Episode 12.3

Seeing the look of fear on Charlie's face, Gallo encircles me in a mighty bear hug, deliberately holding me close so I can feel the pressure of his gun against my chest.

"Fuck you, Oliver," he whispers in my ear.

"I guess you found what you needed," DeSanctis adds, in the same jovial accent.

"Of course he found it," Gallo says, uncovering Wednesday's tape in my hand. That's why he's the best Disney employee. Isn't that true...Steven? Him." She says his name with her rodent smile, then extends her open hand between them. Now let's see what you got there, mate...

I turn to Charlie, thinking about the gun in the back of my pants. Directly behind him and Gillian, DeSanctis moves even closer to them. I can't see his hands. Charlie's stomach lurches forward, as if someone is supporting something on his back.

"I don't want to interrupt," says the receptionist, puzzled, "did they say they belonged to the department?"

"Don't worry, we're all friends here," Gallo teases, never taking his eyes off me. Now let's take a look at that tape.

But I don't give it to him. Rooster rips it out of my hands. I'm not resisting too much…not with a gun stuck in Charlie's back.

—Man, why did you only take Wednesday's? Gallo asks, reading the day on his back. I thought.

Obviously, but why did you say that we also needed the tapes of the whole week... - Pointing to the receptionist, he adds -. Can he help us find the missing ones?

The Little Mermaid, with her nerves on the surface, begins to panic.

"I'm sorry, sir, but there's nothing I can do until I see his ID."

"It's just that I left it in the other jacket," says Gallo. But you can use our friend Steven's.

"Actually, I can't do it," the woman says.

-Of course he can. She's already allowed you to take the tape that—" "I can't do it, sir. And since this is a restricted access area, if you don't have your identification, I'll have to ask you to leave. "We're just looking for the rest of the tapes," Gallo says, trying to keep things light.

"Have you heard what I just said, sir?" I wish it would go away.

Rooster clenches his jaw. His voice is pure sandpaper.

"And I'd like you to be a good employee and get us what we came for."

"Okay, she's done," the receptionist says as she picks up the phone receiver. You can continue this discussion safely. I'm sure they will love it...

Gallo violently pulls her secret service card from her and holds it up in front of the woman's nose.

"Here she has my ID. Now please hang up the phone and get us those tapes.

The woman's eyes go from the card to Gallo, and then to the card.

"I'm sorry, but you'll have to speak to a supervisor..."

"I don't think you understand," says Gallo. He pulls the gun from her jacket and aims it directly between the receptionist's eyes. Hang up that fucking phone and find the tapes.

The receptionist puts down the receiver and her tears stream down her face.

"I have a four-year-old boy..." "The tapes!" rooster yells.

The woman's hands are shaking visibly when she raises them to the height of her head.

"They're in the other room," she stammers.

"Show us where," Gallo demands. She nods to DeSanctis and adds, He goes with her.

Pushing Charlie and Gillian aside, DeSanctis walks between them, his pistol drawn. When the receptionist sees the gun, the tears flow faster.

"A Mickey Mouse smile, I want a nice Mickey Mouse smile," DeSanctis warns her, forcing her to hold onto her as he pushes her toward the French doors at the back of the room.

"Come here…" Gallo says, grabbing me by the front of my shirt and pulling me toward Charlie and Gillian. I run into my brother. Our eyes meet.

"The tapes aren't there, are they?" Charlie asks with a look.

He ran his hand through the back pocket of his pants. Gillian notices the movement and smiles.

"Stay," Gallo says as I regain my balance and come to stand next to Charlie. Gallo points his gun at me, then at Charlie, but not at Gillian, who is staring at the ground.

-Are you OK? she whispered.

-What have you said? Rooster asks.

"I asked him if he was okay," I say.

Rooster laughs.

-That?

But Gallo can't stop laughing.

His mouth opens from ear to ear. "You don't know yet, do you?"

-What is he talking about?

"You're serious, right?"

Not really...

"...which leads us finally to DACS Central, the brain of the whole body," an animated young voice announces as the DACS door is flung open. Behind us, a blond guy in a flowery shirt leads a group of twenty tourists into the already packed reception area.

Gallo hides the gun behind his back. The group advances, turning their heads to take a look inside. As they walk in, a stout woman in pink shorts and a matching peaked cap walks past me, Gillian, and Charlie—without even realizing it—and leads the entire group directly between us and Gallo.

"Sorry, are we interrupting?" the blond guy asks in perfect tour guide tone.

-Yeah. They're interrupting," Gallo replies with a growl. He stares at us through the crowd. He is prepared to take the gun from him, but he must know what will happen if he does.

"Okay," the guide jokes as we start to back up. Guests go through...

"Get the fuck out of my way," Gallo says, shoving him violently. He tries to run towards us, but the group is too tight.

Charlie looks towards the door. At any moment DeSanctis will discover that there is nothing in those boxes...

Go ahead, I gesture to Charlie. He bolts for the door.

-Do not move! Gallo yells, raising the gun.

That's all it takes.

-A weapon! a woman yells. The crowd breaks up, everyone runs and screams. The stampede has begun. The three of us flew towards the gate followed by the maddening crowd.

When we reach the entrance, a shot is heard. The glass in the door shatters into a thousand pieces that scatter across the carpeted floor. Charlie speeds along trying to push his way through the chaos of screaming tourists. Behind me, Gillian runs in a crouch, clinging to my shirt. No one has been hurt. The room empties into the hallway, and screams reverberate along the concrete tunnel.

-Do not stop! he yelled, pushing Charlie away. We are thrown out of the mass of tourists and run towards the neck of the tunnel. My feet hit hard against the concrete surface. Charlie looks back to make sure I'm okay. That's when he sees Gillian, who's still clinging to my shirt. Her face says it all. "Loses the."

"That?"

"Loses the!"

Gillian lets go of my shirt and continues running alone. Without stumbling... without falling behind. She runs. Her pale blue eyes search for a way out. She has her mouth open in a scared expression. Charlie thinks that everything is clear. She isn't.

"Let's get out of here," I tell him.

Charlie clenches his jaws and speeds up the run. As we head down the tunnel, she's only a few steps ahead of me. He is faster than that.

"Charlie, run!" - I insist.

"Stay…with me," she says, cutting between Pocahontas and a Dracula from the Haunted Mansion.

-By the stairs! Gillian yells as doors shoot past on either side of the tunnel.

But Charlie keeps running. I don't understand what he's up to until the tunnel begins to curve to the left. Behind us, the shouts of the crowd fade until they almost fade into the distance, quickly replaced by the echoing footsteps of whoever is chasing us. I turn to see what's going on, but because of the archway in the hallway, we can't see our pursuers. Which also means they can't see us.

-Now...! Charlie says, turning sharply to the right into a small hallway. As he reaches the end he yanks open the metal door and holds it open for us. Inside, a yellow-painted staircase points upward. I lead the way up, followed by Gillian and Charlie bringing up the rear. Except for the steps two at a time, spiraling to the top. Gillian does what she can, but she's not that fast.

-Move on! Charlie yells. He brushes past her and continues up the stairs quickly, placing himself between Gillian and me. She touches her shoulder and urges me to continue.

"I'm going as fast as I can," I tell him.

Reaching the upper landing, we both stop before a closed metal door. Our breathing is agitated. Charlie's more agitated than mine. It's been almost three days since he last took his medication.

"Are you sure you're...?"

"I'm fine," she insists.

But when I put a hand on the metal bar that will open the door to the stairs, Charlie says two words that, in all the time I've known him, he has never said.

-Be careful.

I nod and, with a light push, open the door. Thanks to all the curves in the tunnel we have no idea where we are. I stick my head out but I can't see practically anything. The room is dark, though it appears to be empty. We are in a back room... or maybe in a small room. I slip inside and look for some references that can guide me. I watch over my shoulder as Charlie and Gillian close the door to the stairwell and the rest of the light fades. At first I'm completely blind, but as my eyes adjust to the darkness I catch a glimpse of a flash of white light right ahead of us. It's coming from the other side... another door.

Walking like Frankenstein, both arms outstretched, I feel the wall and move toward the door. I turn the knob and we pass into the next room, which is equally dark. This time, however, there is someone in...

BANG!

A shot rings out and I duck as fast as I can. Behind me a body hits the ground. I turn and reach out... but I can't find Charlie.