Dr. Anders finally discharges me from the infirmary after a 5 minutes speech of taking care of myself and my rehabilitating body-In which I tuned him off after, 'Alright Joe, you may leave but remember yadda, yadda, yadda…' and after that the only part I caught was the part where he threaten to shackle me to a wheel chair next time. Thanks Doc. It took all my will power not to roll my eyes like a teenage. It's getting to me, teaching them.
As soon as I'm out of ear shot I break into a jog, in a hurry to find out were Rachel has gone to. I stop in my tracks when I see Zach in the hall, his face noticeably troubled.
"What's the matter?" I ask catching him by surprise. He looks at me, debating for a millisecond about whether or not to lie. He sighs, "I can't find Cameron." He confesses.
"What do you mean you can't find Cammie?" I ask him, surely she must be somewhere in hiding.
"I just haven't seen her in all morning, and I've been looking for a while now, she doesn't seem to be anywhere." He tells me and I see he's trying not to sound overly-concerned and I find myself wondering if we should be, after all she's the Chameleon, and if I've learned anything about teenage girls is that they relish in their time alone.
I find myself gearing into high-alert. Zach is worried, and Cam didn't stop by this morning as apparently she always did when I was unconscious.
"Have you checked the girls' common room? Her dorm?" I ask and Zach nods them off.
"The Library, Kitchen, Labs" I list and Zach automatically checks them off, too.
"There's the Pigeon room," he says, unconvinced she'd be there which, she probably wouldn't be now.
"Never mind that, no lights, no cooling system, not the best place for hiding or working." I tell him, realizing there are no other options but just the also unlikely subs. "Alert the guards, I'll check the subs." I tell him and he nods before sprinting in the other direction and despite what the doctor just told me, I do the same in the other direction.
I get to the student entrance of the subs, and ditch the elevator for the slide hidden by the vent besides the mirror. A quick survey of the floor tells me she's not here.
I listen for the alarms and the lockdown to begin, telling me to get out of here, bringing news that comes too late, but they don't so instead I just wait for Zachary to get here and help me into sub 2.
I become aware of Zach descending the stairs minutes before I expect him, the alarms still off.
"The guards were asleep." He tells me getting a soppy tea bag out of his pocket. I take the wet bag into my hand and bring it to my nose, take in a light sniff. I recognize it at once as Mrs. Baxters Homemade Knockout Tea. "Cam did this." I announce what we already knew, but somehow admitting to the fact that she didn't disappear involuntarily brings no comfort.
"Zach, call Patricia. Tell her to send for Rachel immediately. Be sure to convey the urgency of the situation but don't tell her just yet. I'll call Abigail, and the idiotic head guard, into the Headmistress office. We have a search to begin." I command, and see him dart out of the door.
I stash the bag into my pocket, but not before the string detaches from bag. I pull it out and bring it closer to my eyes, seeing the two hand written words sthat have been smudged my the wetness, yet they're still legible.
Promise Me.
'Promise Me' they read. Promise me. The words take me back in time; the memory shoots sharp in my mind. London's cold winter chill, the bridge, the river below me, my arms around Cammie and my eyes meeting her frighten ones.
"Promise me Cammie! Promise me you'll follow the Pigeons."
The Pigeons. Of course, not the ideal hiding place, but perfect for leaving clues behind. I'm about to set off running, but I'd be of no help unconscious. So I slowly make my way to the carrier place, regretting the sprint earlier, because by the time I get there my breathing is erratic and dots swarmed in front of my eyes, yet I forced my body to keep moving. I finally make it to the entrance, but the dizziness makes it impossible for me to continue without resting against the doorframe for a few good minutes, trying to calm my hitching breath and fighting the fatigue, hating myself for being so weak. It takes time but I finally gather the strength to go on. I go inside and turn on the camp lamp we keep in here. In the soft glow of the lamp, the board greets me, and I notice the language I replicated for Cammie has been erased, faded into nothingness. Then I notice the words that have taken its place in the erased mess
"Please forgive me." They plead and the small arrow pointing down leads my gaze to a white envelope place neatly atop of a notebook. My whole body feels heavy as I move to take these two things, and take a seat on the crate they were placed in and start reading.
For Joe Solomon the envelope is addressed. I tear it open. My heart growing heavier at every line.
Dear Mr. Solomon,
If you are reading this, I must be gone. I know I should apologize for leaving, but I won't, because I'm not sorry.
As a Gallagher Girl, I cannot allow myself to put my loved ones in danger by my presence. And as a daughter, I just have to do this.
I will look for answers, I'll take a chance, because this is worth the risk, but, rest assured that I have not taken this lightly; I just waited a little bit more to make sure you'd be alright. Please do not make the mistake of underestimating a Gallagher Girl, because they won't.
Beside this, is my CoveOps journal of this past semester, they were probably the scariest months of my young life. I leave it for you so that you can know how important this is for me, and how much I care about the people who surround me.
Everything I learned, I carry with me, the ones I love remain in my heart and I just ask you to please keep them safe. Keep Mom and Abby safe. Keep Zach safe and please keep Bex, Liz and Macey safe and prepare them for this life.
So sorry,
-Cammie Morgan
My mind can't believe what my eyes are reading. She planned it all; she had been planning it all along. I close my eyes against the pain it causes my heart, The nerve and idiocy of her to do that remind me too much of Matt and the letter tells me I have yet again failed to protect one of the few persons I care for.
I fold the letter and tuck it away, my body feeling weak as I get up. I take a deep breath, feeling my heart go numb as I realize that someone has to tell Rachel.
AN: I hope you had a great Gallagher Girls Day, and hopefully you are already reading Out of Sight Out of Time. Do you think the wait was worth it? Reviews are greatly appreciated. Thank you.