Taken by the Cowboy

by Julianne MacLean

  It wasn’t a trip to France.

  It was a new stepmom named Sharon Hennessey.

  Somehow, the news had formed itself into a knife that was right now sinking into Callie’s heart and causing her unbelievable pain. Before she could stop herself, Callie looked at her dad and blurted, “How could you do this? Don’t you love Mom anymore?”

  Her dad looked a little shocked at his daughter’s outburst. “Of course I do, Callie. Nothing can change that.”

  Callie stood up, completely oblivious to the fact that Lewis was sitting quietly in the armchair and was witnessing the whole terrible scene. “Well, if that’s true, how can you want another wife? You and Mom didn’t get a divorce, you know. You can’t marry someone else. You can’t do this to her, Dad!”

  Her dad looked hurt, more hurt than she’d seen him look since the horrible day of her mom’s car accident. Callie immediately felt bad. Worse than bad. Horrible. She didn’t want to hurt her dad, but she didn’t want him to forget about her mother, either.

  Because if he could forget about her mother, then maybe someday Callie would, too, and that thought terrified her.

  She grabbed a picture off the mantle. It had been taken during their last family vacation. They’d gone sailing and fishing on Chesapeake Bay. There they were, the three of them on the deck of the Miss Amy, holding tight to one another, smiling and laughing as her dad held a huge fish up by its tail. Two weeks later, her mother was dead.

  Callie showed the picture to her father. “We’re a family, Dad. I want our lives back the way they were. I want Mom back.”

  “Callie…” His voice was choked with emotion as he stood and went to her.

  But Sharon stood, too. “Callie, could I have a word with you, alone?”

  Callie was momentarily shocked-she had never really spent any time alone with Sharon before. It seemed like Sharon was already taking her new job as stepmom very seriously.

  “Ben,” Sharon continued gently but firmly, as she might in the court room, “why don’t you take Lewis out onto the veranda for a few minutes so you can talk about baseball?”

  Baseball? Ha! Callie wanted to say. If you knew even an iota about Lewis, you’d know he isn’t interested in baseball. But as she saw her dad obediently steer Lewis onto the front porch, what she really wanted to say was, Dad, don’t leave me alone with her.

  Sharon looked down at Callie with a forced smile. If this was Sharon’s attempt at relating to kids, it was falling as flat as a three-ton pancake. “Callie, I realize our news might have come as a shock to you….”

  That was an understatement.

  “I know you’re still dealing with your mother’s death, and probably will be for the rest of your life.”

  Callie’s heart began to beat faster. Somewhere deep down, she knew that Sharon was trying to be helpful, but right now her efforts were anything but.

  “It’s been two years, Callie,” Sharon said as gently as she could. “And though you may not be, your dad is ready to move on with his life. And that means having a new wife-me. And I know you probably thought your dad would never, ever want a wife other than your mom. But… he does.”

  Callie couldn’t believe this. Though it was obvious Sharon was trying really hard to tone it down, no one had ever spoken to Callie so bluntly before. Especially not about her mother’s death.

  “Callie, I love your father very, very much. He’s been through a hard time, too. And now, he has a chance to be happy again, with me. I want to make him happy, Callie. I want us both to make him happy. In order to do that, we’re going to have to work together, okay?”

  If it was possible, Callie felt worse than she had a few minutes ago.

  What Sharon had said was true. Though Callie knew it was selfish, she had hoped deep down that her dad would never meet anyone and never date anyone, and never, ever remarry. Because it would have made Callie’s life a whole lot simpler.

  Sharon continued, “This is going to be a difficult transition for all of us, no doubt about it. And I’m hoping that together, all sides can reach an agreeable resolution to this problem….”

  Callie couldn’t believe it. Sharon was using legal jargon while attempting to relate to her twelve-year-old, soon-to-be step-daughter.

  “I’ve drawn up a proposal for you to peruse,” Sharon continued, handing Callie a thick set of papers. “Since I’m going to be your new stepmom, I think we should set aside one day a week to get to know each other better. Forge a bond-‘Girlpower,’ and all that. I’ve put together a list of activities you might find interesting….”

  Callie scanned Sharon’s list: a tour of the legal library at Sharon’s office…reorganizing Sharon’s closet…cataloging Sharon’s shoes…and about a dozen other things you’d only agree to in order to get out of a Turkish prison. The only thing that was missing was cleaning Sharon’s bathroom with a toothbrush.

  This woman didn’t have a clue. That was what worried Callie.

  “And now, I have a favor to ask of you,” Sharon said seriously. “As young people, it’s very common for us to concentrate on ourselves, while forgetting that there are others around us who need our consideration.”

  Callie detested the term young people. It was usually used by adults who didn’t understand kids.

  “I’m asking, Callie, that you begin putting your father first.”

  Callie’s heart sank. Was Sharon insinuating that Callie had been putting her dad last?

  She hadn’t been-had she?

  Sharon patted Callie’s shoulder as if she was trying to tap down a nail. “I just want you to think of him-of his feelings-during this time of transition. Okay? Promise?”

  Knowing it was futile to argue with Sharon-The-Super-Lawyer, Callie nodded.

  “For a verbal agreement to be binding, both parties have to speak,” Sharon pointed out, sweetly.

  Callie stared up at the woman who was going to be her stepmom. She wanted to laugh bitterly, but she kept it inside. Thinking of her mother’s beautiful face on the last day she’d seen her alive, Callie said, “From now on, I promise to put Dad first.”

  Unable to stand Sharon’s presence for one more moment, Callie rushed to the door. She ached to see a friendly face, to have her dad’s arms around her, comforting her and telling her everything would be all right, but tonight, everything had been irrevocably changed. If she kept her promise to Sharon, she’d have to learn to start taking care of herself, even if she was only twelve.

  Callie stepped out onto the veranda. Her dad immediately got up, his brow furrowed with worry. Before she knew it, his big, lanky frame was beside her and his strong arm was around her shoulder, pulling her close. “Everything okay, Sport?” he whispered into her hair.

  To her own surprise, she pulled away. She didn’t want to be reminded of what she’d just lost, and she knew without a doubt that after tonight, her relationship with her father would never be the same again.

  “I just need to be with Lewis for a while, okay?” Callie managed to say in a somewhat normal voice. Already she was breaking her promise to Sharon. She wasn’t putting her dad first right now. But she was doing the best she could without making another scene.

  “Okay….” her dad said tentatively.

  To Callie’s deep satisfaction, Lewis stepped up beside her. “I think Callie needs a little space right now, Mr. Richards. She’ll be fine with me.”

  At that moment Sharon opened the screen door and poked her head out, saying, “Ben, why don’t you come in and let Callie and her little friend have their visit?”

  Callie saw Lewis glance at Sharon in annoyance.

  Little friend?-she could almost hear Lewis thinking-they both hated that term almost as much as young people.

  It made Callie’s heart swell with pride. She may not have her dad anymore, but she had Lewis. And he saw right through Sharon, just like Callie did. He led her off the veranda and steered her onto the gravel path that led to the backyard. “We’ll just be in the back garden, havi
ng a heart-to-heart. Don’t worry, Callie, I have Kleenex,” he said loudly.

  They made their way down the dark path to the backyard, and once they were safely away from the house, Callie stopped trying to hold back her tears. By this point in their friendship, Lewis was bomb-proof. Unlike a lot of other boys, or men for that matter, Lewis wasn’t scared of a crying girl. The fact that Lewis had two younger sisters probably helped.

  “It’s okay, Cal,” he said, offering her a Kleenex. “You’re allowed to cry. I have to say it-for a birthday, this takes the cake.”

  Callie wiped her nose, unable to laugh at Lewis’ joke. “What am I going to do? Sharon and Dad are getting married! She’s going to live in our house and bring her horrible cat, Wallingford, and make Dad forget that Mom ever existed.” Callie stood up, pacing around like a tiger in a cage. “This can’t be happening.”

  Lewis shrugged. “I know it’s unfair, but I think you’re just going to have to accept your dad’s marriage to Sharon.”

  Callie had an awful feeling that her best friend was right, though she didn’t want him to be.

  “If only I could find the Door in the Floor and go to Albion. Then I could forget about Dad and Sharon.”

  Lewis stood up. “Callie, Albion isn’t real. It was just a dream and you know it.”

  But Callie didn’t know it. She didn’t know anything right now. She just knew that she wanted to escape. Going into a magical land where she might be a princess sounded pretty good, considering what her future here looked like.

  She pulled the pink sparkly necklace out from under her sweater. “I have to at least look,” Callie said. “It’s my birthday. Indulge me.”

  She walked over to the garden shed and opened the creaky doors. Her mom had spent a lot of time out here, potting plants, weeding, transplanting. Now the shed seemed like a tomb.

  “What are you doing?” Lewis asked.

  She rummaged through a drawer. “Looking for…this!” She switched on the flashlight and practically blinded her best friend. He howled in pain and staggered backwards.

  “Oops, sorry. Are you okay?”

  “Yeah. I have a spare set of eyeballs back home,” he said, rubbing his eyes. “Wait here while I go get them.”

  Callie directed her friend out of the shed. “Quit whining and help me look.” This was great. Her mood was lifting already. She and Lewis were going to have a grand adventure, just like in one of her library books.

  “Okay, but only because it’s your birthday and you just found out you’re getting an icky step mother.”

  Callie led the way, going to a back corner of the garden which was overgrown with ivy and weeds. She shone the flashlight around upon a sea of thick green vegetation. “The unicorn statue is around here somewhere….”

  “All I see are plants,” Lewis said helpfully.

  “Thank you, Mr. Farnsworth. Now get in there and look under the plants.”

  Lewis obeyed dutifully. Somewhere during his twelve short years he had learned that there was absolutely no use arguing with a woman once she’d made up her mind. “I think I found something.”

  “What?” Callie felt her heart begin to race as she shined the flashlight on Lewis’ hands.

  He held out something dark and leggy. “A bug.”

  Callie squealed and jumped backwards as Lewis chuckled to himself. “That’s not funny!”

  Lewis kept chuckling. Even though he was the smartest, kindest, most sensitive boy Callie had ever met, the fact remained that Lewis was still a boy, and he still enjoyed scaring girls with bugs.

  “You’re supposed to be helping,” Callie reminded him.

  “I am helping. I’m clearing the bugs out of the way,” he said with a smile. He wrestled with the greenery, his arm practically disappearing from sight as he pulled apart the dense vines. “Shine the flashlight over here, Cal. I think…I might…have found it!” He fell backwards and landed in a sitting position on the ground.

  Callie rushed to help him, but Lewis quickly stood up. “Look, Callie. There it is!”

  Callie turned her gaze in the direction he was pointing. “The unicorn….” She shone the flashlight on the face of the stone statue. It almost seemed to hum with life, its smooth carved eyes staring eerily into the night, its spiraled horn pointing up towards the starry night sky.

  Suddenly unconcerned with bugs, Callie waded into the greenery, pulling the vines away herself to reveal more of the majestic statue. “This was one of Mom’s favorite places in the garden. There’s a stone bench around here too. She used to sit out here for hours and read.”

  “Well, we found the unicorn,” Lewis said. “What else does the poem say?”

  Callie took the scroll out of her pocket and shone the light on it, reading aloud:

  “The key will open the magic door

  Found beneath the forest floor

  The unicorn will lead the way

  And protect you both night and day.”

  Lewis waded around the back of the statue, looking down. Callie joined him, passing the flashlight over thick twigs, weeds, and vines.

  Lewis crouched down, feeling around in the underbrush. “Do you remember there being a door out here, Cal?”

  “Well…no. But that doesn’t mean it’s not here. Keep looking.”

  They searched and searched, but didn’t manage to find anything more than a bunch of tangled vines.

  “I hate to say it, Cal, but I think that poem is a hoax,” Lewis said, standing.

  Callie felt her heart sink. She realized how badly she’d wanted there to be a door in the floor, and a magical land called Albion that needed her.

  “All right, Lew. Let’s go in.” Callie took a few steps toward the house. “It’s just been a crazy day. I don’t know what I was thinking. You’re right, there’s no door in the fl—”

  The next minute, the ground flew up to meet her. She dropped with a hard thud, landing on her stomach.

  Lewis was beside her in an instant. “Callie! Are you okay?” He tried to help her up, but her foot was caught in something.

  He crouched down to where it was twisted in some vines. “Whoa, you’re really tangled up here, Cal. Just a second…I’m getting it…wait, what’s this?” He pulled away some of the thick vines that had ensnared her, and both he and Callie found themselves staring at an old iron ring.

  It was attached to something-a wooden door that looked ancient, like it belonged on a castle.

  “It’s a door,” Lewis said, dumbfounded. “It’s the Door in the Floor, Cal!”

  Callie got her breath back, and felt her heart swell with hope. “It is a door-just like the poem said! Help me up, Lewis.”

  Lewis quickly got Callie’s foot free and helped her stand. Her ankle throbbed a bit, and she’d hurt her knee, too, but her injuries weren’t foremost in her mind at the moment. “Help me clear this away,” she said, kneeling down to pull at the vines and debris.

  Soon they had it completely uncovered. It was made from rough-hewn wood and had thick iron fastenings and bolts. It was only big enough for only one person to fit through at a time.

  “It might be the door to an old cellar,” Lewis said.

  “My parents never mentioned a cellar. Mom used to come out here all the time to do her gardening. You’d think she would have said something if she’d found it.”

  Lewis jiggled the handle a few times, but the door wouldn’t open. “It’s locked.”

  Callie shone the flashlight on the door. Sure enough, under the ring, there was an iron keyhole. “The key will open the magic door…” she said, quoting the poem. Callie sat back on her heels and slipped the diamond necklace over her head, hoping the jewel-encrusted key on the end of it would fit the lock. She took a deep breath and slid it in.

  “Lewis-it fits,” she whispered. Her heart began to race with excitement and wonder.

  Her friend stepped closer. “Wait a minute. We don’t know what might be down there.”

  “But don’t you want to find
out?”

  Used to being the responsible older brother at home, Lewis folded his arms and frowned. “It might be dangerous, Cal.”

  Callie smiled mischievously. “Let’s just take a look.”

  For a long moment he stared at her, then he smiled, too. “Okay.” Though usually the voice of reason, Lewis was still, after all, a kid.

  A thrill coursed through Callie’s veins. She turned the jeweled key in the lock, and the mechanism clicked. She removed the key and put the necklace back over her head. Then she and Lewis both pulled on the thick iron ring. Callie gasped as the door lifted slightly. A whoosh of stale air came out, smelling of old decaying leaves and other scents of the forest.

  Together they managed to wrestle with the heavy door, and soon the hinges creaked. It groaned as it fell open onto the ground with a thud.

  Callie’s heart beat wildly.

  “It’s pitch black down there,” Lewis said. “Where’s the flashlight?”

  Hands trembling, Callie fumbled for the light and held it up. What could be down there? What if it was a pit of snakes, or rats, or spiders? Or worse? She took a deep breath and shone the flashlight down.

  An old wrought-iron staircase spiraled into the dark depths of the unknown. Callie crouched, trying to shine the light deeper into the chamber.

  “Where does it go?” Lewis asked, craning to get a look.

  “I can’t tell. It’s too deep. I can’t see much of anything.” Callie’s skin tingled as a strange feeling echoed in her heart. It was the same feeling she’d had after the dream.

  Though she couldn’t see anything, she knew this was the doorway to Albion. And she had to go through it.

  She stepped down onto the wrought iron platform that led to the spiral staircase below.

  “Cal-what are you doing? We don’t even know if these stairs are safe, let alone where they go!” Lewis protested, following behind her. “There could be something really, really horrible down here.”

  “I know what’s down here,” she said firmly, shining the flashlight on the filigreed staircase as they made their way down, their feet tapping quickly. “This is what my dream was about, Lewis. And the message in my cereal, and the necklace, and everything! This is the way into Albion, and it’s where I have to go.”