“Hold this to your eye, babe. It will help with the swelling, and it should take some of the pain away, too.”
“Thanks. Em, I—” he said, pausing. “I’m not used to people helping me. Are you really going to come back tomorrow?”
“Yes, I really am. Why are you asking? You know I’ll be here.”
His voice slowed and lost its exuberance. “Just thought you might wanna disappear again. Make all of this mayor crap go away. Forever.”
“Truth is, I thought about it. But you know I can’t control it like that. It just happens. Even if I could, I’m not taking the easy way out. No. It’s time to face this.”
He nodded, adjusting the bag of ice on his face. “Just so you know, I wouldn’t blame you if you did.”
She leaned around in front of him and kissed him hard on the lips. “This is where I want to be. Right here. Right now. With you. I’m not going anywhere. Got it, mister?”
Mr. Thomas appeared in the doorway and announced, “Time to get you home, umm, Ms.—?”
“Emily,” she said, hugging Derek. He winced. She let go. “Sorry. I forgot.”
“Yes, Emily. Sorry. I’m terrible with names.”
She walked and stood by Thomas. “Just call me Red. Lots of people do.”
“Will you be here tomorrow?”
“Count on it!” she snapped, looking at Derek to make sure he felt the sincerity in her statement. The look on his face indicated he did.
Thomas took a set of keys from his pocket. “Time to rock. My car’s parked just up the street.”
Emily gave Derek one last look and blew him a kiss.
* * *
Emily stood on the sidewalk across the street from the shelter and watched Mr. Thomas drive off in his compact Toyota truck that was missing all four hubcaps. Some of the lettering on the tailgate was missing, leaving the remaining characters to spell YOTA.
She was excited to see Junie. Even though it hadn’t been a full day, she missed her friend’s infectious smile and bright, innocent eyes. She was about to cross the street when two police cars came roaring around corner with their lights on, but no sirens. Emily stepped back and hid in the shadow of a tree behind her.
The squad cars came to an abrupt stop in front of the shelter, and two officers from each vehicle shot out and tore through the shelter’s front door. Emily’s heart screamed at her to run inside to check on Junie, but her logic told her to wait. Even though Alison had said he’d make everything go away, it was possible the cops were looking for her. It could have all been a ruse to defuse Jim. Or, perhaps the mayor might have changed his mind. Either way, she needed to wait to see what happened next.
It wasn’t long before there was activity. Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest when she saw Junie’s mom in handcuffs, being hauled out of the shelter and down the steps by two of the four cops that had entered the facility. Then Junie appeared at the top of the stairs in her pajamas, being held by two men in street clothes.
Junie’s eyes were not bright; tears streamed from them. Her mouth was not turned up in a huge smile; she was yelling and crying. Emily could hear her from across the street.
“Don’t take her, please! She’s my mom! Please!” Junie screamed at the cops. She fought to escape the men holding her back, but she wasn’t strong enough to break free.
Emily started to cry, too, knowing the pain her friend was in. It was difficult to watch the scene unfold in front of her—a precious little girl frantic and crying. Cops manhandling her mother into the back of a patrol car with no regard to how it would scar Junie for life. Everyone else standing around and gawking—not lifting a finger to help.
Emily’s logic told her to wait—there were two cops unaccounted for, but her heart wanted her to act.
Do something now. Junie needs you.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Emily ran across the street, pushing past the homeless people who’d gathered in front of the shelter. She fought through the two men holding Junie and took her friend in her arms.
“Oh, Em, they’re taking her!” Junie sobbed into her shoulder. “That awful woman Doris ratted her out and the police came and found drugs in my mom’s bag. Now they’re taking her away and I don’t know what’s going to happen!”
Junie collapsed into Emily, crying and shaking. Emily held her and rocked her, making cooing and shushing noises like she would to a small child. Not that Emily had any experience with small children—it just felt like the right thing to do.
The police cruiser with Junie’s mom in back pulled away in a lurch. Emily and Junie watched as one of the two remaining officers, a short man with a round belly and a noticeable scar on his face, had a brief conversation with one of the shelter employees.
Then the scarred office came over to them with a pained expression hanging on his face. He addressed Junie.
“We can’t take you tonight. No one from DCS is around to handle you. This is a state-sponsored shelter, so they’re okay to keep you overnight. Are you in school?”
“Yes,” Junie answered between sniffles. “I’m at Pueblo Middle.”
The officer made a note in his pad. “Fine. Someone from DCS will come to your school tomorrow to interview you about your family situation.”
“What’s going to happen to her?” Emily asked, holding Junie even tighter than before.
“Hard to say. DCS usually takes guardianship of a child for a couple of days while they investigate the circumstances. Then they go from there.”
Junie burst into tears again, burrowing her head into Emily’s shoulder.
“It’s okay, June Bug. You go inside and wait for me upstairs. I’ll be there in a minute.”
Junie ran into the shelter, still sobbing. Emily waited for the shelter’s night attendant to finish talking with the police, then convinced him that Junie needed someone to stay with her for the night.
Emily went upstairs and found Junie in the kitchen, still crying, with a frozen look on her face. Emily gave her a tender hug. “It’ll be okay, honey. We’ll figure this out together.”
Junie pulled away and stared back with a pair of weary, bloodshot eyes, but never said a word. In fact, Emily’s were the last words spoken for the remainder of the night.
Emily found peanut butter, jelly, and bread in the cabinets. She made a gooey, thick sandwich for Junie to eat and she did—without hesitation. Bite by bite, Junie consumed the food with a slow-moving jaw, her face puffy and glazed over with a million-mile stare.
A short while later, Emily escorted Junie to the sleeping room and laid beside her on the same bed. A few tears came for Emily as she cradled her friend in her arms, feeling the painful rhythm of a broken heart slamming against her own chest.
Junie fell asleep with tears on her cheek. Emily listened to her breathing pattern, wondering if Junie was dreaming about her mom. Dreaming just as Emily had done so often about her mother in the months immediately after The Taking.
* * *
January 8, 2015
7:04 a.m.
“Be strong, sweetie. Get your work done at school and be a good girl today,” Emily told Junie the next morning on the sidewalk in front of the shelter. “I’ll come find you this afternoon and we’ll go get some ice cream and talk about anything you want. It’ll all work out. I promise.”
“Thanks, Em,” Junie said, giving her a partial smile with sad, downtrodden eyes. She turned and walked away.
Emily waited until Junie was out of sight, then turned in the opposite direction and traveled the ten blocks to Derek’s group home. When she arrived, she found him lying on the living room couch holding an icepack on his head.
He looked at her and smiled. “Heya, Em.”
“Any better?”
“Some. The throbbing in my head is gone but I’m still having a little trouble focusing. I get these starbursts and have to close my eyes for a bit.”
He made room for her on the couch and she sat next to him.
“How about your ribs?
”
“Still sore.”
“Where is everyone?”
“They’re at school. Thomas is upstairs talking with the day monitor. Word has it we have a new one starting today. Poor bastard.”
“You seen Nora?”
“Yeah, she already left. You just missed her. She said she might be back, though.”
“Crap, I promised her I’d be here. But this thing came up with Junie’s mom and, well, I couldn’t. I couldn’t leave her alone. She needed me.”
“What happened?”
“Stupid shelter drama. Some ugly bitch ratted her mom out and the cops arrested her for drugs. Gonna take a while to sort this out.”
“How’s Junie?”
“Completely heartbroken. The poor girl. Nothing is ever easy for her. I just wish there was more I could do.”
“I’m sure she appreciates having you in her life. We all need help sometimes.”
Emily snuggled next to him, careful not to disturb his ribs. “Since you don’t have to go to school, and I don’t go to school, how about we stay right here for the rest of the day and not move. I don’t want to think about anything. Just sit here and chill.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Derek said, putting his arm around her. “Just live in the moment.”
* * *
An hour later, Mr. Thomas came into the living room, followed by a man Emily guessed to be in his late twenties. He was the opposite of Mr. Thomas in every way. He was short, fat, with pudgy cheeks and bright, cheerful eyes. While Mr. Thomas looked like a gangly bird, the man with him looked like a koala bear ready for winter.
“This is Mr. Newhelm,” the night monitor said. “He’s the new day monitor.”
“What happened to Chuck?” Derek asked.
“He was reassigned to another facility.”
“Welcome to the shit,” Derek told the new guy.
“Today’s his first day, so go easy on him, okay?” Thomas asked.
“Sure. It’s not like I can cause trouble in this condition, anyway.”
“Then it should be easy,” Thomas said. He pointed at Emily and then looked at Newhelm. “This is Emily, the girl I told you about.”
Emily gave Newhelm a quick head bob to say hello.
Newhelm raised his hand and sent a quick wave her way. “Hey.”
“If you need help with anything, he’s here for both of you. I’ve filled him in on your situation and he knows it’s okay for Emily to be here helping you. I’ll leave you three to get acquainted. I need to bolt. I’ll be back for my shift tonight.”
As soon as he was gone, Mr. Newhelm bounced on the balls of his feet and gave a hesitant smile. “You can call me Eric. I don’t go for all the formality crap like everyone else. Mr. Newhelm was my old man, and I’m not him, thank God.”
“Hi, Eric,” Emily said. “Did you get a chance to meet Nora earlier? Derek’s nurse.”
“Yep.”
“What did you think?”
He cleared his throat. “Interesting woman.”
“Interesting?” Derek snorted.
“Okay, well. Scary. Grim reaper-type scary.”
Derek smiled. “You got that right, pal. Kinda reminds me of my first foster mom. We called her Brunhilda. Ran the family with an iron fist by day and a bottle of gin at night.”
Eric laughed, then turned on his heels in an instant and walked away as he said, “If you need me, I’ll be in the kitchen, hiding all the brooms.”
“He’s an odd one,” Derek whispered, his eyes following the man out of the room.
“Don’t think he’s much on small talk, but I like him. Something about his eyes. And he’s funny.”
Before Derek could reply, a knock came from the front door, followed by footsteps and the sound of a door opening. Emily could hear a brief conversation on the other side of the door but the words were unclear.
Then Nora walked in, accompanied by a thick-boned elderly woman with stark-blond hair and little makeup on. She carried an old-fashioned doctor’s bag—black.
“Hey, I’m back,” Nora said to Derek. “This is Dr. Montoroli. She’s going to have a look at you, just to make sure you’re okay.”
“Hi, Nora,” Emily said, praying she wasn’t in too much trouble for being late.
“Nice of you to finally show up. You’re late.”
“Sorry, something came up.”
“I’ll bet.”
Dr. Montoroli crossed the room and stood by the couch. She looked at Emily. “Do you mind?”
Emily made room for her on the couch.
“Hi,” Derek said, starting to sit up.
“Nope, don’t move. You’re fine,” she said to Derek. “I hear you’re in some discomfort. Your ribs?”
“Yeah, and my jaw. Both a little sore. But not horrible.”
Dr. Montoroli went through the same routine Nora had gone through in the car the evening before, checking his eyes, ears, jaw, and ribs, with one addition—she listened to Derek’s chest with a stethoscope she’d brought with her.
When she was done she put the scope away, snapped her bag shut and pronounced, “Nora’s assessment was correct. Doesn’t appear to be a concussion and nothing’s broken. Your jaw should start to feel better in a day or two, but the ribs will take about a week to feel better, and probably two weeks before they feel normal. Lots of rest and no activity. Then I’d like you to come see me for a follow-up in a week.”
“I’m not real big on hospitals,” Derek said, shaking his head.
“That’s good, because I own a free clinic. Nora volunteers there in her spare time and will arrange transport.”
“I appreciate you coming to see me, Doc, but I don’t—”
“This isn’t open for discussion, young man. One week. In my office. Capeesh?”
Derek seemed surprised by the woman’s tone and fervor. “Sure. Whatever you say, Doc.”
Montoroli stood up. “Sorry to rush off, but I have an appointment. Nora, see ya later?”
“I’ll be in at ten. Thanks again.”
“Well, I figure I owed you. Least I could do.”
When Dr. Montoroli was gone, Derek looked at Emily and then at Nora. “Where did you dig her up?”
“She’s an old friend of the family. She retired from pediatrics five years ago and opened a free clinic. You’re fortunate to have her looking after you.”
“But I never agreed—”
“Weren’t you paying attention? It’s not open for discussion. She expects to see you in a week. So, plan on it. I’ll be here to drive you.”
“Okay. Fine. Got it.”
Nora gave Emily a big smile. “Duane and I are taking the kids to see their grandparents in LA this weekend. Grandpa Jose’s health is failing and we want them to spend time with him while they still can. I was wondering if you could house-sit for us for a couple days?”
“Wow—that would be great. Are you sure? I mean—you just met me and all.”
“It was Duane’s idea. He insisted.”
Emily wanted to think about it for a moment. She didn’t want to leave Derek alone for the weekend. Or Junie.
“We’ll leave you some money so you can order a pizza or whatever. Duane has a huge collection of DVDs to watch and I’m sure there’s something there you’ll like. What do you say? I think you’ve earned a few nights away from everything.”
Emily looked at Derek. “What do you think?”
“Sounds better than crashing at the shelter again.”
He was correct. At the shelter, she couldn’t take a long, hot bath and not be rushed. She looked at Nora. “Cool. I’m in.”
“Excellent,” Nora said, taking a pad and pen from her purse. She scribbled on it, tore off the top sheet and gave it to Emily. “Here’s our address. Come by tomorrow around noon and I’ll show you around and get you settled in before we head out with the kids after school.”
Emily beamed at the nurse’s offer. “Thanks, Nora. I don’t know what to say.”
“You do
n’t have to say anything. Just make sure Derek gets plenty of rest, and don’t burn the house down. Oh, and no parties.”
“Gotta have friends to throw a party,” Derek said in a sarcastic voice.
“You know what I mean,” Nora said, shooting Derek a piercing look, then turning her focus to Emily.
Emily nodded. “I do. No parties. Won’t be a problem.”
“Great. Then I’ll see you tomorrow,” Nora said before she walked out the front door and disappeared.
Derek turned to Emily. “There’s no chance I’m going to that clinic.”
“I figured as much.”
“But I’ll tell you what I am going to do. I’m going to come see you tomorrow night while you’re watching their house.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Nora would be pissed. Her instructions were explicit.”
“Well, technically she said no parties. But she never said no boys or no Derek. She told you to make sure I rested, but didn’t say where. Who’s to say she didn’t mean for you to watch me at their place? Probably safer for me there than here. Right?”
“That’s true.”
“Trust me, Em. It’s all good.”
She still wasn’t sure about his tempting idea. “What about Mr. Thomas?”
“Won’t be an issue. Once he starts playing video games in his office after dinner, he loses track of time and usually falls asleep with the controller in his hand. He’ll never know I’m gone.”
“It would be nice to have some company. It might be a little scary in that house all by myself. But how will you get there?”
He held out his hand. “Let me see that note.”
Emily gave it to him.
He read it. “It’s not that far. I’ll walk.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, anything to get out of this place for a while. There’s absolutely nothing to do when you’re not here. It’s all I can do to not go bat-shit crazy.”
“What about your ribs?”
“If I have to, I’ll wrap them with something. But I’m coming to visit. End of story.”
“Maybe you can bring Junie, too? That way I can keep an eye on both of you.”
Glassford Girl: Part 3 (The Emily Heart Time Jumper) Page 14