30

Boy was I relieved to hear my friends' voices. I hadn't heard from them—had no idea where they were—since back at the campground. That was only several hours ago. But so much had happened since. One thing really: my friends had been taken by the police. Now I would take them back.

My foot was still kicked through the window screen of the police station. I moved it around to widen the hole. Then I lowered myself slowly through the window into the station.

Below the window was a desk. My feet landed on it, and from there I hopped to the floor. Not an officer was in sight. But across from me was the whole gang: Ema, Chris, Matty, Stinky Mike and all his friends. They were seated together in a holding cell, the only cell in the station. I was glad to see them, though the sight was distressing. They were in serious trouble. Yet they seemed happy to see me too.

'Lawrence!' Ema said. 'I was so worried about you.'

'You were worried about me? I was worried you!' I said.

I was shocked. Even after I told Ema I liked her, even after she rejected me and I said all those nasty things to her, even after she'd been arrested, she still found time to worry about me. There's a lesson in there about friendship, I have to admit.

'What happened?' I asked.

'Before we talk,' Chris said. 'There's a camera aimed at us.' He pointed to a surveillance camera at the corner of the ceiling.

'One sec.' I said. I grabbed a roll of tape from the desk and taped over the lens. Then I turned back at them, proud to display my courage and resourcefulness. I was an adventurer, alright. Chris was laughing in disbelief.

'Oh man, dude, I'm so glad you're here.' said Stinky Mike. He was sitting at the other end of the cell, away from the group. 'It was so horrible, man.'

'Mike, shut up for a sec.' I said. 'I just want to hear from my friends.'

Mike looked down. I felt bad. He was awfully fragile and I was awfully rude. The funny thing was, I actually liked the guy. We had a great chat by the fire. He spoke more sense than most people I'd talked to on the adventure. He just made me uncomfortable—I hated how his ideas, ideas I agreed with, led him to be the person he was. Disheveled, unemployed, drugged up. Maybe, on some level, I worried that he might one day be me.

'So what happened?' I asked.

Ema began again: 'We were doing the same thing we did before you left—just having a good time. It was dark. The officers were quiet. We didn't notice them until they were beside us.'

'Scared the shit out of us,' Chris said, laughing.

'Anyway,' Ema continued. 'They saw the weed and the booze, and they were terrible about it.'

'Yeah,' I said. 'I thought so. What happened next?'

Ema sighed and looked at Chris.

'Don't blame me,' Chris said, looking back at Ema, in an amused sort of way.

'What did you do Chris?' I asked.

'They were treating us like criminals,' Chris said. 'Interrogating us like we committed murder or something.'

'Well, I know my rights. My dad's a lawyer.' He continued. 'That's what I said. I said, 'listen guy, we don't have to answer. We don't have to do anything.''

'That really pissed them off.' Ema said.

'They brought us to their cars.' Chris interrupted. 'I asked to speak to a lawyer. They said we'd have to wait until tomorrow morning.'

'We've been baking here ever since.' Ema said.

'Oh my god,' I said. 'That's horrible. Any idea why the police came in the first place?'

'Yeah,' Matty said. 'He looked towards Stinky Mike and his friends. 'These guys have been using the camp grounds to smoke weed all summer. Remember when we met them at the tuck shop? Well, the cashier recognized 'em and called the cops. The cops think we're part of that crew. Apparently, they've been trying to nab these guys for a while.'

'Did you tell the officers you weren't part of that crew?'

'I'm not saying nuthin until I speak to my dad.' Chris said.

'Wait, so what have you told them?' I asked.

'Nothing.' Chris said, looking around. Everyone nodded in agreement. 'That's partly why the cops are so suspicious.'

'So they don't know about me, either?' I asked.

'Nope,' Chris said. 'You better get out of here. They'll be back soon, I bet.'

'No way. I have a better idea.'

'What?'

'I'll break you guys out! I mean, if they don't even know who you are. And were days from home.'

'How are you going to do that?' Ema asked.

'With these puppies.' I pulled a ring of keys from my shorts and spun it around my index finger.

'Are those . . .?' Chris began.

'. . .The keys to your cell? I think so.' I responded.

'How'd you?' Chris said.

'A magician never reveals his tricks.' Corny, I know. But in the moment, it felt right. In the moment, I felt like Dmitri Waltz. The truth was, the keys were on the table next to the tape. I found them when I used the tape to cover the camera. But, as Stinky Mike said, all we have is the moment. So why not, for one moment, feel like Dmitri Waltz. That's all I ever wanted, after all.

'Fuck you, dude,' Chris said.

'Hey man, I'm only trying to help.' I responded. 'Listen, I'm gonna break you out. It's perfect. The officers don't know who you are. They're not gonna be back for hours. We can leave and never look back.'

'I don't know,' Chris said. 'What do you guys think?'

'I can't get a criminal record.' Ema said. 'I need to get the hell out of here.'

'Wha'd'ya think, Matty?' I asked. He had been silent since I arrived.

'I'm in.' He said, looking at the ground.

'Alright, awesome. Let's do it.' I tried a few keys before I found the right one. Then, click, the door opened. Ema jumped out, Chris shuffled behind her, then Matty, then all the others we met at the campground.

Only Stinky Mike remained, sort of slumped in the corner, his arms on his knees and his head down. Though his friends had hurried out, he didn't seem to notice.

'Mike?' I said. He raised his head. 'You coming?'

'Yeah,' he said. 'Guess so.'

He sighed as he picked himself up and walked out the cell door.

I closed the door, dropped the keys on the table and we all left the station. On the way out, I grabbed the garbage bag of our possessions that the officers had confiscated. I was relieved to see my book still inside.

It felt freeing to be outdoors. Almost like I was the one jailed in that stuffy station. But the heat was unrelenting. My shirt, I noticed, was soaked in sweat. The sun had risen, floating lonely in a sea of blue sky. I'd seen this picture a thousand times, but the beauty still surprised me.

'Look guys,' I began. It was time for a pep-talk from the fearless leader who saved the day. 'I know. . .'

'No, you look,' Matty said. 'What the fuck is your problem?'

My problem? I couldn't believe it. I was his savior, freeing him like Moses did the Hebrews. I was courageous. I was clever. I had just proven myself a great adventurer. What was his problem?

Matty got right in my face: 'You take us on this dumb trip. You make us lost. You drown Chris. You get us arrested. And you try to get with my girlfriend? I should kick your ass right now.'

I braced myself for a punch.

'But I'm not going to, man.' He continued. 'Because you're my friend. I am getting the hell outta here. We're calling Ema's Aunt and going home.'

'That's fine.' I shouted back. 'Good riddance.' In the past, I'd try to convince him to stay. I'd tell him that we were a day from the treasure, that we may even arrive tonight. I'd tell him that he was giving up more riches than he could count. I'd tell him that he was giving up more than just riches. That we were adventurers. That if we could do this, we could do anything, everything. But I didn't.

The truth was, he wasn't giving up any of that. He wasn't a day away from the treasure. He wasn't a year, hell, a lifetime away. He wasn't on an adventure. He never would be. I'm not sure he could, even if he tried. Matty was the kind of guy who spent his life trying to avoid adventures. We didn't start on the same trip. We might as well end on a different trip, too.

'Chris, let's go.' I said. Chris didn't move. He didn't say anything. He was looking at the ground. 'What, are you going with Matty, too?'

We were all looking at Chris. He looked up at me, silent as the day is long.

'Chris hates this trip, too.' Matty said. 'He just feels bad for you, you idiot.'

'Is that true?' I asked Chris. He looked at Matty, and then at me.

'No,' Chris said. 'Let's get going. We have treasure to find.'

'Chris, man, what are you doing?' Matty said.

Then Matty turned to me. 'Can I speak to you in private for a second.' Not only were Chris and Ema watching. So were Stinky Mike and all is friends.

'Sure,' I said. We walked to the road.

'I'm not going to give you a hard time for hitting on Ema. Or insulting her.' Matty whispered. 'I should, but I won't. I'm just worried about you. What the hell are we doing out here? What the hell are you doing out here?'

'I'm finding treasure,' I said. 'Get out of my face.'

And that was that. Matty and Ema left. So did Stinky Mike and his friends. I didn't say bye, but Chris did. They went one way. Me and Chris went the other. It was for the best. I told Chris that.