by J. N. Pack
I owe Caroline Eccles and Noemi Vallone a debt of gratitude. These two ladies have worked with me on this book from day one and I will never be able to thank them enough for all they have done to help me get this book to you guys. I really do appreciate all the hard work, time, and effort put into this book. I had a dream and you ladies helped me make it better. Until next time I wish you all peace, love and good fortune.
~ J.N. Pack
Chapter 1
When I woke up to my door being kicked in, I knew Miranda had finally crossed some line she couldn’t come back from. I did what I did best, shut my mouth and stayed out of the way. I could hear her drunken slurs from down the hall. There were things thrown and lots of screaming and then finally the zap of a taser. She cried out and then there was silence. Damn Mommy Dearest must’ve really fucked up this time. I walked to the door to watch them throw her ass in the backseat of a cop car and watched a forensics team take pictures of the car, that I just realized had a smashed front end, I was not surprised at all by any of this.
“You don’t look surprised by this?” a lady in a blue blazer and black dress pants askes as she approaches me. My eyes darted to her and shook my head no. She stuck her hand out like she expected me to shake it. Yeah, no I’m not doing that. I looked down at her hand and back at her face as I crossed my arms across my chest. I guess I made her nervous because she wiped the sweat from her palms on her pants. “My name is Jessica Lawson. You can call me Jessica or Mrs. Lawson, whichever you are more comfortable with. I’m with DCFS, the Department of Children and Family services.” she continued. “Your mother….”
“Miranda.” I said bluntly
“Miranda did some things last night and she is going to be away for quiet sometime.” Mrs. Lawson stated.
“Hmmmm.” I laughed under my breath and asked, “What the hell did she do this time?”
Mrs. Lawson continues, “Harper…”
Irritated I cut her short, “Fallon, my name is Fallon.” I knew she meant well, but I wasn’t having the bull today.
“Fallon...Miranda was involved in a hit and run last night. She hit Malcolm Boyd and Makayla Minor last night around midnight.” Mrs. Lawson informed me.
I honestly felt nothing. I went to a public school that I could disappear in. There were over seven hundred students. I didn’t know Malcolm or Makayla. I wasn’t stunned by what my mother had done, it didn’t surprise me. She was always drunk. She was high more often than not. None of this shook me.
“I need you to pack your belongings and come with me.” she stated bluntly. I guess she was done trying to coddle me.
2 hours later
She still hadn’t mentioned where she was taking me and I hadn’t bothered to ask. I knew we were going towards Birmingham, but that's all I knew. She quietly asks, “What happened to your eye?
Staring out the window, I roll my eyes and ask, “What do you care?”
She was quiet for a bit longer. I was starting to get bored, so I said, “Miranda was not a happy drunk. Just so happens I get blamed for everything.”
She looks at me and says, “It's healing nicely. Did she do this often?”
I rolled my eyes and shrugged in response. She just turned her attention back to the road. Life had not been all biscuits and gravy for me, but I had a plan and at eighteen I was out of here. We passed a sign that said Mountain Brook, Alabama. Home of the Mountain Brook Fighting Jaguars...Population 20,381. Mrs. Lawson says, “We’re almost there.”
I honestly didn’t care where I was going because it couldn’t be any worse than where I had been.
Mountain Brook was beautiful, but I don’t think it’s anything like where I came from. The houses were huge. The cars cost more than…well I really don’t know. Let’s just say Dorothy has definitely left Kansas. I felt like I was in the Wizard of Oz. It most certainly did not feel like my reality. We pulled up to the gates of a house that was almost as big as the trailer park I lived in. I let a small gasp slip as I stared in disbelief. This has got to be a joke. I was not Will Smith and Mrs. Lawson was not a fairy godmother. I still didn’t have much to say to Mrs. Lawson, but I did want to know where the hell I was.
Just as I was about to ask, the front door we were about to walk up to swings open and I immediately knew where I was. The woman was older than my mother but could have passed for a healthier version of my mother. It was my Aunt Miriam and Uncle Matthew. I hadn’t seen them since I was four. My aunt Miriam called DCFS on Miranda for abusing me. I nervously chew on my tongue ring. This could not be real.
Other Books by J.N. Pack
Harlow & Axel: Anniston Secrets Book One
https://www.amazon.com/Harlow-Axel-Anniston-Secrets-Book-ebook/dp/B084L3QXVM/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=JN+pack&qid=1590712989&sr=8-1
Kings of Mountain Brook Academy
https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Mountain-Brook-Academy-J-N-ebook/dp/B085BVCLFK/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=JN+pack&qid=1590713117&sr=8-2
Feel Free to Follow J.N. Pack on Social Media:
Facebook…
https://www.facebook.com/JN-Pack-104566287792296/
Facebook Readers Group…
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1228119297520248/?source_id=104566287792296
Instagram…
https://www.instagram.com/jnpackauthor/