Small as an Elephant - Jennifer Richard Jacobson [38]
A woman was purchasing a gallon of milk at the counter, which gave Jack the opportunity to slip into the restroom unnoticed. When he came out, a sunburned man was waiting by the door. The man looked down — down at Jack’s wrapped finger (why had he bothered to rewrap it?) — and then up at his face.
“Excuse me,” said Jack, moving past the man fast enough to avoid questions, slowly enough to avoid suspicion. He heard the restroom door close behind him and hoped that that was the end of the man’s curiosity.
Jack had wanted to take out his map before hopping on his bike, check out his location and the distance he’d traveled, but he didn’t dare pause. What he did know was that he was inland now, and the day was beginning to get really hot. He went from wearing his long-sleeved shirt and jacket to just the long-sleeved shirt to his short-sleeved one instead. On one hill, he peeled off his shirt altogether. By the time he reached the Orland River, he knew he was going in. Only problem was, the Orland River was right on the edge of town. Could he take a swim on a Thursday, in the middle of the day, without anyone noticing him? He’d have to stay out of sight of drivers, walkers, and anyone who happened to look out a nearby window at the river below.
He parked his bike in the woods near a bridge, then slid down the embankment and into the water. Although it felt a little creepy under the bridge, he remained there in the semidarkness, where he wouldn’t be seen. He swam from one side of the bridge to the other, hoping there weren’t snakes or leeches in this river, and boy, did it feel good.
After the swim, he lay down on a sun-baked rock in the woods to dry off. Then he ate the food he’d packed. All of it. He did think it might have been smarter to save some of the food for later, but so far, he’d been able to get food pretty much whenever he needed it, and right now, he was starving. He could always find some more bottles, raid another garden, or hide out in another store. Heck, maybe he’d choose a grocery store tonight!
He didn’t feel much like riding after his break, but he knew he’d better keep going. People might have guessed he’d spent the night in L.L. Bean by now. He needed to get as far away as possible.
Finally, he reached the town of Bucksport. His skin was beginning to feel stretched tight over his face and shoulders, and he suspected a sunburn. Putting on his shirt made his shoulders hurt, confirming his suspicion. Jack was so tempted to stop here, to visit the library, which was surely air-conditioned. But it was simply too risky. He didn’t dare use his homeschool excuse — not now, when people were on the lookout for him.
As Jack crossed a bridge in town, he saw a large castle-like structure in the distance. He stopped and pulled out his map: Fort Knox, the map said. Ha! He’d heard of Fort Knox. That was where all the gold was kept. But he was pretty sure that that Fort Knox was in the South.
This one looked awesome, and like the perfect place to escape from the sun for a few hours — the sun, and the darn deerflies that buzzed around his head every time he came to a stop. That is, if he could get inside, he thought as he batted the pests away.
After crossing the bridge, he came to another, one that was perhaps the tallest, coolest bridge he’d ever seen. It was sparkling new, with gleaming silver cables that went up to two towers, one of which, Jack could tell by the windows at the top, was an observation tower. The old bridge still spanned the wide river, just below and to the right of the newer one. Glancing down at the narrow double lanes and the barely waist-high, rusty guardrail on the old bridge, Jack was awfully glad for the renovation. Still, the