by CeeCee James
“Oh,” I said, “You must mean Clint.”
“Yes dear, only you need to be a bit more careful.”
“What do you mean?”
“The mayor is telling everyone it was a heart attack while unloading your hay.”
“Hay? He didn’t unload any hay at my place.”
Two things happened simultaneously. The first was a flush of indignation that rolled over my face. The second were prickles rising on the back of my neck. People were talking about me. And not in a good way.
Years of being gossiped about, complete with fingers pointing, people bending their heads to whisper, and shocked gazes coupled with smothering hugs squeezed my heart tight. Not again. This couldn’t be happening again. I’d fought for anonymity for years. I coveted it.
Strawberries and green grass. I’d do anything to protect it.
“Okay, I’ll be careful,” I whispered. I glanced at the exit, wanting to run away.
“I’m not trying to worry you, dear, but you need to be. That’s the mayor’s cousin. He doesn’t take lightly to any offense against his family.”
“What’s the offense? I’m not sure I understand?”
She leaned close to whisper and brought that strange chemical odor that was mixed with the scent of spaghetti. “They say you’re telling people it was drugs.”
People? What people? Instead of defending myself, I nodded, needing to end the conversation. “I’m not talking to anyone about him. I’ll make sure it stays that way.”
She handed me a dust rag and sent me out to check the shelves. I walked back to the corner she indicated, a Lot eight, and started dusting. It was an antique toy booth. I could feel tears well in my eyes as I straightened the old doll dresses and dusted around miniature iron cookstoves. But when I came to the toy airplane, I lost it. This toy was hitting too close to home, to my nightmare. I had to call Mom.
I found Polly at the counter and asked for a quick bathroom break.
“Of course.” She eyed me shrewdly. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, but my sniffle gave me away. At her permission, I ran for the back room where the bathroom was hidden behind a load of boxes and old furniture left to be sorted.
Fingers crossed and a lump in my throat, I dialed. I almost broke with relief when the call went through.
“Hi, Mom,” I said in a hushed tone.
She didn’t beat around the bush. “Chelsea, I’m on my way out to the job site. Are you okay? You’re worrying me.”
“Not so great right now.” I squeezed my eyes tight. I couldn’t tell her. I had to be strong.
But I so desperately wanted to release the pain. The memories.
What if it was my fault?
That tiny guilty fear.
And the second fear, its brother… why was I saved?
They were questions that haunted me for months after the incident. In fact, every night of my eighth year I went to bed convinced that I was going to die.
Until my appendix surgery, when I woke up out of anesthesia, my head foggy and my mouth tasting like a chemical wasteland. I realized then I had to live. And I had to live a life worthy of all the huge loss in my past.
Part of being worthy was not burdening my mom again.
“What’s the matter, Chelsea?” Mom asked again softly. I realized she was stopping everything to give me time. I could hear the compassion in her voice, wrapped in memories of freshly baked cookies, clean sheets and a cold wash cloth on my forehead while she dragged the little TV into my room when I was sick.
She was the best. She’d had to raise me all alone. She was the epitome of a mom.
I swallowed again and then grabbed a towel to wipe under my eyes. “It’s just this new job. So many things. It gets overwhelming.”
There was a silence. One beat. Two. Did she believe me? Was she remembering the past incident too?
When she responded her voice was like a professional poker player. She never exposed what she was thinking. “Try to get to bed earlier tonight. You’re going to be okay. Are you eating? I had a care package sent to you from our favorite online store. It should be arriving today. I wanted to celebrate your new job. I’m proud of you.”
I chucked the towel as I stared at my puffy-eyed reflection in the mirror. “Thanks, Mom. I just needed to hear that.”
And then she slipped. “You are a survivor, Chelsea. Remember that.”
My bottom lip trembled. I pressed it tight. Finally, I nodded and gulped out, “Mom. You are the best.”
“Okay, sweetie. I love you. I need to let you know if you can’t reach me, don’t worry. Reception is getting even more sketchy over here with the storm that’s coming. I promise I’ll stay safe. And you stay safe as well.”
“I will. I love you, too.” I hung up and splashed cold water on my face. I patted my cheeks dry and then pointed fiercely to my reflection. “You are a survivor. Never forget that.”
Feeling a bit heavy and emotionally wobbly, I headed back to my dusting job. The rest of the day passed weirdly. There was one point that I could have sworn I saw two customers give me a weird stare and ask Polly who I was. After she told them I was Chelsea the new employee, they sent me furtive glances and turned their backs to me while whispering.
How had this rumor started with Clint’s death being pinned on me? The only person I’d spoken about the overdose with was Sharon. Had she told everyone?
I tried to pretend I wasn’t feeling miserable as I finished my shift. Finally it was time to clock out and go meet Emma’s bus.
Back at the car, the darn engine did its crazy new shake, rattle, and roll so I blasted the music again to cover the noise. I’d have to figure out what was wrong at some point, but today was not that day.
As I pulled into the driveway, the mailman could be seen coming down the road. Mom said the package should be here, so this was perfect timing. I slammed the door and walked out to the mailbox.
I realized then that we hadn’t had any mail yesterday. That was odd. I’d personally never had a day go by before without some type of junk mail.
The mailman left Sharon’s mailbox and approached ours. I was surprised to see how fast he was coming. His car dragged a plume of dust, and he didn’t appear to be slowing down any. Maybe he didn’t see me? I stepped out from behind the mail box to be sure I was seen.
The mail truck flew by me without him giving me the slightest glance. I watched him leave, mouth hanging. Not only was there no care package, but there was no mail. Again? Well, that’s just great. I guess I’d have to stop by the post office tomorrow. Maybe the package was too big.
Frustrated, I stomped toward the house. I let out Jasper, who proceeded to jump on me, pushing me back into the wall. I needed to figure this dog out or he was going to knock me over in his eagerness to greet me. As he licked my hands I realized that right now his love was exactly what I needed. I waited until he calmed down a bit and then pulled him into a bear hug and buried my face into his fur.
His scent was warm and clean, and he squirmed around until he could fawn over my face. Too late, I realized he was cleaning my tears. He breathed a hot doggy smile on me, and I stroked his neck.
“I love you too, Jasper. You ready to go outside?”
I grabbed him by the collar and got him out to his lead, and then refilled his water bowl. His food bowl was empty again. Concerned, I gave him another scoop. Then, I started dinner and prepared Emma’s snack.
A short while later, the bus pulled up. Emma jumped off the bus while I watched from the front door. She bounded into the house and into the bathroom, while I released an eager Jasper from the lead to go greet his girl.
“Hi, Emma!” I called as I came inside and shut the front door.
“Hullo!” She swept past with lightning energy and into the kitchen, where she inhaled her crackers and milk and was already running toward her room before I had a chance to remove all her books from her backpack.
“Did you have a good day at school?” I called
after her.
“Uh huh!” she hollered.
A moment later, her door slammed. I would have pursued more of a conversation with her but I’d come across an envelope in her backpack that was addressed to Chelsea Lawson.
I pulled it out, very confused. Why would she have an envelope with my name on it? Carefully, I slid my finger under the seal and opened it, then pulled out the folded note paper.
At the top was the school’s heading. It was from her teacher, and in simple script it said.
Ms. Lawson, I understand you are watching Emma Miller for the week. We have a little issue I need to go over with you. Can you meet me in the classroom during lunchtime tomorrow?
After that was his name, Jason Frank, and the room number.
I stared at it, suddenly very concerned at what this might bring.
Just then Rosy mooed and Jasper barked. I didn’t need any more signs to prove that I was definitely in over my head.
Chapter 15
As I stared at the letter, I realized that Emma had been in her room for a while. Quiet. Concern prompted me to hurry and check on her.
I walked down the hall where I heard a little voice chiming in adamantly, “Jimmy, you better let that go. We don’t bite heads. Or beds.”
What kind of game was she playing? I tapped on the door and then cracked it open to peek inside. “Emma, are you okay?”
She looked up from where she sat in front of a dollhouse. “Oh, hi, Chelsea.”
I felt better just seeing her. She wasn’t dyeing something blue or creating some mastermind scheme to conquer the world. “What are you doing? Playing with your dollhouse?”
“Uh huh,” she answered and held out a little doll to show me. “Me and Jimmy and Rose.”
“Ah, how fun. Is that Rose?”
She rolled her eyes like I’d just asked if the sky was pink. “No.”
“Uhh, Jimmy?” I chucked out.
“This is the dad,” she corrected. “And that’s the mom.” She reached in and pulled out another doll.
Not Jimmy or Rose. Okay, maybe she had a few more invisible friends? Were these Freckles’s friends? Should I continue to ask questions or was that discouraging creativity? I truly didn’t get this parent gig. I couldn’t believe Tilly said this would be easy.
I tentatively tried again. “Can Jimmy see me?”
She shook her head in the negative. I honestly was stumped. “Where is he?” I finally asked.
“In there.” Her tiny finger pointed into the dollhouse.
I entered the room, navigating around a set of blocks and a stack of books, and then leaned down to peer inside.
Whiskers and beady eyes stared back at me. I screamed and stumbled back.
“What are you doing? Don’t scare him.” She reached inside and stroked the animal.
I peeked in again. It was a rabbit. Two rabbits, to be exact. They sat in the dollhouse living room, ears straight up, noses wiggling a mile a minute. While I watched, one of the bunnies picked up a chair and started nibbling on it.
“Uh, how long have they been here?” I asked as my heart finally settled back into a normal rhythm.
“All day. I brought them in this morning. I thought they might be bored in their cage.”
One bunny finished its nibbling on the little chair. Now that it had my attention, I saw the chair was already missing three legs. “Come on, let’s bring the bunnies back to their cage. They look like they might be tired.”
I scooped up one heavy bunny, supporting his hind legs, while Emma did the same to the other one. We carried them to the barn and put them in their cage.
While out there, I saw that Rosy had returned to her stall. Thank goodness. I used the rake trick to shut the cow’s gate when I heard a weird noise. It was an animal, but one that was low and stressed. It was then I noticed one of the goats hadn’t gotten up from where it had been laying this morning.
“That’s Daisy,” Emma said as she fed her bunnies.
Immediately, I knew something was wrong. I fished my phone from my pocket and called the emergency vet’s number that Tilly had left for me.
“Hello?” A deep masculine voice answered.
“Hi, I’m here at Tilly Miller’s farm. I know nothing about animals, but one of the goats hasn’t gotten up from this morning.”
There was no hesitation. “I’ll be right out.”
He hung up before I gave him my address. He must know this place.
I sent Emma to the house to take a shower while I waited for the vet. I had no idea what to do as I hovered around the stall door, anxiously peering in. Would I disturb the poor animal even more if I went inside?
I spotted a small butter container on the shelf and filled it with water, then brought it in to Daisy.
The goat’s eyes were closed, and it was breathing slowly. I suddenly felt mortifyingly under qualified to take care of a house plant, let alone anything with a heartbeat. If anything happened to this animal under my watch, I’d be crushed. Hurry, vet! Hurry!
Softly, I stroked her forehead. “You’re going to be okay. I’m here.”
After briefly opening her eyes, Daisy ignored the water. I sat quietly to keep her company. Even Rosy seemed to realize something was wrong. She didn’t make much noise other than to rustle in her stall.
A while later, I finally heard the crunching of tires down the driveway. There was a car door slamming and then footsteps. I was about to leave my patient to let him know where I was but I could hear footsteps approaching. He must have assumed I was in the barn.
“Hello?” the man called when entering.
“Back here!”
He approached me, carrying a bag. “Hi, there,” he said as he pushed up his flannel shirtsleeve and opened the stall door.
“I’m so glad you’re here! This is Daisy.”
He squatted down next to the goat. First he checked her gums and then her eyes. “How long has she been like this?”
“I noticed she seemed mellow this morning when I opened the gate. But I thought maybe she’d just woken up.” I cringed. “I’m sorry I’m so dumb. I’m new to animals.”
“You did the right thing to call me.”
Gently, he checked the animal over. “She’s pregnant?”
I swallowed and stared. “I don’t know. Is she?”
“Yup. Must be a big baby because he’s stuck.”
My whole world shifted right then. I felt terrible. I wished the ground would open and swallow me up. I felt like a failure.
“If you don’t have experience with animals then you couldn’t have known,” he said, opening up his bag. He pulled on a pair of gloves that went clear to his elbows and got out some cleanser. He squirted a few pumps and then went to check the animal.
The poor goat let out a gust of air.
“Little tangle in here, but the baby is fine.”
“How can you tell?”
“Little stinker tried to nip my fingers,” he said with a grin. “Might have to call this one Jaws. And the other one kicked at me. He must be Kangaroo Jack.”
The vet was teasing, but I was still shocked. “There are two?” I asked.
“Usually it’s fine, but in this case the twins were trying to race each other out first. Always causes some trouble.” His face scrunched, and he adjusted his arm. “You go back in there. You’ll get your turn in a minute. Now you, come here, little guy. Let’s get this show on the road. Your caretaker is worried.” His piercing blue eyes caught me then. “And what was your name again?”
“Chelsea.”
“Chelsea, hmmm. When I was a kid I had a crush on a rock star named Chelsea.” He hummed a few bars, making me smile. He pushed around a bit more. “My name’s AJ.” Then he addressed the goat again. “All right, love, it’s all situated. Why don’t you give a push?”
She seemed to know things were better because she grunted.
“That’s right, keep her coming.” The vet guided a tiny hoof out. The second one followed.
“Oh, good job, momma!” I said, patting her neck before bending down to give her a kiss. I have to admit, I teared up a bit.
“You have a towel?” AJ asked.
I had no idea if we did so he snatched up a handful of straw and began massaging the baby animal. Momma goat turned to sniff the baby. I swear she gave a chuckle in pleasure.
Moments later, she strained again.
“Chelsea?” A little voice called urgently.
I looked up, happy as anything. “Look, Emma! Our goat had a baby!”
Emma licked her bottom lip. “Chelsea, someone’s here. He’s scaring me.”
Chapter 16
Emma shifted nervously. “He says we’re going to have to move.”
“What?” I leaped to my feet, sending straw scattering.
“He’s in the driveway. He asked where my mom was, and then he told me I better get to packing because we were getting kicked out of the house. He wants you to come talk to him.”
I stared, open mouth, before looking back at the goat and the vet.
“You go figure this out. We’re fine here,” said AJ.
Stunned to my core, I ran out the barn and down the pebbled path. Rounding around the side of the house, I saw a black SUV sitting in the driveway. And there, leaning against the hood like the evil twin of the Jolly Green Giant, was a huge man.
He frowned as he saw me coming. “Special Agent Scarn.” He flashed a badge from inside his jacket. He didn’t wait for me to read it, and quickly slipped it away as his forehead creased in with a serious, no-nonsense expression.
“Can I help you?” I gasped.
“It’s my understanding that you rent this place from a Douglas Glass?”
I’d heard that name before, but I still wasn’t sure. No need to confirm any specifics until I learned more from Tilly.
He didn’t care that I hadn’t verified it. “Your lease is being revoked.”
“What? Why?” She was going to have to leave the home she was so proud of? What about all of her animals?