Maxwell Huxley's Demon (11 page)

“Mostly,” says Walker.

Max feels the train lurch. Not the regular kind of lurch, but his kind of lurch. The kind that feel s more like a roller coaster. Time slows.
I think faster, see better, hear better, smell better , I become better . Smell s be come colours, sounds become feelings, and sights become information. Faces display what people are thinking or betray them if they are lying .

Naomi is concerned about me and wonders if we trust her yet.
Walker is annoyed that there’
s no wireless on this train.
Virginia is angry at herself.

“We have to get off the train,” Max says a s loudly as he can.

Yelling over the sounds of the train, Naomi says, “We just got on!”

“Naomi, trains only goes one place, ” Max says, “
When it stops , who do you think will be there?”

“
Where does this train go anyway?
”
Walker asks.

“Prince George is the only place in that direction , maybe five hours from here, ” Naomi answers.

Max thinks out loud. “
Well we can’t get off in the wilderness; I don’t want to starve while walking to Vancouver.
They made this hard; these small town s are useless for hiding. We could get off the train as we enter Prince George, but they will be waiting for that. We could hid e in a boxcar and hope to escape while they search.
N
ot very good odds . We won’t even make it to Prince George; this train will stop at the next tiny town or even at the next level crossing. We have to get off now. I see mountains, trees, water, snow, and a river . . .
Guys, get me off this train, across the river and onto that highway. W
e have to double back. If we stay on the train we’re done.
The first bridge we hit, we jump.
”

“Max, you can’t!” Virginia says.
“
Y
ou’ll hit the water and re-break your leg .”

“
We’ll have to splint his leg , ”
says Naomi.

“With what?” Virginia says .

Naomi digs through their packs looking for something to help make a splint. S
he finds duct tape. Then she proceeds to cut and rip the frame out of one of the backpacks.
Naomi tapes the metal bars from the backpacks to Max’s leg and foot .

“Max?
” Virginia says with her face close to his.

“Yes.”
Max smiles.

“Where are you taking us?”

“Trust me?”

“
I do.
”

“
I have no idea.” An almost unbearable pain sweeps over Max. Nothing to do with his leg. His heart is broken. H
e knows exactly where he is going .
B
ut the one person he should tell, he won’t.
“Tell me when you see a bridge.”

---

Max watches Walker ba g everyt hing as well as he can.
H
e tightly wraps the laptop , tablets, and readers in garbag e bags, and then put s them back in the backpack s . Lying on his side , Max rock s gently to the motion of the train.
Funny, lying here I can’t really hear the wind anymore .

Thump-thump, thump-thump. The rhythm of the train settles into his body. His connection to his friends gets more distant. Max sees a long bend ahead and then a blue arc of water.
Max watches his friend s move and gather around him.
Walker and Virginia on either side of him, Naomi behind him.
Will the water be cold? W
ill there be a canoe?
He feels himself lifted. H
e tries to stand , but the motion of the train is too much for his one good leg. Max looks at Walker .
Who would jump off a bridge just because someone else said you had to?

Thump-thump, thump-thump .

The whispers start.
“You’re going to kill them . . . and you won’t make the fall. They deserve better than you.”

Thump-thump, thump-thump.

Max feels them pulling . . . then g limpses of blue sky, a bridge, water , Virginia flying, then pain, cold, and b lack ness .

Scooped up in the stranger’s arms, I look back into the canoe and cry; I try to touch my mother. Through my little eyes , I see my mother reaching out to me, watching her cry as I am carried off into the woods . I look over the shoulder of the person carrying me , eye s fixed on my mother.
I watch until I can only see a slice of blue water through the forest.

---

Pirelli waits at the Kitselas level crossing as the train approaches at a crawl, stopping just s h ort of the road. He climbs onto the train and searches for the kids.
Three hours later , he jumps down, curses, climbs in his car and makes the call.
“Hello Frank , it’s Pirelli.”

“I know who it is , you moron . I guess this means you don’t have my grand daughter.”

“They weren’t on the train. That will put them in the river or in the wild.
They’re doing well , but they will have to come in from the wild .”

“
It’s time to put more pressure on . Go to Prince George and wait for your new partner to show up.”

“And if the kids go to P
rince Rupert or hide in Terrace?
”
Pirelli asks.

“Either place is fine. T
hey can’t get away from there , it’s too remote , and Max knows it.”

“You’re giving them too much time.”

“
You gave them the time Pirelli, ” Frank says . “
Get to Prince George.
Hasting s will meet you at 8
o’clock tonight. After today you and Hastings report to Mr. Newton on this one.

Pirelli disconnects.
Great ! Hasting ‘The Hammer’
and Mr.
‘
Spook ’
Newton . . .
that’s just what we need , a tough guy Brit and a psychopath .

This whole chase is folly .

Pirelli merges into traffic and heads for Prince George.
I bet I get there and then I wait. I wait on agents. I wait on targets. I wait. Sometimes waiting works. Be patient and wait them out. On the other hand, i f I wait for an occasion to do something I’ll be waiting for my funeral.

Chapter 11
–Horace

Naomi and Virginia break the surface of the water together, b oth of them spinning around looking for the boys.
“Did you see Max hit the water?
!
”
says Virginia . Naomi shakes her head.
The current is fast and the temperature cruel . The water bites at them and saps the strength from their limbs . Virginia dives under just as Walker break s the surface.
He swim s to Naomi and together they gather the gear.
Walker shoves gear at Naomi and then disappears underwater . She swim s to shore with all their possessions .

Blue. Cold. Bubbles. My mom reaching out to me. Up. Up. I look and see a canoe. I call out. Why can’t I hear my voice. I swim. Pain.
Don’t breath e , help yourself. I kick with one l eg, striving toward the canoe, toward my mom. I’
m stronger than them.
The w hispe ring starts and my head spins.
‘
Just breath e , just breath e , and you ’ll be done .
Breath e and it will all be over.
Trust me, the best thing you can do to help is let them go.
’
Alone.

Max kicks as best he can with one leg and pulls himself up with his arms.
The splint drags him d own in the current . H
is face drags across something hard .
He breaks the surface for a moment and sees Naomi. B
efore he can yell , the current pulls him under again. He reaches down and tears at the splint.

Where’
s Virginia?
W
ho’s looking for Virginia?

The n Virginia is pulling him up. They break the surfa ce beside Walker . Virginia screams something. They all follow Naomi to the embankment.
On the shoreline , they all pant and shiver. T
he short time in the water made their limbs numb, painful, and weak.
Walker gets moving first. Max looks up at Walker ’s worried face. “You’ll be OK
Max, I got you.”
Walker digs into their pack.

Naomi looks Max over.
The l eg doesn’t look good, bent , and now he also has a long gash on his cheek and a black eye . “
Ohhhhh ,” she lets slip out before smiling at Max. “You ’ll be OK
, we got you now.”

J
ust let them go.
Max passes out . T
he three of them do their best to re-set his leg and fix his splint.
T
ogether they carry Max and trudge up the steep rocky embankment to the highway.
After twenty minutes of hitch hiking with wet clothes clinging heavily to them , a Volkswagen camper van pulls up.
They all hesitate; the van has L
ego and S
murf characters glued all over it. On the front , the S
murfs spell ‘
Ursa ’
.
The van door slides open. “Whoa!” says a bearded behemoth of a man from inside.
“Little S
murfs hitchhiking , hop in.
” His trench coat looks like it was taken from the material of a tent; i t looked like it could still be used to shelter all four kids.
“
You can’t stay out there man.
Come on in . . . don’t be shy.
”
Max feels himself lifted into the van. I t feels warm and he blacks out .

“Where are you headed?
”
Walker asks.

“Prince Rupert, and you?”

“Prince Rupert is perfect, ”
s ays Walker.

A large hand reaches back at Walker , “
Trust me, it’s far from perfect . . .
I’m Horace , nice to meet you.”

“
I’m Walker . . . uhm , I’m sorry to ask this but do you have any food?”
Walker asks.

“Got a Costco size ca se of Twinkies right behind you. D
ig in.
Also there’
s a first aid kit back there; looks like your friend there could use some steri -strips or something .
Did he lose a fight with a bear?
”

“Our canoe tipped over.
” Walker opens the Twinkies and hands them out .

Virginia gently tends to Max’s cut and asks, “How long to Prince Rupert?
”

“Bout 2 hours, ”
Horace answers.

By the time Virginia has done what she can with the gash on Max’s face an hour has passed.
Naomi and Walker have fallen asleep.
“I hope you don’t mind if we sleep ,” Virginia motions to the other three , who are already slee ping , and then curls up to Max and sleeps without waiting for an answer .

---

The van pulls into Prince R
upert at about half past four Saturday afternoon .
Max wakes and with considerable effort moves into the front passenger seat beside Horace , t aking care to move slowly and carefully.
The pain radiates from his leg in waves. He feels dizzy and forces away the urge to vomit.

Horace looks over at him. “Hospital?”

“No, we just need an Internet connection for a few hours.”

Horace looks Max over. “Broken leg, cut on your face that needs sti t ches, nasty black eye.
I think you had hypothermia when you got in the van, you look like you’re about ten years old, and you don’t need anything more than Internet ?
You got a bad hankering for Facebook or something?
”

Max sighs. “
I need Internet access , if you don’t want to help fine. My friends and I will just start running again.
”

“Easy. Easy.
I’ll help. I’ll park outside the library, its wireless Internet will reach, while you rip some tweets or whatever you need to do .
I’ll get you guys some Pizza, how’s that?”

“
Thank you , and I’m sorry if I sounded rude.
I’m just a bit tired.
”

“
No worries ,”
Horace says as he gets out of the van. “
You said you and your friends would start running again.
Do you really think you can run anywhere on that leg?” He walks away without waiting for an answer.

After Horace leaves, Max wakes the others by throwing empty Twinkie wrappers at them.

“Max, what are you doing ? L
ie back down, y our leg won’t heal—”
Virginia starts.

“Virginia, please just get me a proper splint , some aspirin, and a cane or something . I’ll be fine, but I’
ll need to walk soon.
Walker and I have some coding to do.
”

“Fine,” Virginia says, taking Naomi with her, she leaves the van , closing the door a little too hard behind them .