She smiled at the wind, and the dark expanse of the open sea. “Yes, I am.”
She would go back to that island, no longer a child, to play the villain and join in the games of her sister's design. No doubt the lost children would take her captive at some point and force her to tell stories. Other times, she would hunt them down in games of hide-and-seek for the highest stakes. She would convince Twill to defect again, or conspire against aliens, or wheedle bits of information out of star-gossiping mermaids. Anything was possible, but one thing was for certain: she would be back in Neverland, having adventures with Rosemary once again.
“Are you feeling nostalgic?” Starkey asked her.
“Isn't everyone, when they head for Neverland?” Gwen responded, flicking her braid over her shoulder as she turned to look at the skull and pens flag flapping overhead. She couldn't imagine a better flag for a storyteller to sail under.
“Earwig get the sails back up!” Starkey barked. “Two Toes, heave that anchor back aboard! Mercado, take Hoffman's things to her quarters! Who's at the helm?” he squinted at the shadow, barely lit by the moon behind him.
“I am, Captain!”
“Then chart the stars and take us away, Leonard,” Starkey ordered. “Set a course—first to the right and then straight on till morning.”
The sails billowed in the wind, bathed in moonlight as they caught a favorable air and set off, right away, on their magical bearing. The pirates broke out into a sea shanty work song, but Gwen wandered to the head of ship as if in a trance. Starkey stayed beside her, looking out into the infinite unknown of the night as they set sail for a brand new adventure. Gwen smiled to feel the salty air blow against her face, for stories were started and finished as often as worlds were made and unmade, and she felt in herself the maturity and power to make and tell anything her heart so desired.
For all children grow up, and all children determine just what kind of grown-ups they will be.
About the Author
Audrey Greathouse is a lost child in a perpetual and footloose quest for her own post-adolescent Neverland. Originally from Seattle, she earned her English B.A. from Southern New Hampshire University’s online program while backpacking around the west coast and pretending to be a student at Stanford. A pianist, circus artist, fire-eater, street mime, swing dancer, and novelist, Audrey wears many hats wherever she is. She has grand hopes for the future which include publishing more books and owning a crockpot.
Audrey would love to hear from you!
Acknowledgments
I am grateful to Alison Leonard for allowing me to use her name to build a symbol for all that is good in adulthood, and to Craig Franklin and Rosie La Puma who were invaluable beta readers as always. I would like to thank my parents for their unwavering encouragement, Zaq for his unconditional love, and absolutely everyone else who supported me while they watched the sausage being made with this book (most notably Kyle Eschen). Finally, I would like to thank Claire Hanser for 1) dragging me off to learn the fine art of writing in bars when I was too mopey for coffee shops, 2) providing the impetus for a profound spiritual experience on Mardi Gras, and 3) our running gag with characters named Leonard.
Looking for something new to read now? Check out BELLAMY AND THE BRUTE by Alicia Michaels. Enjoy the first chapter here.
Prologue
Loose gravel crunched beneath her boots as Special Agent Camila Vasquez navigated the almost-empty parking lot to her car. Darting a glance around, she took in her surroundings, careful to listen for any approaching vehicles or footsteps. Settling her gaze back on her car, she found it undisturbed—no broken windows or picked locks. She took another glance over her shoulder to ensure she hadn’t been followed as she pressed a button on the fob attached to her keychain.
Wellhollow Springs was a small town with a tight-knit community, but she couldn’t afford to let her guard down. After she slid into the front seat, she glanced in the rearview mirror and spied the stack of files laid on her backseat. The information she’d been gathering for the past month would be enough to put a murderer away for the rest of his life. The fact that he was powerful hadn’t intimidated her in the least, but until she’d placed the evidence into the right hands, she couldn’t be too careful.
She placed her takeout box from the Japanese steakhouse on the passenger seat, dropped her purse onto the floor, and retrieved her phone. It vibrated in her hand. Her pulse began to race when she saw who was calling.
Answering quickly, she pressed the phone to her ear. “This is Vasquez.”
A familiar voice reached out to her from the other end of the line. “Vasquez, it’s Jones.”
“Yeah, I know,” she said with a smirk, jamming her key into the ignition and cranking the engine. “Your ugly mug pops up on my screen every time you call me.”
Special Agent Jones laughed, but it came out dry and forced. “That’s real cute. You want the results of this DNA test or what?”
Taking a deep breath, she gazed back through the driver’s side window at the tall pine trees lining the highway beyond her. She’d been feeling as if she were being watched for about a week now, yet
