Chapter 7: The Island of New Penzance
Head start:
The Island of New Penzance-
A warm and gentle breeze made Scott's progress all the more enjoyable. There was the sound of the surf hitting the land, a gull's cry from above, and the ruffling of the gentle breeze that filled his ears. It was late morning on the 18th and he had plenty of time to make it to his destination. He knew he could have left a day later and still had time but he needed to get away. Even now on the island he could hardly believe that he had done it. He smoked a cigarette in celebration of his crossing. He now had six left.
He figured that his absence would have been already noticed. Chef would have spoken to the troop about him. From there his troop mates would sooner or later realize that he had left. He hoped that his trail of bread crumbs would have been enough to throw them off his trail, at least for a while. There was one major problem to this: Trigger McMillan. The taller of the McMillan twins was considered to be the best pathfinder around and had in fact imparted some of his wisdom to Scott.
It was only a matter of time before Trigger put two and two together and came to the conclusion that he had been misled. After that the troop would probably do one of two things: 1. Tell Scoutmaster Ward who would then have to decide if he was going to let Commander Pierce know or keep quiet about it and look for him on his own. Or 2. The troop could try and keep it quiet and try to figure out where he had gone.
Scott wasn't sure which option the others would take. If they told Scoutmaster Ward they would have the Hullabaloo ruined because of the search party that would no doubt be formed. Also, Scoutmaster Ward could get into a lot of trouble for letting a scout go missing again. Of course the scouts would probably like to go on a search party to bring back their wayward troop mate. Capture, was more like it. Scott could imagine Tucker leading his fellow troops through the woods to hunt him down in gleeful emulation of Redford.
He only hoped that if the others went looking for him that they would think he had either snuck off into town or chose to return to Camp Ivanhoe. In the case of the latter, all Scoutmaster Ward would need to do was get ahold of Jed and have him fly him in.
Either way, Scott knew he had the advantage of a head start. With that in mind he left the beach and entered the woods.
Phone Call # 1:
Stone Cove-
Captain Duffy Sharp returned to his spot on the pier and looked at his fishing companion.
"Anything biting Edgar?"
The old fisherman looked at Sharp and replied, "Nah."
"Just my luck."
It was Sharp's luck that he had had to leave his rod and reel for an hour and a half as he had to drive all the way to the east end of the island. Duty called at Gerry's Cottage. The 18th Century cottage, named for its builder and original occupant Gerald Thatcher Monroe, was now a quaint bed and breakfast owned and operated by a descendent.
The descendent, Myra Hobson nee Monroe and her husband had reported trouble out at the cottage. Trouble of a furry kind.
"Those mutts of the Willards have been digging up my rose bushes again," lamented Myra.
Sharp looked down at the mess of flowers and saw the paw prints of a large dog. The dog had evidently been trying to bury a bone that lay not too far off.
"That mutt was about to bury that bone," Harold Hobson said while pointing at the bone, "But I scared him off."
Myra joined in and explained how the Willard's never seemed to care what their dogs did. It was obvious from the paw prints that there was only one culprit but that did not deter either from accusing all the furry members of the Willard family.
After the two had gone for a full five minutes about their rose bushes and the dogs, Sharp told them that he would go and talk to the Willard's and get things taken care of. Here on New Penzance there was little in the way of crime so Sharp was forced into essentially becoming a mediator between the islands various denizens.
He spoke to Archie Willard who in turn told him that the Hobson's were dumping their trash in the woods.
Sharp told him that wasn't illegal but admitted that they should dispose of the trash by burning it instead of leaving it out in the woods for Archie to come upon.
Satisfied that he had de-escalated the situation, he returned to the police station.
Now he could relax.
Five seconds later his phone rang.
Just his luck.
Phone Call # 2:
"Person to person from Bridgeport," came the voice of Becky Ward.
Bridgeport. That could mean only one person.
Sharp rolled his eyes and spoke into the phone, "Accept."
A moment later an officious voice came across the line.
"Captain Sharp?"
"Social Services?"
"I am calling to make my periodic inquiry into Sam Shakusky."
"Uh-huh."
"Is he well?"
"Uh-Huh."
On the other end of the line, Social Services rolled her eyes. After four years, Duffy Sharp still gave her these two syllable responses.
"I see, can you elaborate on his well-being?"
"Uh-Huh."
"I see…is he well?"
"Yes."
"Has he been enjoying his summer?"
"Yes…well he has been working with me and learning to drive."
Social Services made a note of this and remarked at how time had flown. It seemed like only yesterday that Sam Shakusky had been placed with Sharp and now he was learning to drive.
"Is he following all traffic laws?"
"Yes he is."
The exchange went on for another minute when Social Services asked, "Is the boy available?"
Sharp looked out the window and down the pier. A pair of sixteen year olds were walking toward the station, hand in hand; one carrying a book and the other an easel with painting supplies.
"He's not in yet Social Services."
"Very well. I shall keep in touch."
"Uh-Huh."
Social Service hung up the phone and though about the subject of the call. Sam Shakusky had been the center of her greatest challenge in her now over thirty year career. Despite all of the adverse incidents that had gone on four year past, she was pleased by his progress. The young man was growing up to be a mature and resourceful person who she knew would succeed at whatever he set out to do. Against her normally stern demeanor, she smiled.
An Almost Chance Encounter in the Woods:
The Woods-
Scott closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and inhaled the pine-scented forest. The noise of chirping birds filled the forest.
The Chip-Burr of a Scarlet Tanager called out from the tree tops. This was soon followed by a flash of scarlet as it darted out of its nest and flew over Scott's head, chirping as it went.
Other avians sang out: the sharp tik of an Indigo Bunting, a queeleep from a Great Crested Flycatcher, and a switcherit from a Connecticut Warbler all filled the forest.
Scott loved it. There was nothing like the feeling of being on the woods on a summer's day. Out here on his own, he was a part of something greater than himself; he was part of nature. A boy out in the woods on his own rite of passage. It was perfect.
Along the trail to Cape Cooper-
Captain Sharp drove along a dirt trail that wound its way through the woods toward Cape Cooper. The cape, located on the western end of the island, was the site of his latest call: a boating accident. Apparently a summer visitor had had a little too much to drink and ended up piloting his boat into the dock. Word had come that the boat's owner was unhurt but that his wife had taken a nasty fall and may have a concussion. With this news, Sharp had gotten a hold of Jed to have the pilot fly in and take the lady to ST. Jack's hospital for treatment.
He guided his police car to the left and gave it a little more gas as the road grew straighter.
The Woods-
Scott was taken out of his reverie by the sound of an engine approaching. He looked around and could see through the trees that he was about 50 feet from a trail. Fearing that he'd be seen, he ducked down behind a fallen tree for cover.
Peering over the tree he saw a car driving down the trail. On closer inspection he saw that it was a police car. He watched as it passed him by and felt certain that there was no way that he could be seen. Despite this, he decided to do his best to stay away from the roads.
A few seconds later he heard a loud pop.
Captain Sharp-
The loud pop that caught Captain Sharp's attention was his front passenger side tire popping. The car pulled to the right and he let up on the gas, allowing the car to come to a halt on the very edge of the trail.
As soon as he came to a stop, Sharp brought his forehead to the steering wheel and sighed.
"What next?" he asked himself.
Seconds later he was outside inspecting the tire. There was a tear in the side of it. He looked around and saw something back the way he came. He walked toward it and found it to be a piece of scrap metal. The scrap must've fallen off of the back of someone's truck, most likely Sheldon Mitchum's. Old Sheldon had recently helped to tear down an old tin-roofed shed that was on Collins' farm near Yeoman Lane. Sheldon would have had to have driven it all this way to the small dump that was on the Island's west side.
"Just my rotten luck," Duffy Sharp said and headed back to his car.
Scott Sullivan-
Scott watched as the policeman, who could only be Captain Sharp, examined something on the road. Everyone in the troop knew about Captain Sharp. About how he had gone in search of Sam and Suzy, that he had braved a thunderstorm to stop the pair from jumping off of ST. Jack's Church, and how he had later gained custody of Sam.
Scott saw the policeman open up his trunk and pull out a spare tire and some tools. He was tempted to go over and help him but he knew that if he did that, he would be apprehended and taken back to Fort Lebanon, the Moon mission dashed.
Instead he knelt behind the tree and watched.
Captain Sharp-
Sharp loosened and then removed the lug nuts from the tire. He then placed the jack under the car and was about to raise it when he stopped. He had a funny feeling. He listened intently: the forest was quiet. There were no birds chirping and the insects seemed to have stopped their buzzing. The instincts he had gained from many years both as a city cop on the mainland and as the only law enforcement on the island kicked in. He stood up and scanned the woods. He was being watched.
Scott Sullivan-
Scott froze when he saw Captain Sharp stand up and look around. Somehow the policeman knew he was being watched. Sharp turned his attention in Scott's direction and the scout was certain he was done for. Thankfully a hawk, probably a Northern Goshawk, cried out its wheeee-ah. That was enough to catch the policeman's attention. This gave enough time for Scott to duck down.
Captain Sharp-
Sharp turned his attention to the sky above him and watched as a hawk circled around and then dove down toward the edge of the trail. It swooped in low, latched onto its prey, in this case a small chipmunk, and soared back into the sky.
Sharp smiled grimly as the bird made off with its bounty. That was nature, kill or be killed. He looked back into the woods. Nothing stirred and the feeling of being watched crept back up on him. He debated walking into the woods for a look but decided against it. It was probably nothing but an opossum or something. He turned his attention back to the tire and went to work.
Once the tire was changed out with the spare, Captain Sharp reached for his CB radio and called the station.
An Artist and his Model:
New Penzance Police Station-
"The light of the sun filtered through the jungle canopy and softly illuminated the point at which the path spilt. Faced with the fork in the road, Caroline reached inside of her vest and withdrew a small object. She flipped shiny coin into the air and said 'tails left, heads right.' The coin hit the ground, bounced once, and came to a stop. Picking it up, she smiled and walked her new path."
Static from the radio caused Suzy to pause her adventure with Caroline. She set To the River's Source down and listened as Captain Sharp's voice called in.
"Deputy Shakusky, come in over," Sharp said.
"It's for you," Suzy said to Deputy Shakusky who looked up from his canvas.
Deputy Shakusky, actually Junior Deputy Sam Shakusky, walked across to the radio and picked up the headset.
"This is Deputy Shakusky over."
"Deputy Shakusky, relay to Jed that I'm going to be a little late in getting to Cape Cooper…had a little tire trouble. He can take the patient as soon as he can. He doesn't need to wait for me, over."
"Roger Captain Sharp…will do over."
"Out."
Suzy watched as Sam changed frequencies and hailed Jed who had just lifted off from ST. Jack Wood.
"Jed, be advised that Captain Sharp will be a little late in arriving at Cape Cooper, over."
"That's a roger Deputy Shakusky, over," replied Jed.
"One more thing. Captain Sharp said to go ahead and take the patient as soon as you can even if he's not there, over."
"That's a good copy Deputy Shakusky, over."
"Have a good flight, out."
Suzy smiled at Sam as he retook his seat and picked up his paint brush.
"I'll try to keep still," she said and picked her book up from her lap.
Sam gazed at her and touched his brush to his palate, "Continue."
The Astronauts and Scott's Progress:
Scott Sullivan-
Sullivan breathed a sigh of relief as Captain Sharp finished and went back on his way. Confident that he was once again alone, he stood up and continued on.
He realized that he was making good time and could probably make it to his destination by nightfall but he decided against it. What fun would it be if he finished his adventure so quickly? Instead he decided to find a place to set up camp.
An hour and a half later he came across an intermittent stream that wasn't marked on his map. This wasn't unusual in itself but rather a welcome surprise. He saw that there was a small hill near it that had a flat top. He inspected the area, making sure that there were no snake holes or other such hazards.
Once satisfied, he opened his pack and set about making camp. Soon he had his tent up and his cooking supplies out. He thought about trying to catch and cook something but decided against it; he had brought food with him. He built a small fire, purified some water with some water purification tablets, and cooked some canned beef stew. He fixed up some Tang (the same drink that the Astronauts would be drinking on their mission) and wound up Bishop's radio. He ate his dinner, smoked another Lucky Strike (he was down to five), and capped it off with more Tang.
Walter Cronkite's voice came over the airwaves bringing listeners updates on the mission's progress.
Apollo 11 was now approximately 175,000 miles from Earth and 48,000 miles from the Moon. All systems were looking good and shortly a live broadcast from the module was going to air on TV. Scott sighed in slight disappointment as he realized that he wouldn't see the landing. This was something that he wrestled with. Had he stayed at the Hullabaloo, he would have been able to watch it in the mess hall on TV, granted he'd have to vie with everyone else for a good spot.
However he understood that this was all part of his plan. His adventure depended on it. He knew that there would be film taken of it and if years later he was asked where he was when the landing took place, he would have something more interesting to say than that he was in front of a television. He would be able to say that he went on a journey of his own where he could find his own adventure with the astronauts.