Just for clarification, this takes place after Savannah and Leslie wait up for their dad and before Leslie wakes up the next morning to find she'd been suspended from school.
Angela Castillo rubbed her eyes. Her computer screen flickered dully at her. Angela glanced at the clock. It was nine-fifteen—long after everyone else in the office had gone home. Sighing, Angela took a swig out of her water bottle and turned back to the computer.
Usually, Angela didn’t take much time on her foster care cases. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to, but there were so many children’s cases that needed her attention. But every once in a while a case crossed her desk that tugged on her heart strings—Gray’s was one.
Angela couldn’t believe that Gray had gone out on a boat with the only two people he knew in the world—his parents—and that they had died, leaving him alone. There had to be somebody somewhere who knew Gray and missed him. In an effort to find these people, Angela had sent out a newscast—something that she had only done once before, with fairy tale-esque results.
Then there were Gray’s strange clothes. She had peeked into his hospital bag and seen something slick and shiny. If she hadn’t known better, she would have thought it was a superhero’s outfit. Of course, that wasn’t true. Plus, Leslie hadn’t mentioned finding Gray as he played dress-up.
Another thing that bothered Angela was Gray’s inability to read. He spoke perfect English, but he obviously didn’t even recognize the letters on the typed page. And when he had signed his name, he hadn’t used symbols Angela recognized.
Angela tried to add the pieces together and came up blank. It could be that Gray was part of a secluded community that made up their own written language and wore strange clothes. But then why had they found Gray on the beach? Why would his family leave their community and come to California’s beaches? They weren’t from the beach—there wasn’t a truly secluded section of coast all up and down California. Perhaps they had been running away from their community, or perhaps as a rite of passage they were bringing Gray to live for a time in the modern world. But again, why go out to sea right before a storm?
Wherever Gray had come from, there would be people who had heard about it and blogged about it online. Angela searched on the internet for all communities dedicated to simple life. None of them seemed right. Then she searched for communities that wore shiny clothes. That gave so many strange and random results that Angela immediately abandoned that line of thinking.
Offhandedly, Angela typed in “Abandoned children found on California coast.” The first several search results were about Gray. Further down, Angela found a second child. Then a third. Then more. Then more.
The longer Angela searched, the more children she found that had been discovered under similar circumstances to Gray. They all wore strange clothes—one article described it as long strands of interwoven shiny moss—and they all had some sort of jewelry in the shape of an animal. Most of the children spoke English; but some spoke Spanish, and others spoke various Native American dialects. None of them could read or write in their native language. All in all, in the last twenty years approximately fifty children and young adults from the age of two to twenty-four had been found on the California coast.
Angela widened the search. Along coastlines around the world, children had been found with no knowledge of the modern world. Usually, they spoke the language of their region, but sometimes professional linguistics couldn’t determine what language they spoke. None of the children could write in their native language—except one. A little Chinese girl—at least, she looked Chinese—appeared near Beijing. She could write in an antiquated form of Chinese, with some small differences.
In her search, Angela found a strange site. It was titled “The Forgotten Wanderers.” Angela clicked on it and read the description on the homepage.
“Are you a wanderer in this strange world? Have you been torn from your family, your life, your future? Do you find yourself standing at the ocean’s edge, watching as the sun sinks over the horizon, wishing you could return?
“You are not alone. We are all Forgotten Wanderers destined to walk in this lonely world. Come to us, and we will help you forget your burdens and find peace in your new life. Contact us, and you will join in the largest support group for those who long for the Other Side.”
On the web page’s borders were several strange rune-like characters. Angela rubbed her eyes. All the symbols Gray had written were there—every last one. She’d found it! She’d found the link to Gray’s life!
Angela scrolled down to the bottom of the page and clicked the “Contact Us” link. A window popped up asking for her email and a short message. Angela typed, “My name is Angela Castillo. I work for California’s Social Services. A young man named Gray was recently found on a beach nearby. I believe he belongs to yoru organization—he writes using the same characters found around the borders of your web page. Is there a way I can contact his relatives? Thank you.”
Angela added her contact information and sent the message.
After sending the message, Angela’s leads dried up. She worked late, trying to find anything else about the Forgotten Wanderers. Before she knew it, it was nine-fifteen on a weeknight, and she was no closer to finding Gray’s home.
Angela sighed a second time. She navigated through the internet to the local news. One of the stories was about a mountain lion attack at a school. Intrigued, clicked the link.
A picture of Leslie clutching the cylinder Gray was so protective of filled up half of her computer monitor. Leslie’s father stood behind her, one hand on her shoulder, staring straight at the camera. The story was bizarre, starting with a mountain lion and ending with a conspiracy to cover up Gray’s disappearance.
“The young man Gray has not been sighted since the incident,” read Angela, “and one has to wonder why this young girl is being questioned.”
A noise sounded behind Angela. She swiveled around in her chair. Two men in black suits and ties stood just inside Angela’s office. Their eyes were hidden behind dark-tinted sunglasses.
“Miss Angela Castillo?” the first man said.
“Yes…” Angela said slowly. She casually placed her hand on the stapler—the only item on her desk that might work as a weapon.
“FBI,” the man said. Both men flashed badges at Angela. “I am Agent Orange, and this is Agent Blue.” Angela stifled a snicker. “It has come to our attention that you have been researching appearances of children on sea coasts around the world, as well as the support group the Forgotten Wanderers. You are ordered to stop. If you do not, you will be placed under arrest. Do you understand?”
Angela looked from Agent Orange to Agent Blue. Agent Blue had a tiny nub of an earring in his right ear hardly the size of a pinhead. It was an unusual shape—an animal, perhaps? There was no way to tell with how far away she was.
“I don’t see why I can’t—” began Angela.
“It is a matter of top secret security,” interrupted Agent Orange.
“Very top secret,” supplied Agent Blue.
“And I suggest you forget all about it,” finished Agent Orange.
The two color-coded agents gave Angela one last look from behind their dark-lensed glasses. Then they slowly turned and exited Angela’s office.
Angela let out the breath she’d been holding. She let go of the stapler. The meeting from the FBI had certainly piqued her curiosity. She may not be able to research these Forgotten Wanderers at work, but there were plenty of other computers out there. Tomorrow, she’d start at the library.
