“I think he’ll get what’s coming to him.” I blinked away the vision of the two men barging into the house, shouting for Evan and demanding the money that he owed them. I was pulled back to the present as I felt the cashier's hand come over mine, squeezing it tightly. My eyes filled with tears and I took a deep breath, fighting with myself to stop them from falling.
“Good. That’s four dollars, eighty cents, honey.” I pulled out the cash and handed it over.
“There aren’t any jobs open here are there?” I asked as I bagged up my stuff. She shook her head.
“Not at the moment, sweetie. Claire Parker was in here just yesterday though putting an ad up for a domestic assistant. She runs a ranch just outside town. Some of their employees live on the ranch, so that might be an option if you’re looking for a place to stay.” She smiled kindly, and I let out a small laugh.
“Is it that obvious?” I glanced down at my crumpled clothes, knowing that I looked a mess.
“A little. The ad is on the bulletin board by the door. Her number should be on there.”
“Oh, I don’t have a phone,” I told her, dejected.
“You could head over there? It’s the Wild Oak Ranch. The number 3 bus takes you within a mile of the ranch, and the stop is just outside of here. The driver will be able to tell you where to get off.” My eyes dropped to her name badge.
“Thank you, Bonnie. I’m really grateful.”
“Anytime, honey. I hope you find whatever it is you are looking for.”
I smiled as I picked up my shopping and made my way outside and over to the bus stop. According to the schedule, the next and final bus of the day was at 7 p.m. Glancing at my wristwatch, I felt a tear slide down my cheek. The watch had been my mom’s. She had given it to me just before she’d died. Looking at it made my heart hurt, and I wished she was still here. Sighing, I shook my head and wiped the tear away.
It was just before 6 p.m., so I had some time to kill before the bus arrived. The light was fading, and I knew it would be dark soon. I contemplated waiting until morning to visit the ranch, but it wasn’t like I had anywhere else to go.
Sitting on a bench a little way up the sidewalk from the bus stop, I made myself some crackers and cheese, eating them while I waited. After I’d eaten, I pulled a small compact and hairbrush out of my bag. I did the best I could to make myself look a little better. I couldn’t do anything about the bruises and the split lip, but I brushed my hair, securing it in a hair tie to keep it off my face.
After watching the world go by for a while, the number 3 bus arrived, and I got on. I asked the driver to let me know when I needed to get off. He smiled kindly and nodded his head. Taking a seat, I wondered if everyone in this small town was as nice as the people I’d already encountered. I could only hope Claire Parker was as nice.
After a short ride, the bus came to a halt, and the driver turned in his seat. “Your stop, darlin’,” he called out in a Southern drawl, motioning with his head for me to get off.
Gathering my bag, I walked to the door. “Thank you,” I told him gratefully as I stepped off the bus.
“If you walk straight down that road, you’ll come to the Wild Oak Ranch.” I turned to see where he was pointing. Nodding, I thanked him again and began to walk away from the bus. “Be careful, darlin’,” he called from behind me and I turned and gave him a small wave. As the bus pulled away, the road fell dark and I swallowed nervously. Maybe this hadn’t been such a great idea. Maybe I should have waited until morning. Not having that option now, I walked quickly down the dark road. I’d been walking for about ten minutes when I felt the first spots of rain on my face. Glancing at the darkening sky, I could see heavy clouds had rolled in and the sky looked a strange color. It looked like a storm was coming. Great. Just what I needed. I walked faster as the rain began to fall, and as I rounded a corner, I saw a sign for the ranch. Breathing a sigh of relief, I headed up the oak-tree-lined driveway.
The rain was coming down heavier now and I was soaked to the skin. The water ran down my nose and dripped off the end. I looked down at my wet clothes. There was no way I could knock on a prospective employer's door looking like this. I needed to find somewhere to shelter so I could dry off. As I made my way to the end of the driveway, a large house came in to view. I stopped and stared. The house was beautiful. There was a large wraparound porch with steps up to the door, and a porch swing that sat off to the left. The lights were on and I could see people moving around inside. I quickly shrank back, not wanting to be seen by anyone. Tearing my eyes away, I glanced around looking for somewhere I could shelter from the rain. Noticing a large barn off to the left, I darted my eyes back to the house. Convinced no one had spotted me, I ran toward the door.
Once inside, I was grateful to see there was no one in here, no people anyway. There were stalls on either side of the barn and horses poked their heads over the half-doors, looking to see who had disturbed them. Some of the horses seemed quite agitated, obviously not happy with the weather outside. I was inclined to agree with them. Walking through the barn, I came across an empty stall and went inside. Throwing my bag in the corner, I sat down carefully on the straw that covered the floor, my bruised ribs screaming in protest. I was exhausted but needed to get out of my wet clothes. Reaching for my bag, I was surprised to find that everything inside was thankfully still dry. Pulling out a change of clothes, I got changed awkwardly, wincing at the pain in my side. Drying my hair off as best I could, I lay down and closed my eyes.
Ten minutes later and I was still awake. The rain, from what I could tell, had stopped, but a storm had set in and thunder rumbled in the air. I shivered and wrapped my arms around my tired body. I couldn’t believe this was how my life was playing out. How had I gone from a happy, carefree teenager, to someone sleeping on the floor of a barn, hundreds of miles from home? I let out a sigh. I guess I didn’t have a home anymore, or a family. Now I needed to build a new life for myself and I wondered if I could do that here, or whether I would always need to be running. Pulling my knees up to my chest I wrapped my arms around my legs and slowly drifted off to sleep.
Brody
“Another beer, anyone?” Josh asked, jumping up off the couch. A chorus of “yeses” sounded around the room. I heard him chuckle as he left the den and headed for the kitchen.
“The Cowboys need to get their shit together. They’re going to lose this game if they don’t start playing like a goddamn team,” I grumbled, watching as the Broncos scored a touchdown against the Dallas Cowboys.
“Have a little faith, Son,” my dad said. “It’s only the first quarter.” I nodded, my eyes drawn to the window where I watched a flash of lightning light up the night sky.
“Storms getting worse,” I said, my head gesturing toward the window.
My dad nodded. “There’ll be some tidying up to do around the place tomorrow if it carries on.” I was about to reply when Josh came flying into the room, the door banging against the wall.
“What the…” I began, but Josh cut me off.
“The stables are on fire,” he exclaimed, his eyes wide.
I leapt from my seat, along with Dad and Mason, and rushed out of the den, meeting Mom and Libby in the hallway.
“Did someone say the stables are on fire?” my mom asked, her face a picture of panic.