The Boy Who Glowed in the Dark

CHAPTER 45

The path to the stairwell was clear. All Bobby had to do was yank Eva out of the doorway and pray that the opening sequence to Hawaii Five-O kept the men in the media room occupied. The man who’d escorted Eva past the bedroom where Bobby had hidden had made them crank up the volume. The three men glued to the television screen wouldn’t hear anything. The only risk was that one of them would turn around.

Bobby slipped out of the bedroom and skulked down the hallway. Eva stood nine paces away, back to him. He still hadn’t seen her face. She was a bit taller than he remembered, but then again, three years had passed. Maybe she’d grown an inch. And she was thinner. That made sense given she’d been in Fukushima. If she were part of a volunteer organization they probably didn’t feed her well. And besides, how could anyone not lose weight on a Japanese diet?

Six paces away.

And then he wondered, why had she gone to Fukushima in the first place? What sane person — let alone one who’d grown up around the Ukrainian Zone of Exclusion — would volunteer to go to a radioactive place? The question never bothered him before, but now it consumed him and would not let go.

Three paces.

The sweet smell of honey broke his concentration. Shampoo, he thought, as his eyes fell on her silken hair. Honey shampoo. Very popular with the girls in Russia. It had been Eva’s favorite. The owner must have had some here. Perhaps the owner’s wife.

The music blared. Bobby couldn’t afford to startle Eva. He didn’t want to make her jump. Better he wave with his right hand while still out of sight of the entrance to the media room. Try to catch her attention via her peripheral vision.

Bobby started to raise his right hand but dropped it just as quickly. There was no need for him to wave.

The girl turned toward him.