Chapter 74: Night of the Hunters
[scene: Chief Midori's squad car. He's driving with his siren blaring and the accelerator to the floor.]
Zoi: Dad? Where are we going?
Chief Midori: I have no idea.
[The light is red but he goes flying through the intersection without even looking for crosstraffic. Fortunately it past midnight so there aren't many cars on the road.]
Zoi: Dad, slow down.
Chief Midori: I can't.
Zoi: Why not—DAD! STOP!
[A group of women in clubwear are crossing the street right in front of the car. They are walking slowly because two of them are barefoot. Zoi shrieks and covers his eyes as Chief Midori swerves wide to avoid them.]
Zoi: Oh my god! You're driving even crazier than Kunzite does!
Chief Midori: What did you just say?
Zoi: …nothing.
[They pull onto the freeway and Zoi allows himself to relax since the odds of t-boning another car have decreased significantly. He pulls out his phone.]
Zoi: Could you turn off the siren for a minute.
Chief Midori: Who are you calling?
Zoi: Kunzite.
Chief Midori: You are not calling Kunzite!
Zoi: Dad. It's for the best. I'm a killer. My life here is over. I can't go home, I can't go to school. It's best for everyone if I just disappear completely.
[Chief Midori grabs the phone from Zoi's hand and throws it out the window.]
Zoi: Dad!
Chief Midori: You're not calling Kunzite. Everything that has happened, happened because of him.
Zoi: That's not true!
Chief Midori: He's caused enough trouble already! You are never to see him again!
[Zoi crosses his arms and sulks. No problem, he has Kunzite's number memorized. He'll find a phone and call the moment his father's back is turned.]
Zoi: For the third time, where are we going?
Chief Midori: To your mother's, I'll take out a pile of cash to get you someplace safe. Isn't your new stepfather's family supposed to have a castle near Milan?
Zoi: That's what he says, but everyone knows he's full of it.
Chief Midori: Yeah, well he's about to enjoy the high life on my life savings.
[They ride in silence.]
[Eventually Zoi dozes off and wakes to the glare of light at an airport offramp. His father gets off the freeway and pulls into the parking garage. As Zoi leaves the car he feel like he is being watched. ]
[He turns at sees four young women leaning against the wall, in matching overcoats and crochet caps completely covering their hair. As he stares back they don't look away. He's hoping it's just the normal 'Is that a boy or a girl?' thing, but it's giving him the creeps.]
Chief Midori: Come on. We need to find the next flight to Phoenix.
[He tries to think of a way to call his father's attention to the young women, but when he looks back they're gone.]
[They enter the ticket area which is fairly empty given the late hour, but a young woman with a curly hair is arguing vehemently with the only ticketseller on duty. The next flight to Phoenix leaves in only 20 minutes, but it looks like they won't make that one. The next one doesn't leave for another three hours.]
[Then a ticketseller who bears a striking resemblance to Elsa from Frozen appears]
Ticketseller 2: I can help you right here.
Chief Midori: One ticket on the next flight to Phoenix please.
Zoi: You mean two.
Chief Midori: No, one.
Zoi: Dad, you have to come with me!
Chief Midori: No I have to stay behind and do what I can to throw them off the trail.
Zoi: No, Dad.
Chief Midori: I'm your father. It's my job to keep you safe. You need to respect me and my decisions.
Zoi: [burst into tears] They'll kill you!
Chief Midori: Don't worry. I'll be fine. I can take care of myself.
[Zoi knows he's lying. He lets his father give him a hug and a kiss on the top of the head, and cries harder knowing he is kissing him goodbye.]
Ticketseller 2: Good news. I managed to get you bumped up to first class for the price of coach.
Chief Midori: Be sure to tell the flight crew my son is an unaccompanied minor, flying alone.
Zoi: Dad, I'm not a baby.
Chief Midori: Then stop crying like one.
Ticketseller 2: [winks] Don't worry, my big sister Vera happens to be working as a flight attendant on this one. I'll call her and make sure she takes extra good care of him.
[She hands Zoi the ticket]
Ticketseller 2: Enjoy your flight, young man.
[Chief Midori walks Zoi to security, holding his arm as a form of final farewell.]
Zoi: Dad, I love you.
Chief Midori: I love you too, son.
[Zoi keeps his eyes on the retreating form of his father. Certain he will die soon and it will knowing it will be one less thing tying him to a life outside the Dark Kingdom. As he walks to the gate he makes his plans to call Kunzite.]
[He'll call his father once, just to let him know he made it safely, and to see if he's still alive. His mother isn't nearly as controlling as his father is. He'd make her annoyed with having him constantly pestering her and getting underfoot within a few hours. Then it might be days until she realizes he's run off for good.]
[He boards the plane, taking his nice roomy seat in first class. He watches out the window as the plane takes off.]
[As soon as the plane levels out, a flight attendant with her hair in a severe brown bun under her cap comes by with a drink cart.]
Flight attendant: [when she gets to Zoi] Care for a complimentary mimosa, young man?
[Zoi looks at her tag to see if it says 'Vera', but it says 'Betty Jean']
Zoi: Just the orange juice, please.
Flight attendant: [hands him a wineglass filled with juice] Here you go.
[The flight attendant leaves to serve the other passengers. Zoi reads the inflight magazine and takes a sip of his juice. He makes a face.]
Zoi: Um, miss?
[The flight attendant returns with the drink cart]
Flight attendant: Can I help you, sir?
Zoi: Ah, I asked for juice, and you gave me one with champagne in it.
Flight attendant: [smiles] No, I don't think so.
Zoi: [through gritted teeth] Yes you did.
Flight attendant: Are you sure?
Zoi: [getting so upset he's tempted to throw the drink at her just to take out all his aggressions] Yes, I'm sure! I know what orange juice tastes like and it usually doesn't have bubbles in it!
Flight attendant: [inspects the drink and laughs] Oh, silly me. Let me pour you a new one.
Female voice over the PA: *Attention passengers. The captain would like for everyone to remain in their seats. We have a terminally ill young man in first class who requires immediate medical attention. His doctor will be coming through the aisle with a gurney.*
[Zoi's nerves are too frayed by now for him to have any sympathy]
Zoi: [grumbling under his breath] Goddammit, if he's that sick you'd think he'd have enough sense to stay home.
Flight attendant: [strokes his hair] Ah… Don't be so hard on yourself.
[Zoi looks up and sees a bit of black moon peeking from under her cap]
Flight attendant: I guess your boyfriend never told you we can track nearly as well as he does.
[Zoi tenses up in panic.]
Flight attendant: [ice cold] And since we can also teleport, we have no problem bringing this plane down with everyone on it, so you might want to think twice before making a fuss…Oh, and that guy you shot, the one with the red hair? He was my lover.
[Zoi looks around at the other passengers: the business people with their laptops, the families, the vacationers sleeping with eye masks on, blissfully unaware that their lives are in peril.]
Flight attendant: Finish your drink, killer.
[Zoi picks up the drink and drains it in one swallow. He welcomes the approaching dark of oblivion.]