Small as an Elephant - Jennifer Richard Jacobson [56]
He straightened his legs, trying not to think of the bazillion spiders that must be all around him.
The basement smelled like a combination of mold and cat litter. He tried to distract himself with his elephant, but it was too dark to see it. He could only hold it, taking comfort from the familiar shape of it.
Jack wondered if this was what it would feel like to live alone in his apartment, waiting for his mother to return — or for someone to catch onto him. First, someone would turn off the electricity, then the phone. Those companies didn’t fool around — Jack knew. Once, during a spinning time, his mom had forgotten to pay the bills, and little by little everything stopped working. She had forgotten to pay the rent, too, but their landlady had given them an extra month before coming to collect. It probably helped that Jack had been the one to speak to her.
Man, he hated thinking about those things! And he hated sitting here, waiting to be caught. Because he knew the likelihood of everyone assuming he’d slipped out of the store unnoticed was slim to none. If he had to be caught, he’d rather be caught running than just sitting here waiting.
From the sounds of the infrequent footsteps above, the drugstore was not very busy. And he could no longer hear the police officer and the pharmacist talking. He hoped that the cop had gone back out to his cruiser and that the pharmacist had gone back to his counter.
He decided he’d try to find the fire escape. It was probably on the second floor. He crept back up the stairs. Each time a stair creaked, he stopped and waited, holding his breath.
But no one came.
When Jack got back to the landing, he took time to check things out. The door straight ahead of him would lead him back into the store. He looked to the right. Ah, there was the office. The door was slightly ajar. Two boots, crossed at the ankles, were resting on the desktop.
The police officer was right there.
The officer’s voice came from the office. “I’ve called for reinforcements. Officers are searching the area, but I think he’s still in the store. I’m going to wait it out, see if he shows himself when he gets hungry enough.”
Dang. That meant there were likely police cars parked outside the front door. He wondered what the odds were of there not being any by the fire escape — if he could even find the fire escape.
To the left of the office was another flight of stairs. What was up there? More offices? Storage? The fire escape? What if the cop heard his footsteps? What if there were no places to hide?
Maybe it would be smarter to go back down into the basement, where at least it was dark. But how long would it be before the officer became frustrated and headed back down to search again?
If he went up, he just might find that fire escape.
But would someone be waiting at the bottom for him?
He wished he had his cell phone, wished he could call Nina and ask her what he should do.
The thought startled him. Why would he want to call the very person who’d exposed him in the first place? But he had to admit: it was her voice he wanted to hear at the end of the telephone line right now.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the little elephant. What should I do? The elephant didn’t say a word, but its mouth seemed to be smiling beneath its raised trunk. He remembered his teacher’s words: “A trunk pointing up means good luck.” Good luck, thought Jack. He’d follow that trunk and go up!
He set one foot on the first stair and gradually rested his weight on it, ready to jump back if there was a squeak. Nothing. He tested the next step. There was a bit of a groan from the wood, but not one loud enough to alert the policeman, who was still talking. Up he went in this way, testing a step, waiting. Testing a step, waiting.
On the second floor was a hallway with only a single door to the left. There was a little whiteboard on the door where someone had written, I came by. Where were you? A pair of flip-flops and an umbrella stand holding a green umbrella were in the corner. He guessed there was an apartment behind