The abduction

Chapter 17

The adventure immediately faced some serious problems. Theo thought about his parents and whether or not he should tell them. Ike thought about his car and knew it couldn’t make the trip. Chase thought about the fact that Theo was supposed to spend the night at his house, and it seemed impossible that his absence would go unnoticed.

As for his parents, Theo did not like the idea of calling them and asking permission to take off to Chapel Hill. Ike thought this was a good plan-Chase was neutral-but Theo resisted. Such a call would ruin their trip, upset their speeches and seminars, and so on, and, besides, Theo figured his parents (especially his mother) would say no. Then he would be faced with the decision to obey, or not. Ike thought he could smooth things out and convince Woods and Marcella that the trip was urgent, but Theo wouldn’t budge. He believed in being honest with his parents and he concealed little from them, but this was different. If they brought April back, then everyone, including his parents, would be so thrilled that Theo would likely avoid trouble.

Ike’s car was a Triumph Spitfire, a notoriously unreliable old sports car with only two seats, a convertible roof that leaked, tires that were nearly bald, and an engine that made strange sounds. Theo loved the car but often wondered how it managed to putter around town. And, they needed four seats-Ike, Theo, Judge, and hopefully, April. His parents had left in his mother’s car. His father’s SUV was in the garage, ready to go. Ike decided he could borrow the vehicle from his own brother, especially in light of the importance of their mission.

The most serious problem would be Chase’s. He would have to hide Theo’s absence from the Whipple home throughout the night. They discussed the possibility of informing Chase’s parents. Ike even volunteered to call them and explain what they were doing, but Theo thought it was a bad idea. Mrs. Whipple was a lawyer, too, and had plenty to say about almost everything, and there was no doubt in Theo’s mind that she would immediately call his mother and ruin their plans. There was another reason Theo wanted Ike to stay quiet-Ike’s reputation among lawyers was not good. Theo could easily imagine Mrs. Whipple freaking out at the thought of Ike Boone racing off with his nephew on some crazy road trip.

At 3:00 p.m., Theo texted his mother: Still alive. With Chase. Hanging out. Luv.

Theo expected no response because at that moment his mother was in the middle of her presentation.

At 3:15, Theo and Chase parked their bikes in the Whipple driveway and went inside. Mrs. Whipple was pulling a tray of brownies from the oven. She threw her arms around Theo, welcomed him to their home, said she was so happy to have him as a guest, and so on. She tended to be overly dramatic. Theo sat his red Nike overnight bag on the table, so she couldn’t miss it.

As she served them brownies and milk, Chase said they were thinking about going to the movies, then maybe watching the volleyball game at Stratten College.

“Volleyball?” Mrs. Whipple asked.

“I love volleyball,” Chase said. “The game starts at six and should be over around eight. We’ll be fine, Mom. It’s just at the college.”

In truth, the volleyball game was the only sports event on campus that evening. And girls’ volleyball at that. Neither Chase nor Theo had ever watched a game, live or on TV.

“What’s on at the movies?” she asked, still cutting brownies into squares.

“Harry Potter,” Theo said. “If we hustle now, we can catch most of it.”

Chase chimed in, “And then we’ll go to the game. Is that okay, Mom?”

“I suppose,” she said.

“Are you and Dad still going out for dinner?”

“Yes, with the Coleys and the Shepherds.”

“What time will you be home?” Chase asked, glancing at Theo.

“Oh, I don’t know. Ten or ten thirty. Daphne will be here and she wants to order a pizza. Is that okay?”

“Sure,” Chase said. With a little luck, Theo and Ike should be in Chapel Hill by 10:00 p.m. The tricky part would be avoiding Daphne from eight until ten. Chase didn’t have a plan, but he was working on it.

They thanked her for the snack and said they were leaving for the Paramount, Strattenburg’s old-fashioned movie house on Main Street. After they were gone, Mrs. Whipple carried Theo’s overnight bag upstairs to Chase’s room and placed it on a twin bed.

At 4:00 p.m., Theo, Ike, and Judge left the Boone home in the SUV. Chase was watching the latest Harry Potter, alone.

MapQuest estimated the travel time at seven hours if one obeyed all speed limits, which was the furthest thing from Ike’s mind. As they hurried out of town, Ike said, “Are you nervous?”

“Yes, I’m nervous.”

“And why are you nervous?”

“I guess I’m nervous about getting caught. If Mrs. Whipple finds out, then she’ll call my mother and my mother will call me and I’m in big trouble.”

“Why would you get in trouble, Theo? You’re trying to help a friend.”

“I’m being dishonest, Ike. Dishonest with the Whipples, dishonest with my parents.”

“Look at the big picture, Theo. If all goes well, tomorrow morning we’ll be back home with April. Your parents, and everyone else in town, will be thrilled to see her. Under the circumstances, this is the right thing to do. It might be a little misleading, but there’s no other way to do it.”

“It still makes me nervous.”

“I’m your uncle, Theo. What’s wrong with me and my favorite nephew taking a little road trip?”

“Nothing, I guess.”

“Then stop worrying. The only thing that matters is finding April, and getting her back home. Nothing else is important right now. If it all blows up, I’ll have a little chat with your parents and I’ll take all the blame. Relax.”

“Thanks, Ike.”

They were racing down the highway in light traffic. Judge was already asleep on the backseat. Theo’s phone vibrated. It was a text from Chase: This movie is awesome. U guys OK?

Theo responded: Yep. OK.

At 5:00 p.m., he texted his mother: Harry Potter movie is awesome.

A few minutes later she answered, Great. Love Mom.

They turned onto the expressway, and Ike set the cruise control on seventy-five, ten miles over the limit.

Theo said, “Explain something to me, Ike. The story about April has been all over the news, right?”

“Right.”

“Then, wouldn’t April or her father or one of the guys in the band see the story on the news and realize what’s going on? Wouldn’t they know about the big search for April?”

“You would think so. Unfortunately, though, there are a lot of missing children, seems like a new one every other day. And while it’s big news around here, maybe it’s not big news where they are. Who knows what her father has told his pals in the band. I’m sure they know the family is not too stable. Maybe he’s told them that the mother is crazy and he was forced to rescue his daughter, and that he wants it kept quiet until some point in the future. The band members might be afraid to say anything. These guys are not too stable either. It’s a bunch of forty-year-old men trying to be rock stars, up all night, sleeping all day, traveling around in a rented van, playing for peanuts in bars and frat houses. They’re probably all running from something. I don’t know, Theo, it makes no sense.”

“I’ll bet she’s scared to death.”

“Scared, and confused. A child deserves better than this.”

“What if she doesn’t want to leave her father?”

“If we find her, and she refuses to come with us, then we have no choice but to call the police in Strattenburg and tell them where she is. It’s that simple.”

Nothing seemed simple to Theo. “What if her father sees us and causes trouble?”

“Just relax, Theo. It’ll work out.”

It was dark at 6:30 when Chase texted again: Vball girls r cute. Where R U?

Theo answered: Somewhere n Virginia. Ike’s flying.

It was dark now, and the hectic week finally caught up with Theo. He began to nod off, and then fell into a deep sleep.