That became the real beginning of Travis McKenna’s return.
Not the roadside.
Not the hospital.
Not the arrest.
Coming home physically had taken one afternoon.
Coming home inside himself would take years.
Investigators eventually reconstructed how Travis escaped the camp without technically running away at all.
It had been his idea to convince Bennett Crowley to return to civilization.
Travis understood the preacher’s greatest weakness.
Vanity.
Bennett believed he possessed a spiritual truth that the outside world had rejected.
So Travis fed that belief carefully.
At first:
“People should hear you.”
Months later:
“You’ve changed me. Maybe others need to see what you can do.”
Later still:
“If you returned with a devoted follower, people couldn’t say you failed.”
Travis never pushed too hard.
He knew one moment of suspicion could get him killed.
It took years.
But eventually Bennett believed the fantasy completely.
He believed Travis had become proof of his spiritual power.
That was why, in August 2008, Bennett and Vanessa finally walked out of isolation with him.
They covered Travis’s face.
Put the synthetic wig on his head.
Even near civilization, Bennett still demanded control over his appearance and identity.
But Bennett made one mistake.
He brought Travis within sight of law enforcement.
When that patrol car stopped, Bennett tried to control the interaction.
He stepped between Travis and the officer.
Raised his voice.
