Storming the Kingdom

by Jeff Dixon

He was excited about this brief greeting and presentation for his favorite charity, Christmas Dreams. He had personally invited some of the organization’s leadership team to be here today. They were getting a behind-the-scenes look at how things operated, getting access to some designers and Imagineers, and they had just finished a late-afternoon private meal in the mysterious West Wing of the Be Our Guest restaurant, creatively themed as Beast’s castle from the animated film Beauty and the Beast.

  Christmas Dreams was an organization that provided Christmas experiences for chronically ill children and their families. Whether it was providing gift boxes in local hospitals, creating Santa Claus encounters for sick children, or even moving into a neighborhood in the middle of the summer and organizing a Christmas in July, the organization’s focus was on caring for and ministering to families in crisis who were dealing with illness. The reason they did it? Some children just can’t wait for Christmas. Ultimately, they were going to construct an indoor theme park, a North Pole where children could come and create one more Christmas memory with their family.

  Hawk had personally gotten involved with the charity organization and had promised to support them with the force of Disney behind him. Today, some of their advance planning team, some of the staff, and some of their designers were at the resort. The brief meeting with Hawk was to encourage them, and he was supposed to give them a quick, inspiring chat. He had been the one who had chosen this very unlikely spot for the event because he wanted to show them something most people missed.

  The door in front of him creaked open, and a security guard waved him forward. He moved quickly across the short pathway between Gaston’s Tavern and the cottage right out of Belle’s hometown from Beauty and the Beast, known as Bonjour! Village Gifts, where guests could grab a unique set of themed gifts available exclusively in this Fantasyland shop. Hawk stepped around the outside of the shop to the back door, then waited again as security spread out in front of him. Inside, he was in a cast-member-only area; the next door would carry him into the shop itself. It would be filled with the group from Christmas Dreams, not shopping but waiting for what had been promised as a bonus presentation for them. He heard Juliette’s voice on the other side of the door, inside the shop, introducing him.

  “We have a very special surprise for you today. You might have heard news over the past few days that our Chief Creative Officer has had a bit of trouble, and there have been attempts made on his life. He knew you were coming today, and he really wanted to be here. As you can imagine, this was impossible considering the circumstances.” Juliette gave her words a moment for the crowd to process them. “But as he has always done, he makes the impossible possible, so I am excited to introduce to you…Grayson Hawkes.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY - TWO

  Four Days Ago

  Late Afternoon

  Hawk entered the room to applause, a few gasps, and a number of pleasantly surprised smiles. Scanning the room, he recognized some of the people he had met over the time he had been involved with Christmas Dreams, and he was truly humbled by their excitement at his arrival. He took his spot near the back of the shop in front of a large painting of a Renaissance man, which dominated the room. Mindful of the security risk of being in public too long, Hawk immediately launched into some words of greeting, began to thank them for the work they were doing with sick children and their families, and offered them an encouraging word as they continued to press forward and develop their themed attraction for these very special kids.

  “All of our lives are a story. The pages are packed with the memories we collect over a lifetime.” He paused, remembering the families they worked with. “No matter how long or short that lifetime might be. And the memories we create, they are gifts we leave behind when we are gone. They become part of our legacy, and our stories continue in the lives of those we love, those who travel our journey with us, and those who will hear our stories in the days ahead. The challenge for all of us is to make sure that each day the story of our lives is one worth telling, one worth living, and one worth sharing.” Again he paused, smiled at his audience, and added, “You are helping to create brand-new chapters of joy—memories that will last forever.”

  The crowd of people watched as Hawk paced a bit in front of them and continued his informal chat. “If we think about the stories that represent our lives, we begin to understand that to really make sense of the story, details are essential. Here at Disney, we pay great attention to the details. If you have been a fan of Disney for very long, you realize that the hidden details, the things others don’t always take the time to notice, are loaded with meaning and can tell a story within a story. I want to encourage you to pay attention to the details. In those details, you might just discover the hidden meaning you need to make your own story come alive and be more meaningful.

  “I wanted to meet you here in Bonjour! Village Gifts to illustrate what I am talking about.” He pointed at the painting behind him. “Some of you probably noticed this very large painting of a Renaissance man on the wall. I know you’ve been listening to me ramble, but I would imagine that at least a couple of you might have been thinking, ‘I wonder who that is a painting of.’ After all, we are at Walt Disney World, this is the Magic Kingdom, and we are standing in gift shop nestled in a provincial French village, Belle’s hometown, right out of an animated feature. Certainly the guy in the painting is there for a reason, right?”

  Nods throughout the group let Hawk know that some had indeed wondered about who the man in the painting was. Giving them a second to take in the painting, Hawk also took a long look at it, then turned back to face them.

  “Let me introduce you to Phil Holmes. When this painting was commissioned, he was the president of the Magic Kingdom with the Walt Disney Company. So Phil was painted in period costume and given a place of honor here in the shop when Fantasyland was expanded. But if you know your Disney history, you’ll remember that at the time, the New Fantasyland was our largest expansion ever. It was a huge deal, and the way it changed the Magic Kingdom was unprecedented. Phil was in charge of the Magic Kingdom, so it was fitting that he be honored with this tribute painting for his leadership.

  “It’s a nice touch, a nice way to honor him…but take some time to really look at the painting. This is not just a painting of a man—it also connects you to his life and can unlock secrets that some might never know. Let me show you.”

  Hawk pointed to a ring on the man’s hand in the picture. “You will notice the ring has the number forty on it. The reason is because Phil was a cast member on opening day of the Magic Kingdom. At the time of the painting, his last five-year milestone with the company had been forty years, so the ring has a forty on it to commemorate that. On the shelf in the painting above his shoulder, you see a Donald Duck statue. That is the award we give to cast members on their forty-year recognition. It is a replica of his forty-year service award. Over his other shoulder, you will see a large swatch of what looks like wallpaper. If it looks familiar, it should…it’s a piece of wallpaper from the Haunted Mansion, where Phil worked when he started and the park opened.

  “Look at the table in front of Phil. The things there represent milestones during his time here in the Magic Kingdom.” Hawk pointed at each one as he mentioned it. “There’s a magic lamp representing the Aladdin ride, an apple for the closed Snow White Scary Adventures attraction but also the new Seven Dwarfs coaster, and the peanuts have a lot of symbolism for the expansion where the original Dumbo ride was closed, but Storybook Circus, including the Double Dumbo attraction, was created. A park map lays open on the right side, showing Mickey’s Toontown Fair in the corner—a lot of people visited that area over the years.” Then Hawk stopped and pointed back up toward the Donald Duck statue. “If you examine the picture really closely, you’ll notice the blue book on the shelf below the statue is titled Terre de Fantasme, which, translated, means something close to ‘land of fantasy.’ Where you are standing, where this expansion has happened, and all
of it…a part of Phil Holmes’s life. So as you can see, this isn’t merely a tribute painting featuring Phil, this is a tribute to his life. It tells his story as it relates to his work in the company here…and if you can figure out what the hidden clues mean, then Phil’s story comes alive and you know something or a lot of things about him that others could easily miss. His story has impacted your life. You have gotten the chance to enjoy the things his work has helped to create.”

  He stepped back and looked toward the painting. “So the details in the painting have helped to make his story come alive. The details matter and so pay attention to the details in your own life, in the lives of others, and definitely…let me encourage you to pay attention to the details as you care for families and create an escape for them to come and visit. And I promise, we will help you do that well. Strive for perfection, settle for excellence, and people will always remember what you are trying to say to them.”

  Hawk nodded to the group, indicating he was finished. They applauded and many thank-yous rang out over the appreciative applause. One person raised a hand and asked, “Is there any hidden meaning in what he’s writing?”

  Hawk raised an eyebrow and looked back toward the painting. He leaned in and looked closely and really couldn’t decipher any hidden meaning or order to what was there. Turning back, he said with a huge grin, “I didn’t say I was going to answer any questions.”

  Everyone, including Hawk, laughed. “I don’t know. If there is hidden meaning in what is there, then I don’t know it. But if you find it or figure something out, let me know…around here, you never can tell.” More laughter followed. The crowd was relaxed, they were thrilled Hawk had made an appearance, and he was having a good time as well. “I like the way you’re thinking; that is exactly what I was talking about. Even in the detail of what someone is writing, you can find insight into something far bigger and more complicated.” He allowed his voice to trail off, and he again looked back at the painting. This time it was more than a glance; he was studying it, and he held the stare longer than he had planned. The room grew silent as the audience tried to figure out what he was seeing or doing.

  Juliette, realizing he was not doing this for the sake of his presentation, moved next to him and whispered, “What are you doing?”

  Hawk snapped back to the moment, turned, and once again thanked the crowd for coming and listening to him, and he promised to do whatever he could to help Christmas Dreams continue in the days ahead. To more applause and words of thanks along with wishes to keep safe, he exited through the main door of the building and immediately was taken across the walkway and backstage into the cast member only area.

  As the security team relaxed and spread out, Juliette waited for Hawk to tell her what he was doing.

  “It dawned on me as I was answering the question. I know how to find what I think were Walt Disney’s last words.”

  “Really?”

  “Yes, sort of…Farren would know that I knew a lot of Disney history and that what I didn’t know, I could research. But when you look for Walt’s final words, the truth is…anyone who heard them or knew them has never told anyone. They were private and they were no one else’s business. So for years, there were rumors about Walt’s last words…not his spoken words to be sure, but his written words.”

  “So the clue is not really about his final words but what most people believe are his final words?” Juliette asked as she rubbed her hands together.

  “His final written words,” Hawk restated.

  “And do you know them?”

  “I do.” He smiled at her. “Again, it’s just rumor and old tales that people have created. But Walt probably was in his office for the last time about a month before he passed away. He never returned to his office after he got sick, and it was closed up and became sort of a shrine. It was left untouched for years. An archivist was finally chosen, I think around 1970 or so. His name was Dave Smith, and he was supposed to go through and catalogue everything. That is when the Disney Archives became officially established and part of the company.”

  “And?” Juliette rolled her hands in a whirring motion.

  “So, based on the things Walt worked on that last day in the office, there were a number of things he seemed to be doing. But on his desk, they found some notes he was making, and over the years, the story emerged that the final two words he had written were Kurt Russell…even the actor himself confirmed the story on national television.”

  “So they aren’t really Walt’s last words?” Juliette frowned slightly, getting lost trying to follow Hawk’s thinking.

  “Exactly…but when I was answering the question a few minutes ago and was talking about how the details in what we write can tell us something bigger and more complicated, it dawned on me. The words Kurt Russellwere Walt’s ‘famous’ last words. Not his actual ones.”

  “And you know where to find these actual last words?” Juliette asked as her frown morphed into a hopeful smile.

  “Yes, I do.” Hawk was now smiling and began to move through the backstage areas to take the long way back toward his apartment. “They’re in Walt Disney’s office over in the One Man’s Dream attraction in Disney’s Hollywood Studios.”

  “Are you getting ready to charge over there right now?” Juliette stopped to get his complete attention.

  “Sure, let’s go.”

  “Think about this for a minute.” Juliette pointed at him. “You are a target for some very bad people. Every single time you get around others, you are probably putting them at risk. But you keep plunging headlong into whatever you feel like doing next.” She sighed. “You have got to show a little restraint…if not for yourself, for everyone else.”

  Hawk knew she was right. His sense of urgency for figuring out the puzzle and somehow finding whatever he could that might get his friends and himself out of danger caused him to be much more reckless than he should be.

  “I’ll wait until the studios close for the night,” he told her.

  “Good, I’ll take that as a win,” Juliette said to him. Hawk waited. There was more coming. Over the years, he knew she’d gained an understanding that he was relentless and would stop at nothing to figure out this mystery. As always, he was impressed that she had figured out how to play the one card in her deck that could make him a bit more cautious: his concern for others. “Meanwhile, I’m going to notify Al Gann and Mitch Renner about the little note you were given earlier. You remember, I’m watching…and waiting?”

  “I remember,” Hawk said. Yet as he said it, he realized that in the excitement of unraveling another clue, he had momentarily forgotten. Juliette had managed to anchor him again to the present with a reminder of how dangerous his world had become as of late. He had convinced himself that Kiran was back and involved, but she was not alone. Once again there was a group of people who had decided there was something he had that was worth sacrificing human life over. But what could it be? He still had no idea.

  Of course, that was exactly what he had been told…you don’t know what have. And the assassin in the hospital had told him, you have solved your last mystery…your usefulness to us is over…we are done waiting for you to help us. If those things were true, his time was running out. He had to find whatever it was and find it fast.

  It was the only way to protect those closest to him.

  CHAPTER TWENTY - THREE

  Four Days Ago

  Late Night

  Armed with the kingdom key Farren Rales had given him, four silver bars containing quotes from Walt Disney, a memorized pass code, an electronic tablet, and a MagicBand strapped to his wrist, Grayson Hawkes moved silently through the nearly deserted streets of Disney’s Hollywood Studios. His mind was burning from his conversation with Juliette earlier in the day. He knew he had to figure out the latest quest he had been sent on, but he also had to protect those he loved. The only way to do that was to do what he had to do alone. If he was the target, then let anyone who wanted to stop him come after h
im. Hopefully that would keep everyone else safe. If he gave everyone close to him only limited information, then they would no longer be targets.

  The more he thought about it, the more resolute he became that this was the best plan. Yet, he doubted it would really prevent his enemies from doing whatever they could to stop him, and that included hurting those close to him. But it was the best plan he had, so he would go with it. That brought him to the studios alone. In the Magic Kingdom, he had been able to get to the Utilidors via the secret passage from his apartment to the bunker. From the command bunker he had crossed Town Square underground and used the secret stairwell in the Town Square Theater. He’d then accessed a stairway into the tunnel system through the theater. Having been able to do that without alerting the security detail at his apartment, he was certain that anyone who would care to notice would think he was tucked safely away in his apartment for the night. It was a complicated path to get out of the Magic Kingdom, but it was the only way he could think of to do so without having security with him.

  The tunnel system of the Magic Kingdom brought him to a cast member exit that opened up into a parking area, and with a quick stop, he managed to grab a car reserved for cast use only. Steering the white compact car out of the lot, he began traveling toward Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Within minutes, he found himself in steadily moving but heavy traffic. This was the time of night the theme parks were closing, and guests were filling up the roadways headed toward their resort hotels, lodging off property, or home. He had decided to use the main entrance of the Studios instead of the back gates. One reason was that it was unexpected; the other was that it was a far more difficult way in. If anyone was watching or following, this was the unexpected, more complicated route into the park. So far, so good…he was now out of his car, walking on the streets of the studios, and if anyone had paid any undue attention to him, he hadn’t noticed.