Chapter 3:

Meanwhile

Harrison comes out of the 'Pirates of the Caribbean' adventure ride whining that it wasn't as magical and adventurous as he expected it to be, and wonders where he should go to ask for refunds. From afar, he notices his sister talking to a tall woman in her late forties.

"Hey, Tru!" He shouts, but she doesn't listen or pay attention. He then rushes to meet her. "Tru… I didn't know you were here, how was the Jungle Cruise?"

"I'm sorry, are you talking to me?"

"What.. Have you gone deaf? Yeah, I'm talking to you."

"Well, I haven't been on the Jungle Cruise yet."

"Well, if you're here for the Pirates, forget it… they ain't worth it. I say we go to 'Star Tours' instead" He suggests, then pauses for a minute before he continues: "Where's your manners, Tru? Aren't you gonna introduce me to your friend?" referring to the tall woman with her.

"This is not my friend," she says, "This is my mother."

Shocked at the revelation, "Mother?" He looks at the woman with wide astonished eyes. "Mom?" Harrison thinks that in some sort of supernatural way, his mother's spirit inhabited this woman's body. He immediately embraces her, and with a shaky low tone voice and tears in his eyes he says: "I missed you, mom."

"Who the hell are you?" The woman asks.

"I'm Harrison, mom. I know I was just a kid, but I remember you. Come on, Tru, tell her."

"Ok, this is cute, but you're freaking me out. And why do you keep calling me Tru? My name is Joy. Mom, what's going on? Do you know this guy?"

"Joy, honey, why don't you go buy us tickets for the next ride? Here, take my purse. I'll handle this guy."

Harrison is very confused, and his confusion escalates when the tall woman starts talking to him.

"So, what's your deal? You can't let go of your last engagement? News flash: Game over. She's with me now pal, so back off or I will call a certain number that we're both very familiar with, and get your ass kicked out of Disney in no time."

"What are you talking about?" Harrison asks her.

"You hired her to be what, your girlfriend, your escort, what?"

"Who?"

"Tru… who is this Tru you keep calling?"

"Tru's my sister."

"Sister? Is she dead too?"

"Dead? Listen, woman…"

"Name's Teresa."

"Listen, Teresa, I don't know who you are or what your deal is, but obviously something's not right, and I'm not going anywhere until you tell me what the hell you're doing with my sister and why you're calling her Joy."

"Joy's my daughter, she died 4 years ago." Teresa says while lighting a cigarette. "She was only 12 years old. Some bastard kidnapped her and killed her to get back at me for not paying for the coke he sold me. I've been clean ever since."

"That's tragic. But does it give you the right to pretend that Tru's your daughter?"

"Wake up, son. That's not Tru, that's Echo."

"Echo?!"

"One of the actives in the Dollhouse. I only hire her once a year. That's all I can afford. I pay with the money Joy made in her short career as a model. I kind of pushed her into that. All she ever wanted was to be a kid and do all the stuff that normal kids do. I never listened to her needs… never cared. I was the ultimate stage mother. Echo is the perfect substitute, she actually resembles Joy. With her I can make up for all that and we could spend some quality time together, you know. Only I have them program her with some extra data each year to get a feeling that she's growing up. I'm sure you can relate."

"You're sick" Harrison confirms.

Echo/Joy walks toward them "Ok, we're all set. I got the tickets, now let's go." She tells her mother.

Suddenly Harrison carries Echo/Joy and runs away as fast as he can, thinking that he's saving his sister from this crazy woman. What he does not know, however; is that he is kidnapping Tru's long lost twin sister, whom they never knew existed. Teresa panics but tries not to draw attention. She calls Echo's handler, Boyd, for backup. Boyd jumps out of his van and runs in search of Echo.

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Tru is still running away from Paul Ballard, yelling at him to leave her alone and screaming for help. The chase is now close to where the Pirates of the Caribbean Adventure is located. Tru is trying to find her brother. As she approaches the area, Boyd grabs her and hides her behind some barrels.

"Are you ready for your treatment?" He asks her.

"My what?" Tru replies, trying to catch her breath. "Who are you?"

"Everything's going to be alright. Do you trust me?" Boyd asks.

"Trust you? Dude, I don't even know you."

"Looks like that chase caused you to glitch."

"Glitch?"

"Don't worry, I'll get you home safely. First I need to get you away from that man who's chasing you."

"Sounds like a good plan."

Boyd calls the van driver and tells him his exact location. Paul suddenly shows up and punches Boyd in the face, Boyd falls to the ground, they start fighting. Tru carries a barrel and smashes Paul on the back with it. Boyd and Tru then run to the van as it approaches. Paul Ballard shoots at Boyd. The van takes off.

As the van heads back to Los Angeles, Boyd lays back on the floor, bleeding heavily. A bullet wound left him motionless. Tru takes off his Jacket and shirt, opens her bag and takes out a small first-aid kit.

"Good thing I have this with me. You never know." She tells him. "Don't worry, these are all sterilized." She assures him while trying to control the bleeding gunshot wound by applying pressure.

"What are you doing?" Boyd amazed and bedazzled.

"I've done this before so don't worry, I know what I'm doing. I can't promise this will heal you though, but it will stabilize you until we get to a hospital."

"I guess I'm the one who needs a treatment now." Jokes Boyd. "Don't know if I'll make it to the hospital though, it's a two hour drive."

"What's your name?" Tru asks.

"Boyd Langton."

"Can you move your hands and feet, Boyd?"

He tries to move them but fails. "I guess not."

"That means that the damage has reached the spinal cord. Please sit still."

"How do you know all that? You're only sixteen."

"I'm twenty three, and I've done this before. Please don't talk, just focus on your breathing, I need you to take deep breaths."

Concerned for a man she has just met and not quite sure who he is, Tru proves once again that she is the real definition of a hero. For a hero does not necessarily mean possessing a supernatural ability or having physical strength, but a real hero is someone who would wholeheartedly go out of their way in trying to save someone or do good, even if it puts their life on hold or in danger. A hero is someone who invests time and effort in the attempt to improve the lives of others, and in her case, save them.

Unaware of their destination, Tru tries to calm him down. "Stay with me now, we're almost there."