Free The Key To the Kingdom by Jeff Dixon Page B

heard the voice of Kiran. She was talking to the people who were standing there looking in at the office, her tone similar to the one she’d used on the tour when he first met her the day before. Earlier in the afternoon when he’d made an excuse not to join her for dinner tonight, he had assumed she was not working today. Now she was here, just a few feet away, and he was hiding inside the office of Walt Disney.
    Seconds transformed into agonizing minutes as the group examined the office. Although unable to hear everything, Hawk found himself following Kiran’s voice as she pointed out some of the highlights of the office. While she spoke he imagined her saying, “Pay no attention to the idiot hiding in the corner!” Moments passed, Hawk heard laughter, and then the voices moved away from the window to explore further into the exhibit. He did not move. Unsure of how long to wait and uncertain who else might be in the area, he didn’t dare give up his hiding place yet.
    He tried to think through his predicament. Kiran must be leading a tour for VIPs, since the Disney Hollywood Studios was officially closed for the day. After the tour group looked around the exhibit, it would eventually exit into the Walt Disney Theatre for a private showing of the film. If he could time it just right, this would be the opportune moment to make his escape. He hadfound nothing and risked a lot. The risk was one he had been willing to take, but he found himself frustrated at the futility of his endeavor. Somewhere in the depths of his being, he’d thought he would find something to unlock the mystery of the key. Sadly, he had not taken the time to formulate a strategy for anything he was doing. He was now trapped inside the attraction. Failing to plan had been no plan at all.
    Finally Hawk decided it was time to go. Moving away from the wall with a quick glance over his shoulder toward the viewing window, he stepped toward the door. The door handle moved. It clicked and he backed up as the door silently swung open. Kiran stood in the doorway, hands jammed on her hips, her feet shoulder width. It was apparent that she had no intention of allowing him to escape past her.
    “Dr. Hawkes, step out of the office. Right now.”
    Hawk tentatively moved toward the doorway, not sure how to step out of the office since she was blocking the door. Once he was close enough, she clamped her hand around his arm above his elbow. Roughly dragging him through the door, she wheeled him around and slammed him into the set wall behind them both with a thud. In one motion she closed the door to the office and stepped up in front of him. Eyes flashing with anger, she thrust a finger toward his chin.
    “Tell me why I shouldn’t call security and have you arrested!”
    Hawk blew out a breath. “It’s a long story.”
    “You have sixty seconds to tell it,” she threatened.
    Nearly melting from the heat of her glare, Hawk gave her a rundown of the events of the last few days.

C HAPTER E LEVEN
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Day Four
Evening
     
    B Y THE TIME HAWK FINISHED the tale he was nearly breathless. He had tried to share every detail and hadn’t wasted time by pausing to inhale. Slowing he looked at Kiran, awaiting her reaction. Her eyes did not reveal what she was thinking as she stood silently processing the information. The silence was painfully deafening before Kiran obliterated it.
    “Let me make sure I understand this,” she said in an angry whisper. “Farren Rales, one of the most respected and legendary Imagineers in Disney history, is a friend of yours.”
    “Yes,” replied Hawk.
    “Be quiet!” Kiran snapped. “He asked you to meet him at a real-life Dwarf Cottage and gave you a key that he called the key to the kingdom. He gave you some vague instructions to take the key and do what Walt did after he left the Dwarf Cottage all those years ago. But you weren’t clear on what he meant, and Rales seems to have disappeared so you couldn’t ask him about