Chapter 18 Gil
Eighteen
Gil
Present Day
Zara told the gentleman working at Hooked a real thumper to get him inside the establishment.
Something about having a missing cat. The man in the strange hard hat let him in, Zara handed him an instant light called a flashlight, and soon Gil found himself descending into the room below the restaurant.
In the short time he’d been in Greenport, he realized a lot had changed in two hundred years.
He was in awe of everything he saw and learned, and it made him want to be free of the island.
Look at the gift Sparrow had given him. Not only had he lived, he was living in the future.
This was wonderful and also made him anxious—would they break the curse, or would he have to live in this world as a fourteen-year-old forever?
And if they broke the curse, where would he live?
How would he complete school? Zara and Benny both said school was something children went to till they were seventeen or eighteen, and then many went on to college or did a vocation before gaining employment.
They said college was expensive. If he needed college, how would he afford it? He was alone in this world now.
Actually, that wasn’t true. Aggy, Laurel, and Thomas were in the same predicament. Perhaps they would continue to be a family when this was over.
This is an adventure, he reminded himself. Take it one step at a time.
Gil made it to the bottom and was plunged into darkness, just the small instant light as a guide.
He didn’t mind. He’d never been afraid of the dark.
The apartment above the mercantile was small, his aunt and uncle retired early, and they hated when he left a candle lit.
He shone the light on each wall but didn’t see an opening.
Carefully, he took the coin out of his pocket.
“Island? I do not seek to plunder your treasure. I only seek to help return it so that we all can be free.” For a moment, nothing happened; then he heard a hissing sound, and a sudden gust blew through the bunker.
The wall in front of him seemed to shimmer like the sea and disappeared.
Gil stared at it in wonder, then walked through to the other side and found his way to the waterfall.
He stepped through it, getting drenched, and emerged on the beach.
Aggy was waiting with Laurel and Thomas.
“You’re safe!” Laurel threw her arms around him. “You’ve been gone for hours.”
Not hours. Days, he thought, but he could understand Laurel’s confusion. He felt like he hadn’t seen them in a week, but it was nowhere near that long. “I am well. I promise.”
“You like to wake snakes so we worry,” said Thomas.
“I don’t get into that much mischief,” Gil grumbled good-naturedly.
“Your clothes are strange,” said Laurel, touching his raincoat. He was also wearing something called joggers. They had no buttons and were as comfortable as pajamas. It seemed as if no one in Greenport dressed up.
“I bring news,” Gil said, his tone changing.
He filled everyone in on what he’d learned and the new complications with Grace and the Rudds.
He didn’t mention his part in all this having met Connie/Grace in 1825.
What was important was seeing to it that Grace didn’t get the missing treasure before Kimble and Benny.
“What of Axel?” Thomas asked. “Is he well?”
“I have not seen him. I am told he tried to return to the island on his own, but got angry and left the establishment we were in,” Gil remembered. “I assumed he’d be with the Rudd boy—Ryan—but he wasn’t at the country club.”
Aggy frowned. “A club for countries is a strange thing indeed but despite Axel’s ire, I worry for him.”
“As do I,” Gil admitted. “There is much we all have to learn about twenty twenty-five, but I know we can figure it out together,” Gil told them. “That’s what I came to say: Benny and Zara worry the island won’t stay long, and I don’t want you trapped here—whether we break the curse or not.”
“No, sweet Gil,” Laurel said, taking Thomas’s hand. “We must wait here.”
“But why?” Gil said, aghast, as Aggy remained quiet.
Thomas gave Aggy a quick glance. “Someone has to stay and protect the island and the treasure as long as we can from intruders that may come when they hear the island is back.”
“Intruders? What do you mean?” Gil was growing frustrated at their coy talk.
The breeze blew Aggy’s curls around her face. “Don’t be cross with Thomas. There are things you don’t know for your own good. There’s not much time now. You will have to help Benny with what comes next. She could be in danger.”
Danger? Gil’s heart began to thud. “I barely know her or the world from which she comes. How would I be of assistance?”
“News is coming that could cloud her judgment, and if we’re going to beat those that want to exploit the treasure, we need Benny to understand this island in a way only you do,” Aggy continued.
“You’ve combed every inch of this sand. You can help her when the time comes to summon the one who started this all. ”
Summon the one? Gil’s head hurt. “I’m tired of secrets, Aggy. What do you mean with these riddles?”
“Patience, Gil. This may help.” Aggy handed him a scroll tied with string.
It looked weathered and old. A lot like the parchment Sparrow wrote to Benny on. “Is that from—” he whispered.
“Sparrow? Yes,” Aggy said. “My apologies for not giving you this sooner, friend, but it wouldn’t have made sense till now.”
Gil let his fingers close around the letter. A letter from Sparrow. “I’m not sure I’m ready to read it.”
“Wait till you’re ready,” Laurel said. “We each got one.”
“Axel did too,” Thomas said. “We have his when he’s ready. He’s family now whether he likes it or not.”
Something brushed his legs. Winks.
“Winks, there you are,” Aggy said and crouched down. She placed a small pouch in between the cat’s neck and the red cord. “You’ve got work to do too. Bring this to Kimble.”
Meow. Winks blinked at Aggy with her one good eye and disappeared through the bushes.
Gil had more questions, particularly about Winks, but he was interrupted by a rumble that moved the earth.
The birds in the trees took flight, and Gil felt his body sway.
The air seemed to shift, the wind rushing across the beach like a hurricane.
Thomas and Laurel were knocked into one another.
Everyone looked at one another in alarm.
Thomas pulled Laurel close. “What was that?”
Aggy’s brow furrowed. “It’s the island issuing a warning.”
“What kind of warning?” Gil asked, alarmed.
Aggy’s green eyes crinkled. “We’re running out of time. You need to get back to the cave now. Before that entrance disappears.”
Gil didn’t understand. He held tight to Sparrow’s letter. “But what if you get trapped here?”
“We won’t,” Aggy insisted. “The island entrances will keep moving, changing till the island disappears again.” She trailed off. “Now go help Benny with what must be done next while we prepare for her arrival. Go!”
Aggy wasn’t making sense. Wind rushed through the trees, the smell of flowers and coconuts making Gil inhale deeply. One thing he loved dearly about this island was its intoxicating smell. “Whose arrival?”
Aggy sucked in a breath. “Lady Adrienne, the pirate queen.”
Everly,
These pages are from before the island disappeared. My apologies for omitting them. Some secrets must stay buried till the opportune time.
You’ve probably realized there are others who want the treasure for their own personal gain.
If you’ve met one in particular, you know how dangerous she is.
There is another I know of who can surely stop her, but bringing this individual here is risky as well.
May this diary entry provide some guidance while I search for answers.
With deep love and admiration,
Evelyn Terry