The Escape
By:Aly Hogan
The definition of escape is to break free from something, like confinement or control. I know that everyone has something they need to escape from, whether serious or not, but mine is inescapable. No matter how hard I try I can never get away, but maybe this time; just maybe. Why would I try to escape from something that is inescapable, you ask? It’s called persistence, being continually firm in spite of difficulty or opposition. And from what are you trying to escape, you also ask? You’ll have to read on and find out for yourself.
As far as I can see, there’s only water. I can hear the water slap the sides of the boat, as I stand at the helm and breathe in the salty air. The sky is a bright clear blue, without a cloud in sight. It’s been three days now on this cruise ship that will take me to the island, and it shouldn’t be long before it’s time…
“Wow, look at this view!” exclaimed Enoch, “I’ve never seen anything so magnificent in my life.” Enoch is a short and stout, but lively little man.I can’t quite recall how and when we first met, but he’s stuck to my side like glue ever since. I guess you could say, he’s the life of the party. He laughs at his own jokes, and has always been one to easily make friends and start up conversations; he’s one who can never keep his mouth shut, which is why I can no longer trust him. Not this time, not again. He’s had one too many chances, and I can’t let it happen again After all, he’s the reason why we’re here on this boat in the first place.
“It’s incredible, isn’t it.” I reply, but not so cheerfully, as I have very important things on my mind.
“Too bad we don’t have very much time left to sit here and enjoy it, huh?” asks Enoch.
Yes, it is too bad. It’s too bad that you had to ruin this for me, it’s too bad you had to open your big mouth, and now you’re going to regret it.
“I said,” Enoch says exaggeratedly as he repeats himself. “Isn’t it too bad that we don’t have much time left?” Feeling as if on autopilot, I swiftly stand up and head for my room, leaving Mr. Enoch without an answer.
It’s close to midnight, and there’s nothing but silence throughout the boat. As I sneak out of my room, my door creaks and I cringe. I can’t risk being caught, so I leave it open ajar. The only thing with me is my briefcase, but as usual, I’m wearing my stark white suit, dark sunglasses (which is making it hard for me to see), my gold watch around my wrist, my gold chain around my neck, my left earring and of course the red rose that sits in my suit pocket resting against my chest.
As I step out onto the deck, the cool salty breeze messes up my dark, sleek hair. The breeze is refreshing but slightly on the cold side. As quickly as I can, I make my way towards the “Danger” sign that’s bolted to the door where only the boat workers are allowed.I try the handle, but as I press my ear up to the door I hear the faint sounds of voices, which annoyingly, is going to mess with my plans. Angrily,I hunker down in the shadows near the door and quietly open my briefcase and pull out my Colt 45; then I stop. If I fire, that’ll warn other guards and workers throughout the boat, not to mention wake up the thousands of guest. I slam the gun back into the briefcase and securely close it shut. Time for plan B. I walk back in front of the door, and knock firmly.. Two taller gentlemen answer; probably the ones I heard talking, and ask me if they can help me.
“Yes,” I answer. “My fiance downstairs has a terrible migraine, and everyone seems to be a sleep except, well, for you two so I was wondering if you could assist her in finding some medicine she could use.”
“Oh,” said the blonde worker. “Have you tried waking up the doctor? His room is located farther down this hallway.”
“Why yes, I have indeed.” I say cautiously. “He must be a hard sleeper, not having answered the door.”
The second worker chuckled, “Indeed!” he replied. “Might we know your name, sir?”
Immediately I freeze. “ Edwin P. Chase.” I say hesitantly.
“Well, Mr. Chase! Let us see if we can do the trick.”
“Oh yes, thank you!” I say, a little too excitedly as the gentlemen both move around me and head down the dark, damp hallway. Before the door could shut all the way, I put my foot between the doorway and the wall, and before sneaking in I check and make sure that both of the boat workers are out of sight. Once inside the room, checking to make sure the door is shut and locked, I quickly get to work with pulling out the sugar I have stored in my briefcase and dumping it out of the bag it was in and into the gas that will quickly clog up the engine. As I’m escaping through one of the open windows that leads back out to the deck, I hear the two men wondering out loud of where I could have possibly gone. Well, I might say, that’s just none of their business.
As I’m quickly making, my way to the edge of the ship, and thinking about how I can get ahold of one of the lifeboats, the boat makes a loud groaning sound and jerks to a stop, sending me flying across the deck. Crap! The boat seems to come back to life as lights one by one began to turn on under the deck and as women and children starting screaming and men started shouting among themselves, but this is not the time to get distracted. I have to focus! It’s too late to get away in one of the lifeboats, so without a seconds hesitation, I throw myself overboard into the dark, cold water.
I begin struggling against the ice cold water that keeps pulling me under, but I’m determined to get away. I use my briefcase as a floatation device as I swim and struggle towards what seems like the island way out on the horizon. When I get far enough away from the sinking boat, I turn my shivering body towards the boat, watching people scream and run around like crazy on the deck. As I continue watching, a short, stubby man runs to the edge of the boat and looks me square in the eyes. Enoch. The look on his face sends chills down my spine and his ice cold stare is more painful than a bullet in my heart. As I force myself to look forward and keep swimming to safety, I can’t brush the look of his face out of my head. No matter how hard I try to distract myself on other thoughts, he keeps popping up in my mind. Not even the paralyzing, cold water, or the tiredness that keeps washing over me will keep him out of my head.
I slowly open my eyes and almost instantly go blind from the bright sun shining in my eyes. I groggily sit up, look around as the memories from the previous day flood back into my head. The boat, the workers, and E---; I quickly stop myself, refusing to think about what happened. After all, that’s the reason why I got on the boat in the first place, to start over. I stand up and look around at the clear blue water that keeps lapping up on the golden sandy beach. I look down at my now dirty, damp and sandy white suit, and briefcase I somehow still have in my hand. My Rose! I earnestly scan the horizon, and spot it. The now wilted red rose is slowly making its way up to the beach, catching bright blue waves, and then tumbling upon the sand, eventually landing at my feet. I reach down and pick it up, tucking it back into its rightful place.
With no time to lose I earnestly make my way through the winding streets of the island, and it isn’t long before I realize that I’m lost. I look around for someone to ask for directions from, and spot an older looking gentlemen sitting on the curb, smiling and waving to people who pass by. For some reason he reminds me of E----; no, don’t think about him! I push my way through the clumps of people and finally make it to him. Before I can even open my mouth, the older man beats me to it.
“Well I don’t think we’ve ever met!” the strange man says with a smile.
“No, I don’t think so either,” I say grouchily
“The name’s Jones. Wylie Jones.” the man says holding his hand out.
“William Stanton,” I say with a cringe, as I firmly shake his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“So, what can I help you with?” Wylie asks.
“I’m trying to get to a hotel, the Island Hotel, I believe it’s called.” I say.
Wylie chuckles and replies sarcastically, “The Island Hotel? I’ve never heard of such a place!” After seeing the look of horror on my face, he quickly clears his throat and stands a little straighter, but all with a big grin on his face. “Nah! I’m just messing with you. Do you see that big sign over there? When you get to it, take a right and the road will take you back down by the beach, and from there it’s only a couple of minutes.”
“Thank you very much, sir. You’ve been a great help,” and without second glance, I head straight for the sign farther up the road.
“It was a pleasure to meet you!” Wylie called out, ignoring my rudeness. “Glad I could help.”
Before I realize it, I am walking up the path to the hotel from the beach. I glance down at my watch and miraculously it’s still working because it clearly reads 3:15. It was as hot as ever, and my suit had finally dried out along the walk, but still felt quite uncomfortable as if it was still wet. The sun is still shining brightly, but my dark sunglasses easily take care of that problem. The closer I get, the more relaxed I feel. The closer I get, the more I feel free.
As I enter the Island Hotel I’m immediately greeted by a bell-hop. He was a shorter man, but he had the biggest grin and the funniest hat sitting on top of his head.
“Welcome to the Island Hotel!” the bell-hop says buoyantly. “I’m Roger Davis, and I’m here to help you get your luggage to your room and assist you in anything else you might need.”
“Thank you Roger.” I say, “but I haven’t checked in with the front desk yet, so I don’t even have a room you could help me get too.”
“Well then, step right this way!” Roger says as he starts to walk off. I am a grown man, for crying out loud! I think I can get a room by myself… but reluctantly, I follow.
“Ms. Daisy, this gentleman would like to book a room for...for…”
“As long as possible!” I quickly cut in.
“Alrighty, I’ll see what I can do!” smiles Ms. Daisy. “Can I atleast have your name, sir?”
“Oh yes of course,” I say uneasily as Ms. Daisy raises an eyebrow.
“Stanton. William Stanton.” I say confidently like the older gentlemen I saw earlier this morning.
“Well then, Mr. Stanton, Roger here will show you to your room.” Ms. Daisy said handing me a brochure and a set of keys. It’s about time.
When I enter the room and turn on the light, I slump into a chair and run my hair through my hair as a million thoughts wiz through my brain. When I feel a bit more collected, I look around the room. It’s a bit smaller than I would like with only a bed, bathroom, and a table with two chairs, but it’ll suffice.
It’s getting late and the sun is starting to set leaving a combination of pink, orange and red in the blue stained sky. My stomach makes a growling sound and it makes me wonder when the last time I ate was. Before heading down to find something to eat, I shower, and change into a second stark white suit that I pull out of my briefcase, leaving my dirty one to the maids to wash, along with my watch, earring, chain, and of course my rose.
I easily make my way down the golden, winding staircase and enter the restaurant on the first floor. I look around and notice that everyone seems to be sitting and chatting gaily with each other. I eagerly search for a place to sit, when I see a man, sitting next to his wife, raise his hand as an invitation. Quickly I head across the long dining area and sit in the seat across from them.
“Joshua Herndon, and this is my wife, Caroline.” the man says introducing himself.
“Pleased to meet you Joshua,” I say as I reach my hand out. “Greeley. Norman Greeley.”
“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Greeley.” Caroline smiles.
“So what brings you here?” Joshua asks.
“Oh, you know,” I say carefully. “Just here on a little vacation, what about you two?”
“Oh, we’re here on vacation too!” Caroline jumps in, but is quickly silent when the waiter comes to take our order.
Eager to get back to my room, I smile politely, answer and ask questions, and then excuse myself and head back to my room. As I make my way back up stairs I can’t help but think, how can people be so happy and cheerful about everything? It doesn’t make any sense. No matter how hard I try, I can’t forget; no matter how hard I try I can’t escape.
I wake up in the early hours of the morning, and slip on my suit, glasses, chain and watch and grab my briefcase and tuck my rose in it’s rightful place, and sneak out the door. First things first. I make my way out of the building and back down the road passed the beach and back to the town where I first arrived. I make sure to stay hidden beneath the shadows as I approach the corner where I met Wylie, and I jump when I hear a faint noise. As I make my way closer, It’s Wylie all right (why he’s out at this time I don’t know) and he’s humming to himself as he sits there. Out of habit, I crouch down, open my briefcase, and pull my gun. Gripping the shiny weapon I slowly inch myself forward. When I’m within range, I slowly exhale and pull the trigger. I turn my head just in time, before the bullet hits the back of his head. I make a mad dash back to my briefcase, lock the gun safely inside and hurry back to the hotel.
Again I’m awakened, but this time much later in the morning. I don’t need to get dressed, as I’m still dressed from the night before, so I decide to make my way downstairs to get something to eat. Down in the lobby I’m greeted once again by Roger and Ms. Daisy. I nod my head in acknowledgment and rush passed them to the buffet set out in the eating area. As I make my way down the line, a familiar voice wishes me a good morning. Roger.
“Hello Roger.” I say grouchily. Right now I’m just not in the mood.
“Hello there Mr. Stanton, have you heard the news?”
“What news?” I say quickly as I finish through the line and make my way to a table.
“Well, since you’re new here and all, you probably don’t know him, but his name is Wylie,” Roger says earnestly. “Well, Wylie has lived here longer than anybody else, and he’s known for greeting people out on the corner down the road. Anyway, someone found him lying in the road dead this morning, and the police say he was shot just a few hours earlier.”
I put down my fork, feeling suddenly sick as if someone just punched me in the gut. “Oh, my. That’s just terrible.”
“Yeah,” Wylie says. “And you know what else?”
“What?” I say, thinking I might puke.
“The police announced he was shot. Some paramedics found a bullet in the back of his head.”
That’s it. “Well I’m terribly sorry to hear that, but if you’ll excuse me.”
“Oh of course! Don’t mean to ruin your vacation.” Roger says as a smile reappears on his face. I stiffly stand up with my briefcase in hand and march down the hallway and out the front doors to get some fresh air. As I sit there baking in the sun, I hear someone approach and automatically I jump up and turn around.
“Whoa there!” laughs Joshua. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“That’s okay.” I laugh nervously.
“Well I just saw you sitting there by yourself, so I thought I could keep you some company.”
“How very kind of you,” I say through my teeth “but I was just going.”
“Oh,” Joshua says sounding surprised. “Okay then, I’ll see you later.” Sooner than you may think….
One Week Later
Again, I wake for the second time this morning and I can’t help but smile. I make a mental list in my head; Wylie, Roger, Joshua, Caroline, Ms. Daisy and the one who started all this mess, Enoch. With them out of way I feel like I can finally be at peace. To celebrate I decide to adopt one of my aliases. I decide that Norman Greeley is a good fit so since I’m still dressed from early this morning, I grab my briefcase and head out the door. I’m imagining my relaxing day at the beach, when down in the lobby I spot two policemen talking to the manager of Island Hotel, and I scurry out the door. They’re onto me.
After wandering for what seemed hours I somehow find myself back on the part of the beach where I was washed up on many nights ago. Again I look out at the familiar, blue water and take in all that’s happened since the day I arrived. I’m forced to sit down when a pang of guilt washes over me like the night I jumped overboard the ship, and when I killed the man who simply helped me find my way here. suddenly, without knowing why, I feel my face heat up and something run down my face. I reach up and touch my cheek and realize I’m crying. As I watch the strong blue waves build up and then crash against the shore I remember the night Joshua and Caroline invited me to sit with them, and how it angered me because they reminded me of my adversary. I remember being warmly greeted by Roger and Ms. Daisy when I entered the hotel and how they had all been so nice to me. Almost instantly my tears go from sad to angry. How did I end up like this? Why can’t I be normal like everyone else? What have I become? I stand up and wipe the tears away, while taking in a sharp, shaky breath before continuing farther down the beach.
When I make it back to the hotel, It’s long after dark and when I step through the doors I see the two same police officers that were here before I left. Before they can see me I quickly spin around and walk the other way. The Island Hotel is no longer a safe place for me to be. I need to hide out somewhere else, at least long enough until things settle down and it’s safe.
The definition of escape is to break free from something, like confinement or control. Even though I’ve been hiding out for a year or so, I still feel as if I have a blindfold on and my hands are tied behind my back. Incase you were wondering, I’ve never left the island. I still believe that this is the only place where I can truly escape, whatever that looks like. You may also still be wondering what I’m escaping from and that’s what I’m about to tell you. You may also be curious about what my actual name is, and yes, I’m getting to that too but before I tell you I’m going to go and grab my rose in the other room along with my briefcase. When I open the door I’m greeted not by a smile or a friendly hello but a bullet shot from a Colt 45. Shocked, I look down and see a red stain through my white suit where my rose would normally be. The room starts spinning and I collapse on the ground and everything seems to go in slow motion. I look up and see the all too familiar grin that I never thought I’d see again; Enoch. That’s when it hits me. This is the only true way I can truly escape.
And now…..
my promise…..
to you…..
my name is R--------------------
