As soon as he finished inside, Conner emerged through the airport’s automatic doors and joined his friends at the curb.
“The bag’s been checked under my name,” he said. “Apparently it’s completely legal to travel with a sword and an axe as long as they’re checked. That’s America for you.”
“What is checked?” Jack asked.
“It means they’ll stow our luggage under the plane before we leave, and then when we arrive, it’ll come out on a conveyor at the baggage claim.”
Conner’s friends from the fairy-tale world stared at him like he was speaking in tongues.
“We have absolutely no idea what any of that means, but we’ll take your word for it,” Goldilocks said.
“Does everyone have their tickets and IDs?” Conner asked the group.
Bree, Jack, Goldilocks, and Red held up the tickets they had printed at the hospital and the identification cards they’d been assigned. Unfortunately, traveling with friends from another dimension meant that airport security would be a challenge. If they’d had more time Conner could have come up with better IDs that resembled his friends more, but given their time crunch, they had to work with what they had.
“Will someone notice these aren’t our actual identities?” Jack asked.
“I’m praying the TSA officer won’t notice,” Conner said. “We’ll get into serious trouble if we’re caught, so if anyone asks, Jack is Dr. Robert Gordon, Goldilocks is Charlotte Gordon, and Red is Bree’s cousin, Amanda Campbell.”
“Bree, would you happen to have a more attractive relative I could impersonate?” Red asked.
“Sorry, that’s all I’ve got,” Bree said. “Amanda’s ID has gotten me into dozens of concerts I was too young for. I hope it brings you the same luck.”
Conner nervously eyed the airport. “We’re going to need more than luck to pull this off,” he said.
“Conner, this is too risky,” Charlotte said from inside the car. “Why don’t Bob and I just come with you?”
“I need you guys to keep an eye on the characters from my short stories,” he said. “Besides, the five of us have a long history of magical dilemmas. We’ll know what to do if things get out of hand. We’ll call you if we need backup.”
Charlotte closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. She knew Conner and his friends were more than capable of handling themselves, but it didn’t make it any easier knowing that her son might be walking into danger.
“Please be safe,” she said. “If you find your sister, let us know as soon as possible.”
“We will,” Conner said. “I promise.”
Conner hugged his mother through the car window and led his friends into the airport. At first glance, Jack, Goldilocks, and Red were completely overwhelmed. Travelers brushed and bumped into them from all directions. Everywhere they looked was another flashing screen that displayed departure times and announced delays. The commotion was too much for Hero, and he began to fuss.
“Here, give him to me,” Goldilocks said, and took the newborn from Jack. “There, there, no need to cry. Who’s Mama’s good boy? Who’s Mama’s good boy?”
It tickled everyone to watch Goldilocks interact with her son. Ever since Hero had been born, Goldilocks had been a different person altogether. The infamous fugitive and swashbuckling swordswoman was now the queen of baby talk and changing diapers at record-breaking speed. However, motherhood hadn’t softened Goldilocks one bit. On the contrary, being a mother had made her tougher than ever—especially when someone came between her and her child.
“Goldie, are you sure taking Hero to New York is a good idea?” Red asked. “Babies need lots of attention, you know.”
“We’re still taking you, aren’t we?” Goldilocks snapped.
Red raised her hands defensively. “I’m just suggesting you leave him with Charlotte while we’re gone. Caring for an infant and searching for a friend is quite a handful.”
“Absolutely not,” Goldilocks said. “I refuse to be one of those women who puts her entire life on hold because she’s a mother. I’m more than capable of fulfilling my responsibilities to my child without abandoning my friends.”
“Sorry I asked,” Red said. “Personally, I would have hired a nanny before purchasing a cradle.”
Conner guided his friends through the crowded airport to the long security line. He stood on his toes to see over all the heads and took a good look at the TSA officer working the front. The officer was an older man who scowled at all the travelers as if a piece of sour candy were stuck in his mouth. He thoroughly checked every person’s ID and ticket before allowing them to pass.
“Oh crap, he’s good at his job!” Conner bemoaned. “Bree and I will be fine with our student IDs, but I don’t know how to sneak you guys past him. It would be so much easier if Alex were here. She could just zap him with a magic spell and be done with it.”
“Looks like we’ll have to zap him with a bit of your magic instead,” Jack said.
Conner sighed. “Jack, I appreciate the sentiment, but this is not the time for another pep talk.”
“I’m being serious! We don’t have your sister’s talents, so you have to use your own. Imagine this was one of your stories and your characters were in this exact predicament. What would you have them do or say to get past the officer?”
Conner scratched his chin and walked in a circle as he thought about it. He appreciated the encouragement, but the consequences of failure were more severe than his friends could imagine. It took creativity just to survive the Otherworld—he would need a stroke of genius to manipulate it.
“I’ve got an idea,” he said. “If the officer notices your IDs are fake, you’ll need to distract him. Say something completely unexpected that’ll make him forget what he’s thinking about.”
“Oh, I know!” Red said. “I’ll say I’m a queen in another dimension!”
“That’ll only make things worse,” Conner said. “I’ve got a line for each of you—but you have to say it exactly as I tell you.”
He whispered the diversions into his friends’ ears and hoped they would do the trick.
“We shouldn’t stand together in line,” Bree said. “If he notices the IDs are fake, it’ll look less suspicious if we’re spaced out.”
“Great idea,” Conner said. “All right, here goes nothing!”
Conner and Bree entered the line first. Once five passengers had lined up behind them, Jack followed. Goldilocks waited for six passengers to line up behind her husband, then joined the line with Hero. Red was a little confused about how a line worked. She let over a dozen people cut in front of her before realizing she was supposed to wait behind them and follow them to the officer.
Finally, after forty very anxious minutes, Conner and Bree reached the front and presented their tickets and identification to the TSA officer. He read their boarding passes and looked them up and down with the same scowl he had worn all morning.
“Are you two together?” the officer asked.