Colony East by Scott Cramer Read Free Book Online Page B

first,” he told them. “If I don’t find a boat there, we’ll head north. There’s a port in Lynn and a really big harbor in Marblehead. Wherever I find a boat, I’ll sail it back to Charlestown.”
    “Isn’t Charlestown close to the airport?” Mel asked in a concerned tone.
    “The dock’s about a hundred yards from one of the runways. “I don’t think the fire would have spread to the yacht club. That hundred yards is all water.”
    Abby wanted to know how the others would get to Charlestown. “That could be the most dangerous part of the trip. After the fire, kids will be desperate to get pills.”
    Mel shrugged. “We’ll walk. Five miles is nothing. We’ll hang our heads and shuffle.”
    “After I drop off Jordan, I can give the rest of you rides,” Mandy offered.
    Jordan’s heart beat faster. He imagined a situation where it would just be Mandy and Timmy on the motorcycle. Would that tempt Mandy, who still held on to the pills, to take off? He couldn’t chance it. “Timmy, come with me and Mandy. I could use a hand.”
    “Jordan, that’s not safe,” Abby said.
    He made a face. “The three of you rode on the motorcycle. Timmy’s small.”
    “I mean, it won’t be safe at the yacht club.”
    Jordan gave the thumbs up to Timmy. “We’ll watch out for each other, right? Four eyes are better than two.”
    Abby persisted. “Jordan, you might have to swim out to a boat. You’d leave Timmy alone on the shore.”
    Jordan did in fact expect he’d have to swim out to the moored boats, knowing the odds of finding a rowboat would be slim. Survivors would have found rowboats useful for fishing and would have claimed them by now.
    Timmy piped up, “I’m not afraid to be alone.”
    Jordan let out a low whistle. “Timmy knows how to survive better than all of us combined.”
    “I know you’re not afraid,” Abby told the boy. “But none of us has to be alone, except for Jordan, and he’ll be on a boat. We should always stay in pairs. It’s safer.”
    “I can go with Jordan,” Mel countered.
    Jordan hung his head. His plan was sinking like a boat on the rocks. No sooner had he patched one hole than another one opened up.
    Mandy shook her head. “Sorry, there’s not enough room on the bike for me and two older kids.”
    Unknowingly, Abby shot another hole into his plan. “When Mandy comes back, she can give Timmy a ride. Mel and I will walk.”
    Jordan gulped, then tried his best to sound calm. “You three should walk together. Safety in numbers.”
    “Then Mandy would be alone,” Abby pointed out.
    Jordan wanted to stuff a sock in her mouth. Instead, he turned to Mandy. “If somebody is chasing you, wouldn’t you rather be alone on your motorcycle.”
    She patted her knife. “Not too many people chase you when you know how to defend yourself.”
    Jordan felt like someone was holding him under water, and he only had a few molecules of oxygen left in his lungs. “Let’s ask Timmy what he wants to do. Timmy, I can teach you how to rig a boat. It’s really cool.”
    Timmy ran over to the Jenga game. “I want to stay here.”
    Jordan slumped back in the chair. Friends and loved ones on Castine Island might die because of a stupid game. Unless he came up with a new plan fast, Mandy could seize the opportunity and take off with Timmy, leaving them high and dry without the pills.
    He had to find a way to tell Abby that without alerting Mandy. “There’s something you should take with you,” he told her.
    From the sideboard drawer, he removed the photo of their parents on their honeymoon in Paris. Keeping his back to the others, he wrote in pencil on the back: Keep Timmy with you.
    He allowed Mandy and Mel to glance at the photo. “Our mom and dad.” Abby’s eyes widened and glassed over with tears. When he passed her the photo, he made sure that only she saw his note. Her eyes opened wider and she gave him a stare of disbelief before nodding reluctantly.
    ~ ~ ~
    Ten minutes after