Gordy got tasered and experienced a world of pain. How might we experience pain when we ignore warnings from friends or family?

 5. Gordy found himself taken prisoner by the very man he chased down to help. How can the things we pursue or go after end up imprisoning us?

 6. Friends get trapped and imprisoned by bad habits, secret sins, compromise, lack of self-discipline and more. Name some specific things that can take your friends to a dark place—things that can mess them up.

 7. Cooper never gave up hope and never stopped trying to rescue Gordy—even after many others thought he was never coming back. How can we do that for our friends and family—those who have been trapped or taken captive somehow?

 8. Cooper learned that love is a strong motivator. Love seeks the good of others without expecting anything in return. How can you be more deliberate in loving your friends and family?

 9. Coop tried to stop Gordy from approaching the van. Hiro tried to convince Coop not to check the homes of registered sex offenders. In what ways do you need to speak up or try
to stop your friends now from taking potentially dangerous, wrong, or destructive paths?

10. Whether you have a friend who is going through a time of trouble or one who is choosing a wrong path, how can you be the type of friend who never gives up on them?

Protect Yourself from Being Abducted

Back Before Dark
tells of Gordy’s abduction and his friend’s efforts to find him. Abductions are very real, and I’d like to give you some reminders about how to stay safe—and how to keep others safe.

There are some really twisted people living in this world. They’re monsters, and they feed on kids. I’ve read lots of statistics on abductions. One report stated that 800,000 kids are reported missing every year in the United States. Not exactly a comforting thought. Here are some other numbers that will really make you think.

72 percent of attempted abductions involved the suspect driving a vehicle.

35 percent of attempted abductions happened when the person was going to or from school or a school related activity.

35 percent occurred between 2:00 and 7:00 p.m.

41 percent of all kids abducted are between ten and fourteen years old.

69 percent of attempted abductions involve a girl.

For incidents in which a suspect was actually identified or arrested, 38 percent were known repeat offenders, and 16 percent were registered sex offenders at the time of the incident.

I want to help keep you safe. So here are some things you may want to think about and talk to your parents about.

Practice “what if” scenarios with your parents.

“What if somebody points a gun at me and tells me to get in their car?”

“What if someone grabs me in a parking lot and tries to force me into their car?”

When you actually think about different possibilities in advance—and how to react to them—you’ll be more prepared if somebody does try to grab you. And that little extra bit of preparation may save your life.

Stay in a group.
Please, don’t wander off by yourself—especially at night. Even walking or biking home from school is a lot safer if you’re in a group. Predators look for loners.

Stay in the light.
If the long way home is on well-lit streets—take the long way home. Shortcuts through dark or shadowy areas may be more dangerous. But remember, predators still grab kids in total daylight—so you must always be on alert.

Ear buds are not your “buds.”
A person wearing ear buds while jogging or walking makes an easy target. With music blasting in your ears, you won’t hear someone coming. You need to be on guard while walking home from school or from your bus. The same rule applies when you’re riding your bike. If you must have your music, use only one ear bud. Leave the other ear clear to hear.

Be aware of your surroundings.
Abductors watch for kids who aren’t paying attention to others or to what is going on around them. If your head is down while you’re messing with your phone or a game, you’re unaware of your surroundings and you’re an easy grab. It’s as simple as that. Look around. Is a car following you? Is someone just hanging around—right in the path you’re taking? Avoid them.

Oh, and did you know that most abductions take place within a quarter of a mile from a kid’s home? It makes sense. In areas really familiar to them, kids lower their guard. That makes them an easy target. Stay on guard.

Lock your doors and windows.
Maybe you get home from school before your parents are home from work. Lock your door as soon you go inside. Predators watch for predictable patterns and habits. If you go to the mailbox and walk into the house sifting through mail every day, and you put the mail on the kitchen table before locking the door—a predator may have picked up on the pattern and just followed you into the house.

If you’re home alone, and someone rings your doorbell, don’t open the door.
Even if you know the person. Some would suggest you stay quiet if the doorbell rings. But if it is someone who wants to burglarize your home, your silence tells them the house is empty. That’s what they’re looking for.

Others suggest you go to the door, keep it closed, and tell the person your parent can’t come to the door quite yet. If it is an abductor, they’ll likely leave because they don’t want to take a chance that a parent
is
home. If it is a burglar, they’ll move on to an empty home.

Be extra careful at the mall or theme parks.
Not everyone who goes to the mall is there to shop. Not everyone at the theme park loves rollercoasters. Predators like to hang out at these places too. Don’t go to these places alone. Take out your phone and snap a picture of the friend you’re with—and have them do the same for you on their phone. It sounds like overkill, I know. But if someone grabbed one of you, the picture would show police exactly what the missing person looked like and what they were wearing. That will speed up the search efforts and could save a life. And please, take a friend with you if you go to the restroom.

Trust your gut.
When you have a funny feeling about somebody or they make you feel uncomfortable—even if you don’t understand why you’re feeling that way, be on your guard. Listen to that voice inside you. Stay away from that person. Get out of that situation—fast. In our society of acceptance, people often repress these feelings—and learn to regret it. Sometimes fear is a gift. It will keep you safe.

Never accept a ride from someone other than your parents—even if you know them.
Your parents should work out a code word or phrase with you. If somebody says that your mom or dad told them to pick you up—and that person doesn’t give you the code, you know they’re not telling the truth. Get away from them. If the person picking you up says that your mom or dad is delayed, or
hurt, or sick and didn’t give them the code, don’t believe them, no matter how convincing they are.

As a kid, you were told to be careful of strangers. As you get older, you need to watch out for “nice” guys too. Even if the person is someone you know and they really seem to be nice, don’t get in a car with them or let them in your house without your parents being aware of it. Some predators appear to be really friendly, some volunteer as sports coaches, and some seem like generous people who like to give you things. Stay away!

Don’t let friends pressure you into going someplace that you feel uneasy about or that you feel your parents wouldn’t approve of.
Use your head. Don’t go somewhere just because your friends are going and want you to come along. If you don’t feel safe—don’t go. Be sure your parents know where you are and who you are with. And if you do go and
then
feel really uncomfortable, call your parents, pronto.

Be careful of anyone approaching you.
Especially if they offer you something. I know you’re not stupid enough to fall for the “hey kid, would you like some candy” approach. But watch out for the person who walks up with an empty leash and asks if you’ve seen their lost puppy—or an empty stroller and asks you to help them find their child. Sure, you’d like to help them—but unless you’re with your parents, don’t. They may just be trying to lure you away. They can get all the help they need from the police or other adults.

Be just as careful of someone asking for directions. With all the smart devices people carry, why do they need to ask
you
for help?

And I know your parents taught you to be polite. But when somebody you don’t know comes up to you and starts talking to you—forget about being polite. Get away from them—even if it looks rude. Shout at them.
“Hey, I don’t know you. Get away.”
They need to get the message right away that you aren’t one they want to mess with.

Remember—bad guys don’t usually look like “bad guys.”

They look nice. Attractive. Friendly. Harmless. They work at it
so that you are more likely to trust them and fall into their trap. I read an article that stated that psychopaths tend to look more attractive than your average person. There are reasons for it, but one of them is pretty simple: they try harder—because they are all about trying to bait you.

Never go with someone because they threaten you with a weapon.
Any person who threatens you with a weapon absolutely intends to hurt you. But they need to get you someplace private so they don’t get caught. They’re hoping to scare you into going along with their plan. They’re hoping you’ll believe that if you obey them, they won’t hurt you.

Let’s say someone tries to abduct you by gunpoint, or they have a knife. It may be in a mall parking lot.

Do not do what they say to avoid getting hurt.

Do not go with them.

Don’t stick around to try to fight them.

Instead, run. As long as you’re out of reach of a person with a knife, you’re safe. And if the guy has a gun—the chances that he’ll actually shoot at you in a public place are really remote. So take off. Sprint out of there. Most likely the person won’t shoot. They won’t want to draw that kind of attention to themselves.

And even if they do shoot, there’s a really good chance they’ll miss because you’re moving—and getting farther away by the second. If they did hit you, people would call 9-1-1 and get help for you right away. Your chances of survival are always much higher if you run away from an abductor rather than going with them—even if they have a gun.

And when you run, shout “fire” as you do.
Ever notice how people don’t even pay attention when a car alarm goes off? Sometimes they’re the same way when someone screams or calls for help. They may even go the opposite way. But yell “fire” and you’ll have people running to you—often just out of curiosity. When people are running toward you, the kidnapper will run the other way.

Other people suggest you yell, “Stranger,” or “This person is not
my dad/mom!
” That way, if the kidnapper is chasing you, people nearby know it isn’t your parent. And more than likely you’ll get some helpful high school linebacker who will send your attacker to the pavement. Hard.

Have alternate routes mapped out.
Map out safe routes to your home—and alternate routes in case your normal route is blocked or unsafe in some way. Know safe places you can run to along your routes—maybe a store or a neighbor who is usually home.

Don’t let someone you don’t know onto your social media.
Predators prowl the Internet using fake names and pictures to try to get you to think they’re just another kid. Or sometimes they masquerade as a really helpful adult. Maybe they’ll give you some tips for one of your favorite games. Eventually they bring up more and more personal things. They ask about boyfriends or girlfriends. Cops call this process “grooming.” The predators are setting you up. Making you feel safe with them. They want to gain your trust—so they can hurt you.

If you don’t know the person, stay away from them. And please, please, please, don’t give any personal information to anyone online or agree to meet them. You’re not that stupid—but predators hope you are. Don’t tell them where you live or where you go to school. Don’t give them your phone number. The more they know about you and your habits, the easier a target you become to them—and the more they’ll want to try to grab you.

Call 9-1-1.
If someone attempts to abduct you or tries to get you into their car, or you get a really bad feeling about them—call 9-1-1. Or maybe you see someone whose behavior or actions seem suspicious, even if they didn’t try to grab you. Call 9-1-1. You want the police involved right away. Tell them everything you can remember about the person. Size. Race. What they were wearing. What they were driving. License plate number. Any details will be helpful.

Tell your parents, pronto.
Your parents are wired to protect you, but you need to tell them everything about what happens
with a stranger. And your school principal would like to know about it too. Tell them so they can help keep other kids safe.

A Few Things to Remember If You ARE Abducted

I’m hoping nothing like this ever happens to you, but if it does, here are some things that might help.

Try to escape
. If someone grabs you, fight back. Kick, bite, scream, punch. Fight with everything in you. Fight dirty. Claw at their eyes. Go for their groin. Have a pen? Try to shish-kabob their eyeball. I know this sounds horrible, but the only truly horrible thing is that they are a predator—and you must fight them off just like you would fight off a wolf that attacks you.