Oracle of Doom

by D. J. MacHale

  “It came true because she made it come true,” Lu said. “She didn’t have to go on that trip. It was her choice.”

  “Fine,” Theo said impatiently. “I choose not to die tomorrow. How do I go about making that happen?”

  None of us had the answer.

  “The fortunes don’t have to come true,” I said. “Baz tried to warn that Simmons guy, and he himself tried to duck out before the fire.”

  “Yet both he and Simmons died anyway,” Theo shot back.

  “But he warned that guy Ron about the truck that might hit him,” I said. “And it didn’t.”

  “Baz didn’t say the truck was going to hit him,” Theo argued. “He just said to look out for it. Totally different.”

  “Run it down again,” Lu said. “What exactly did you see in that crystal ball?”

  “It was a jumble of quick images, like shots of a movie,” I said. “I saw people running around and tires spinning and something red crashed. There was a brief flash of Theo wearing a bright blue shirt, and a guy with orange hair.”

  “You’ve got a bright blue shirt,” Lu said to Theo.

  “Yeah, a couple. But I don’t know anybody with orange hair. That’s something, right?”

  “And there was a ton of water too,” I added. “Like spraying around.”

  “So does this mean I’ll be okay as long as I don’t wear a blue shirt?” Theo asked.

  Again, nobody had an answer.

  I stood up and brushed off my pants. “Lu and I will come over first thing in the morning,” I said. “We’ll stay with you all day. Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

  Theo nodded, but he didn’t seem all that comforted.

  “I want to believe we have control over our future,” he said. “But everything I’ve seen so far tells me we don’t.”

  “But we do, and tomorrow we’ll prove it,” Lu said with conviction. “And finish this story once and for all.”

  THEO MCLEAN DIDN’T SLEEP well the night before his birthday. He kept staring at the clock next to his bed as the luminous numbers crept ever closer to midnight. Once the clock showed 12:00, it would signal the arrival of the day he had been dreading ever since he received the ominous fortune.

  He watched with tired eyes as 11:59 turned to 12:00.

  The moment he had dreaded for weeks had arrived.

  For twenty-four long hours, he would be in danger.

  He lay awake, staring at the ceiling as his mind raced ahead to places and possibilities. What could happen? What was lying in wait? Would it be obvious? Or totally unforeseen? Most important, what should he do to avoid the danger?

  There was no way to know, and it kept him from getting much rest.

  At 6:00 a.m. sharp, his bedroom door burst open, making Theo sit up in surprise.

  “We’re late!” his older brother Joe exclaimed. “Get your tail out of bed!”

  Theo rubbed his eyes. Apparently, he had dozed off and was awoken by Joe’s unexpected whirlwind arrival.

  “Late for what?” Theo asked, groggy.

  “Your birthday present,” Joe replied as he tossed Theo a pair of khakis that had been neatly draped over a chair. “Oh yeah, happy birthday.”

  Theo caught the pants and started getting dressed, moving slowly. He was still half-asleep and not thinking straight.

  “How can we be late for a birthday present?” he asked.

  “It’s a surprise from Mom and Dad,” Joe replied. He reached into Theo’s closet and pulled out a button-down shirt for his brother. A bright blue button-down shirt.

  “I don’t like surprises,” Theo grumbled.

  “Too bad,” Joe shot back. “This was set up a long time ago, and we’re not gonna miss it.”

  He tossed the shirt to Theo, who dutifully began putting it on. It wasn’t until he’d gotten one arm in that he realized what he was doing and yanked the shirt off. “I’m not wearing that,” he said with finality. He was officially wide awake.

  “Wear whatever you want,” Joe said. “Just hurry. Mom and Dad went to church and want me to take you. I am totally cool with that because it’s gonna be great.”

  “Tell me what it is,” Theo demanded.

  “Not a chance,” Joe said adamantly. “I was sworn to secrecy. They want it to be a surprise. But I overslept and now we’re late. So move!”

  Joe left the room, and Theo sat staring at the bright blue shirt that lay crumpled on the floor, where it would stay. He jumped out of bed and found a deep green turtleneck that he quickly pulled over his head. He slipped on his pair of well-polished Top-Siders without bothering to put on socks first and ran out of the room.

  “Joe!” he called while hurrying down the stairs.

  Joe came out of the kitchen, slurping from a bowl of cereal.

  “I really don’t want to go,” Theo said. “I…I don’t like surprises.”

  Joe gave him a scoffing laugh and said, “You’ll like this one. Trust me.”

  “Tell me what it is.”

  “I can’t. Dad would kill me. And he’ll really kill me if we don’t get there in time, so let’s move!”

  “Stop saying kill,” Theo said.

  Joe plunked the bowl down on a table, yanked open a closet door, and pulled out a bright blue windbreaker. He started to put it on as…

  “No!” Theo yelled, and pulled the jacket away from him.

  “Dude, what is your problem?” Joe shouted angrily.

  “Don’t wear that jacket,” Theo commanded.

  Joe gave him a curious look, then reached for another jacket.

  “It’s your birthday, so I’ll cut you some slack,” he said, pointing a finger at his brother. “But whether you like it or not, we’re going. This is too good, and I get to go, too, so pull it together, all right?”

  Joe grabbed a set of car keys off the table and went for the front door.

  “You’re gonna thank me for getting your butt in gear,” he said. He gave his little brother a playful shove and left the house.

  Theo was in a panic. He ran back upstairs, found his cell phone, and entered Marcus’s number.

  There was no answer.

  “Turn on your phone, Marcus!” Theo yelled into his cell.

  He punched out of the call and dialed Lu.

  Joe laid on the car horn impatiently, making Theo jump.

  Lu didn’t answer either.

  “Why aren’t your phones on!” Theo exclaimed.

  Joe hit the horn again. Theo was breathing hard. His heart raced. The walls seemed to be closing in on him. He ran downstairs, grabbed a sweater from the closet, and sped out of the house.

  “What’s the holdup?” Joe asked impatiently as Theo got into the car. “You ought to be excited.”

  “Trust me, I’m plenty excited,” Theo said soberly.

  Joe pulled out of their driveway and the two drove off.

  “I don’t think we should do this,” Theo said nervously.

  “You don’t even know what it is,” Joe replied.

  “I know. But did you ever have an overwhelming feeling like something was going to happen? Something bad? It’s not like you can explain it, but you feel it in the very core of your being. You know the path you’re on is the wrong one, and the best thing you can do is cut your losses and just stay home.”

  Theo looked to Joe hopefully. Had he gotten through to his brother?

  “No,” Joe answered flatly.

  Theo sighed and dialed Marcus again.

  “Whoa!” Joe exclaimed, and hit the brakes.

  “What!” Theo shouted in fear while gripping the seat.

  The car skidded a few feet and screeched to a stop.

  “That yellow light turned really fast,” Joe said
. “I nearly rolled through a red. Getting a ticket is the last thing I need.”

  “Maybe not the last thing,” Theo said.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “Nothing. I really don’t want to do this, Joe. I’m not feeling so good. Can we please go home?”

  “No!” Joe exclaimed. “Stop being such a wuss. Just relax and go with it for once in your life, okay?”

  Theo sank back into the seat but kept his eyes on the road. He was ready to scream if anything even remotely dangerous crossed their path. Mostly he was looking for any red car that might be lying in wait, ready to speed out from a side street and crush them. His only consolation was that neither he nor Joe was wearing a bright blue shirt.

  But that didn’t mean somebody wearing a bright blue shirt wouldn’t be driving a red car that was closing in on them.

  Driving with Joe was the absolute last place on earth Theo wanted to be. He kept trying to call Lu and Marcus to let them know what was going on, even though there wasn’t anything they could do to help him. Whatever was going to happen was going to happen. Theo was on his own, and to make matters worse, his brother was right there with him. Joe could be in danger too.

  “Remember that fortune you got from that machine at Playland?” Theo asked tentatively. “The one that said you were going to be bitten by a dog, and then you were?”

  Joe laughed. “Yeah, that was wack.”

  “Yeah, well, I got a fortune, too, and it said life as I knew it would end on my fourteenth birthday. Remember?”

  Joe thought for a second, then looked at Theo and said, “That’s why you’re being all twitchy? You think that stupid fortune’s gonna come true?”

  “Well…yeah.”

  “It was a machine, idiot!” Joe exclaimed. “Those things can’t really see the future!”

  “What about Harry?” Theo asked. “His fortune said he was going to get some money, and he did!”

  “Coincidence!” Joe said in frustration. “Jeez, you’re like some kind of science nerd. Why are you suddenly believing in hocus-pocus?”

  Theo crossed his arms and pouted. “You’d be surprised at how much I believe in.”

  “Well, keep it to yourself,” Joe said. “Unless you want to get locked up or something.”

  They drove on in silence with Theo’s eyes laser-locked on the road ahead.

  A strong fall wind had kicked up, making the trees sway ominously. Theo glanced to the sky, expecting to see dark storm clouds. That might explain all the water Marcus had seen in the crystal ball. But the sky was clear and blue. Still, the tree branches swayed back and forth dramatically, as if waving a greeting to them. Or a good-bye.

  The trip took them along local roads to the northernmost border of Stony Brook. It was a wealthy part of town with large homes, each surrounded by acres of wooded property. On Sunday morning there was little traffic, which suited Theo just fine. He finally started to relax, but that didn’t last long.

  Joe put on the car’s directional signal to make a turn, and Theo finally understood where they were going.

  “The airport?” Theo asked, incredulous.

  “Almost there,” Joe replied.

  Theo wanted to cry.

  The Stony Brook airport was a small field that was used mostly for private planes and a few commuter flights. If you didn’t know it was there, you’d miss it. The final drive was along a half-mile road that was lined on either side by dense forest. The trees were bunched together so thickly that the strong wind barely touched them. It wasn’t until the car got to the end of the road and broke out from the trees onto the airport property that the wind hit them again.

  Theo’s heart raced.

  “This is the surprise?” he asked nervously. “We’re going up in a plane?”

  “No,” Joe said.

  Theo relaxed. There was no way he was going to fly in a plane.

  “We’re going up in a helicopter,” Joe said. “Surprise! Mom and Dad got you a sight-seeing tour of Stony Brook and New York City. And I get to go along for the ride. Happy birthday!”

  Theo grabbed the armrest of the car, trying his best not to puke.

  It was a jumbled-up movie that kept playing over and over in my head. As I lay in bed that night, I kept thinking about the images I had seen in Baz’s crystal ball.

  A crumpling section of red sheet metal.

  Tires bouncing on pavement.

  Water spraying.

  Theo in a bright blue shirt.

  People running and screaming.

  A guy with orange hair.

  It all played out in soft-focus bits and pieces. What was actually happening was impossible to understand, except that it didn’t look good. It was chaotic and violent and made no sense. It made me appreciate Baz’s true gift. He might not have been able to conjure images from the future; that was the job of the crystal ball. But he had the ability to interpret them. It made me wish I hadn’t solved the mystery of what had happened to him back in 1937 and released his spirit from Playland. It would have been nice if he’d stuck around a little longer to help figure out what Theo was in for.

  I finally drifted off to sleep. As much as my mind kept racing, my body was exhausted. It had been a wild adventure, and I was drained. I needed the rest because the next day might prove to be every bit as intense as the one in the story of the Oracle Baz. I had to be totally on my game.

  Unfortunately, my game didn’t start well.

  I overslept. I’d wanted to get up really early and head right over to Theo’s before he started his day. His birthday. But I slept right through my alarm. When I finally cracked open an eye, it was already six-thirty. Normally, that would be about four hours too early for me to get up on a Sunday, but not on that day. When I saw the time, I was hit with a shot of adrenaline that was better than any alarm clock. Suddenly, I was wide awake.

  I instantly grabbed my cell phone to call Theo. But the phone was dead.

  “No!” I said with frustration.

  How could I have been so stupid as to not have plugged it in the night before? I really must have been beat. I snagged the charging cord and plugged it into the phone and had to wait for what felt like a lifetime for the power to kick in. Once it did, I went right to the phone app…and my stomach dropped.

  There were five missed calls from Theo.

  “No, no, no!” I bellowed.

  Why do people always shout “no” when they see something they don’t like? It’s not like it’ll change anything. Mostly you see that in movies, but I guess it happens in real life, too, because I definitely shouted “no” a couple of times.

  And it didn’t change anything. I had still missed five calls.

  I immediately hit CALL BACK, but it went directly to his voice mail.

  “No!” I shouted with frustration.

  The shouting didn’t help that time either.

  My next call was to Lu, and it also went to voice mail.

  I didn’t shout “no” again. I guess I finally realized how futile it was. I kept my head and called the McLeans’ house number.

  Again, I got voice mail.

  It was six-thirty on a Sunday morning. Why wasn’t anybody home? The McLeans belonged to a church on the other side of town, and they often went to the earliest, crack-of-dawn Sunday service. Theo hated that. There was a good chance they were there. That realization made me feel a little better. Nothing can happen to you when you’re at church, right? Right??

  My last-ditch effort was to call Lu’s home phone. It rang and rang, and just when I was about to scream “no!” into the phone like a fool, somebody answered.

  “Hello?” said somebody who sounded half-asleep. I guess they weren’t used to getting phone calls this early on a Sunday morning.

  “Hi, sorry to c
all so early,” I said. “Is Annabella there?”

  “Marcus?” Lu replied.

  “Yes!” (I don’t mind saying “yes” when things go well. That’s perfectly acceptable.) “Theo’s been trying to call me, but my cell was dead,” I said quickly because there was no time for formalities. “Did he call you?”

  “I don’t know,” she said groggily. “Let me check.”

  She dropped the phone, and I waited for what felt like an hour before she got back. She was suddenly as wide awake and alert as I was.

  “He’s been calling me too,” she declared. “But I turn my phone off at night. House rules. Why is he up so early?”

  “Don’t bother trying to call back,” I said. “His cell goes to voice mail and nobody answers at his house. I’m thinking they all went to church.”

  “What do we do, Marcus?” she asked nervously.

  Up until that moment Lu had been rock-solid confident that we could control Theo’s fortune. Hearing the uncertain tension in her voice made me feel like at this point even she had doubts. We had planned to be with Theo the entire day, and we had already blown it.

  “Let’s go to his house,” I said. “If they went to church, they’ll be back soon.”

  “And what if they’re someplace else?” she asked.

  “Then I don’t know,” I said.

  “GET OUT OF THE car, Theo,” Joe demanded.

  “I’m not going,” Theo replied stubbornly.

  “This cost Mom and Dad a truckload of cash. You can’t chicken out.”

  “Oh, but I can.”

  “I don’t get it,” Joe said with frustration. “You always say you want to fly in a helicopter. This is your dream come true.”

  “Or my nightmare,” Theo shot back.

  “I’m not gonna fight with you,” Joe said, trying to contain his anger. “But I’m not gonna take the blame for this. Let’s go inside and talk to the pilot. If he can’t convince you to go, then we’ll call it off.”

  Theo thought about that and opened the car door.

  “I don’t care what the guy says,” Theo declared. “There’s nothing he can say that’ll make me fly today.”