Page 99 of The Pilot

“Will you come with me?”

“Of course.”

“Then I don’t mind.”

“We’ll make it happen sooner rather than later. And if you want, I’ll find out who owns the cabins out here and see if we can arrange to meet them.”

“Oh yes!” Kash said with a smile. “I want to thank them. For the food, the blankets, and everything. We all know that I’m not much of an outdoor person, and without these cabins I don’t know what would’ve happened.”

“You would’ve figured it out,” Linc said without hesitation. “You’re the smartest person I know.”

Once again, his praise made Kash’s self-esteem rise by a few notches. “I’m not saying I want to become Paul Bunyan or hike the Appalachian Trail . . . but Mom, do you think Granddad would be willing to teach me some outdoor stuff? Survival things?”

“I bet he’d be thrilled.”

Kash nodded. Then frowned. “Not that I don’t want you to teach me stuff, Linc, but Granddad’s always been wanting to, and I’ve always told him no.”

“I understand, Bud. And I think that’s a great idea. I think he’d love that,” Linc said.

Kash never again wanted to feel as helpless as he did when he’d watched Donny and Owen driving off in that boat, leaving him and Ginger alone on the island. For a split second, he’d also thought they were going to die. Because he knew nothing about building shelters, fires, or finding food. He hadn’t lied. If there hadn’t been cabins on this island that he could get into, that had a few provisions, they might’ve frozen to death. Certainly would’ve been way worse off than they were.

“Come on, Bud. There are a lot of people waiting anxiously to see you,” Linc said.

“Hospital first,” his mom said.

“Mom,” Kash whined. “I’m fine. I don’t want to go to the hospital.”

“No one wants to go to the hospital, but you’re going and that’s that. I need to make sure you’re all right.”

Kash frowned but nodded. He understood his mom had been worried, was still worrying. She had a death grip on Kash’s hand and wouldn’t take her gaze from him. It was comforting in a way, even if seeing a doctor would be annoying.

“Can we please stop and get a hamburger or something on the way? Maybe The Lobster Buoy’s lobster and truffle oil mashed potatoes. Ooooh, or some Ruckus Donuts! No—pizza!”

Linc chuckled. “We’ll get you something, but I have a feeling you aren’t going to be able to eat nearly as much as you want to. Not at first.”

Kash figured he would know, considering his own experiences with being hungry. He thought back to how full he was after eating the SpaghettiOs and realized Linc was right. “I love you guys. Thank you for finding me,” he blurted.

“Nothing would’ve stopped us,” Linc said.

“We left to come out here and get you the second Donny admitted what he did,” his mom agreed.

Some kids had a ton of toys. Or clothes. Or money. But Kash thought he was the richest person in the world. He had a mom who loved him with everything she had in her. It was more than enough.

He stepped onto the Coast Guard boat and watched the island get smaller and smaller as they headed back to the mainland. He should probably hate the sight of it, but in actuality, he felt proud of himself. He’d been put in a horrible situation and came out mostly unharmed on the other side. He felt as if he was a different person . . . in a good way.

Turning back into his mom’s embrace, he let her hold him steady as the boat flew over the waves. Linc was at his mom’s back, keeping her upright. They were stronger together than they were apart, and Linc was the father he’d always wanted but never had.

Life had a strange way of throwing curveballs, but for once, Kash felt as if he’d managed to hit a home run.

Chapter Twenty-One

A week after Kash and Ginger had been found, Harper still wasn’t sleeping. And Linc wasn’t sure what to do. He finally understood her feelings of helplessness over his own insomnia.

She’d fall asleep in his arms quickly, but within two hours, she’d be awake and going upstairs to check on Kash. To make sure he was safe and sound in his bed. His disappearance had done a number on her psyche, and he shared the guilt she felt over what they’d been doing while Kash was suffering on that island.

Something had to give. They needed to deal with this and move on. Just as Kash had done.

To everyone’s surprise, the boy was amazingly resilient. He’d bounced back with barely a blip. He was upset that he’d missed the robotics competition, but was happy that they’d placed third overall. He’d watched the tapes of the bouts and come up with ways to improve their next robot so they could maybe place higher.