by Krista Lakes
She was safe here.
Chapter 5
Bonnie
She tossed and turned, throwing blankets off the small bed. Her eyes fluttered behind closed lids as her brain brought images into being. Memories came back as dreams, surreal and yet so lifelike she could no longer tell if she was dreaming or awake. It was happening again.
The whole street was watching the firefighters combat the fire. She'd seen the smoke all the way from the coffee shop. She'd followed the sounds of sirens and the smell of char to find her home wreathed in flames. It was definitely the townhouse she and her younger brother shared.
And it was gone.
She pushed her way past her neighbors up to the police line and watched as her world burned. It was the physical manifestation of what the last few days felt like. Everything in their home was gone. Everything they had was lost. She wasn't sure what she was going to do next.
The acrid smell of burnt plastic filled her nose. She was just glad her brother Brett wasn't there to see this. He was safe and hopefully didn't know all his things were on fire. She was glad she wasn't going to have to be the one to tell him his collection of video games was gone. He was going to flip out.
The small hairs on the back of her neck stood up. It wasn't just the fire that had her edgy. Someone was watching her. She turned slowly. It felt like she was moving through honey. He was watching her. She had seen him before. He had dark hair speckled with gray, a perfectly trimmed goatee, and aviator sunglasses. There was a distinctive scar across his right cheek that stood out pale against his tan skin.
The world went cold. Her breathing came fast and uneven. She felt like a rabbit cornered by a wolf. She wasn't safe here.
He made sure she knew he saw her. He made sure she saw him point to the fire and then at himself. Then he pointed at her. A slow, cruel smile moved across his face.
And suddenly, he was gone. He was smoke in the wind.
But the hateful smile remained in her mind.
Bonnie awoke panting with fear. In the dark, she couldn't remember where she was. Nothing was familiar. She wasn't in her room at home. She reached for her phone and knocked it to the floor. It was so dark she couldn't see her hand in front of her face as she scrambled down to find it. She dropped to the floor, her knees cold against the short carpet as her fingers searched and finally found the plastic case.
Her phone screen glowed blue in the night, illuminating the plain bed and nightstand. Memory flooded back to her as she sagged against the bed. She was still safe. She was at the ranch. The fire was just a nightmare. The man, he was real, but he wasn't here.
Bonnie sucked in a jagged breath and forced herself to take another. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she could still see that smile promising death.
It took a good minute of focusing only on breathing to calm down. She concentrated on the feel of the firm carpet beneath her fingers and the sound of crickets outside her window. Finally, her heart rate slowed from outrunning death to just an intense cardio workout.
She wasn’t there any more, in front of that burning house. Now, she was here, in this idyllic mountain town. They didn't know where she'd gone, and she was determined to keep it that way. She was going to keep her brother safe.
The room was now a pale gray, and she could make out the details on the dresser. She stood up and stretched, feeling her tight muscles complain and then relax. She didn't want to go back to sleep. She wanted to get to work and have something to keep her mind off things, but work didn't start for another two hours.
Instead, she went and put on her running shoes and workout clothes. If she couldn't work, she could go for a run. She could focus on music and run the crazy off. She was already covered in sweat, so she was going to need a shower before work anyway.
She glanced at her reflection in the mirror over her dresser and didn't recognize the woman standing there. The hair was shorter and darker. She'd made sure to change up her appearance to make it harder to spot her in a crowd.
“Might as well burn the calories,” she told herself as she bent over and laced up her shoes. She stepped out into the crisp morning air and took a deep breath. It smelled of clean pine and morning dew. The fire was becoming a memory again. She put her music on speaker and started to run along the path to the barn.
With every step, the fire faded from her mind, and she let the mountains give her peace.
Chapter 6
Bonnie
Sunlight flickered and danced through the pine boughs, and birds sang squeaky melodies as Bonnie walked along the gravel path to the cafeteria building. The long thin grass was still wet from the night’s rain, and everything smelled of wet pine and fresh dirt. She took a deep breath in and immediately felt like she was where she was supposed to be.
The path to the cafeteria flat and easy to walk, but with a view of the Rocky Mountains that took her breath away. The mountains were so much bigger and grander than she had imagined. It was so different from New Jersey that it felt like she’d stepped through a magic mirror and into a world of myth. A friendly little squirrel chattered at her from the top of a bright green pine tree as she walked past. She was fairly certain if she burst into song, the squirrel would sing the melody with her just like in a princess movie.
She turned a corner to find the large building that housed the cafeteria and kitchen. The big wooden structure stood at the heart of the camp with all the gravel paths leading toward the center where food and fun could be found. From here, she could see a barn, a garage, and several smaller structures she assumed were the bunks for campers.
None of the children of the camp were up and about yet, but Dylan was. She could see him in the open garage.
He was under the hood of her ancient station wagon, his hands deep in the engine. The car, and the handsome man working on it were in a large open garage filled with all sorts of shiny tools. She wondered just how many cars broke down around here to justify a garage like that. It was huge and definitely nicer than the mechanic she took her car to at home.
The garage wasn’t on her path to the cafeteria building, and she couldn’t see a way to walk over there without making it very clear that she was looking for him. She liked him, but she didn’t want to appear desperate. Besides, she didn’t want to be late for her first day on the job. Still, she couldn’t help but glance over as she walked.
Dylan had on ripped jeans that hugged the curves of his body and looked like they were made just for him. His light blue t-shirt already dirty with grease and a long cloth hung from his pocket. The angle of his body gave her the perfect view of his very muscular ass as he leaned over to work on her engine.
Heat fluttered in her low belly. She wasn’t usually a car girl but seeing a handsome man working on her car was something to be enjoyed. She did her best not to stare but still managed to nearly trip at least three times as she walked because she wasn’t watching her feet.
All too soon, she found herself on the front porch of the cafeteria. The wood was still damp from the rain as she climbed the three steps up to the two big heavy doors and stepped inside.
The eating area was better lit now that it was full of sunshine, but it still held the warmth and friendship from the night before. All the tables were set out with extra napkins, and she knew the children would be ready to eat soon.
“Hello?” she called out, unsure if she should head to the kitchen to find a guide. For a second, she thought about going and asking Dylan, if only for the chance to speak to him again.
“Oh, you’re early!” A voice echoed through the empty space. Bonnie searched until a face popped out from behind one of the swinging kitchen doors. She had long dark hair pulled up into a ponytail and a friendly smile.
“Hi.” Bonnie waved and walked over to the door. The young woman came out and shook her hand.
“Hi, I’m Elena,” the woman told her. “I’m one of the volunteers here. You must be Bonnie. Mia asked me to show you around. Come on into the kitchen.”<
br />
Elena held open the swinging kitchen door for Bonnie to enter. The kitchen was already bustling with life. Two chefs were hard at work chopping and stirring and bustling around the brightly lit kitchen. Everything was stainless steel and sunshine.
“You’ll be working back here in the kitchen,” Elena explained, leading toward the back of the large space. “The dishwasher broke, and since it’s an industrial one, they won’t have the part in until tomorrow. We’ll need you to hand wash these.”
She turned and motioned to a large stainless steel sink. There were only a couple of dishes and pots, but Bonnie had a feeling that it was going to get full quickly once the campers started eating.
“I can do that,” Bonnie said cheerfully. If washing dishes got her a place to sleep and food to eat, she was happy to do it. It was better than any alternative she had right now.
“When you’re not washing, if you want to help Chef out, she’ll love you forever,” Elena replied. “Come on over and meet her.”
Elena brought Bonnie over to a large woman in what Bonnie guessed was her late sixties. She stirred the biggest pot of oatmeal Bonnie had ever seen with ease. The woman had her silver hair piled up in a giant braid wrapping around her head. As the woman turned to greet them, she gave Bonnie a giant, friendly grin.
“Chef, this is Bonnie,” Elena announced.
The woman stopped stirring and beamed another smile. “It’s so nice to meet you, Bonnie. Just call me Chef, that’s what I have everyone call me,” she told her. “We’ve got oatmeal and pancakes for the kids this morning, soup and sandwiches for lunch, and spaghetti for dinner.”
Bonnie did the mental math of dishes in her head. She was going to be doing a lot of washing.
“Now, we do some special orders,” Chef continued. “Coming here is a big transition for most of these kids, so we try to make things as gentle as possible, especially the first few days. Kids can request grilled cheese sandwiches or hot-dogs, which are right here.”
Chef pulled open a stainless steel fridge handle to show row upon row of cheese blocks and hot-dogs. In neat containers on a separate shelf were different kinds of fruit and veggies. Each was neatly labeled and ready for hungry children.
“They’re also allowed to have as many fruits and veggies as they’d like,” Chef told her. “Most kids like the meals here, but like I said, this camp is a big change for a lot of them, and we’d rather they eat something than force them to try something new and cause a meltdown.”
Bonnie nodded. “I’ve worked with special needs kids. One of the first things to go for many of them when they get stressed is the ability to try new foods,” Bonnie replied. “For kids with sensory issues, it’s really hard to try new things, and even familiar foods can be hard when changing environments and schedules.”
Chef beamed another megawatt grin at her. “You sound just like Mia,” she said with a laugh. She picked up her oatmeal spoon and began stirring again. “If you have any questions, just let me or my staff know.”
“Thank you, Chef,” Bonnie replied.
“If you’ll come with me, I have some paperwork for you to fill out,” Elena said, tapping her on the shoulder. “You should be able to fill it out before breakfast starts, and the dishes roll in.”
Bonnie nodded and followed Elena off to a back office. It was neat and clean with pictures of kids lining the walls. Bonnie assumed it was Chef’s office. Laid out on the desk was a small stack of papers and a pen all ready for her to fill out and sign.
“Oh, I’m supposed to tell you that you’re not to interact with the kids,” Elena said as Bonnie sat down and began to read over the forms. She shrugged apologetically. “It’s a legal thing.”
Bonnie waved her hand through the air. “I totally get it. You need a background check to work with kids.”
Elena looked surprised. “Yeah. How’d you know that?”
“I work with kids. I was a special needs teacher before I came here,” Bonnie replied with a smile before focusing back on the papers in front of her. She could feel Elena watching her and looked up to see a thoughtful look cross the other woman’s face.
“Interesting,” Elena murmured. “Anyway, go ahead and fill these out and I’ll get them filed, scanned, and submitted. I’ll be back in just a few minutes.”
“Okay,” Bonnie replied with a smile. She worked on filling out her name and birth dates on the form for a few minutes. When she got to her last job, she paused. She was almost afraid to put information down in case it would lead her past back to her. She paused, her pen hovering over the blank spaces.
She looked up and out the window in the small office. From here, she could see her car in the garage as well as the man working on it. He had a dark smear of grease across his cheek as he walked around to try and start the engine.
It was sexy as hell.
“I wonder if he’s single,” she murmured to herself. Bonnie shook her head. Even if he was, it didn’t matter. She couldn’t stay here for long. It wasn’t safe for her to stay in one spot for too long. They were looking for her. She was the way to get to her brother. She was his weakness. They would hurt her in order to get to him to not testify.
She shivered and looked at the blank spaces. She left some of them blank that weren’t critical to her history. It would be complete enough, she reasoned. For references, she just put in her old boss. He knew her story and would keep her background safe.
She couldn’t get involved here. As much as she enjoyed watching the muscular man with grease on his cheek work on her car, it wasn’t safe to get attached. She had to keep herself separate from these people, no matter how kind they were.
She sighed and forced her eyes back to her paper. This was how her life was now.
Chapter 7
Bonnie
“Mia?” Bonnie called out, jogging across the pale green grass. It wasn’t a lawn to Bonnie’s eyes, but it was a patch of grass, although it had a lot of weeds too. It was bare in some spots and lush in others with long stems peeking out wherever the mower had missed them. It looked wild and rustic.
Bonnie’s feet hurt from standing in the kitchen all day. The sun was just coming to touch the mountains and disappear for the evening. It was still early, but she was ready to take a shower and head straight to bed. Washing dishes was hard work.
“Hi, Bonnie,” Mia greeted her, turning from the path. She had her daughter tucked into a baby carrier attached to her chest. The tiny baby girl was snuggled up against her mother’s chest fast asleep. “Dylan says that your car’s fixed for now. It was something to do with the engine, but I don’t remember what he said it was. It’s just a temporary fix though. He says he needs to get a new part to make it actually work right.”
“How much do I owe him?” Bonnie asked. She had no idea what it would cost to fix something like that. Given the way her brother refused to let anyone but his friend work on his cars, she had a feeling it was rather expensive.
“No charge,” Mia replied, waving her hand through the air with a smile. She leaned forward. “I think he rather enjoyed it.”
Bonnie wasn’t sure what to say to that. A free mechanic? She wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth, but she was certainly surprised. Hopefully, it wasn’t too expensive a repair. She didn’t want to take advantage of their kindness.
“So, how’d your first day go?” Mia asked, adjusting the baby on her chest. She smiled as she smoothed the fabric across the baby’s back. The baby just dozed on.
“I was actually hoping to talk to you about something,” Bonnie replied. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “They said you were the person to ask.”
“Um, sure?” Mia replied with a nervous chuckle. “I try not to manage Chef, though. If you have an issue, you need to bring it up with her.”
“Oh no, Chef is fantastic,” Bonnie quickly replied. “She’s the one who told me to bring my idea to you.”
“Oh, okay.” Mia relaxed. “What do you have in mind?”
<
br /> Bonnie took a deep breath. “I noticed we have a lot of picky eaters. I think I made a million grilled cheeses tonight, even though there was spaghetti. A lot of the kids just didn’t seem sure about it.”
“It happens a lot the first couple of days of camp,” Mia assured her. “We try to pick something most kids like, but we can’t please everyone.”
“Well, we have a ton of spaghetti noodles left over, and I was wondering if we could use it to make a spaghetti pool.” Bonnie held her breath. She wasn’t sure if Mia was going to go for her idea. She had the feeling the Mia was open to new things, but Bonnie also didn’t want to overstep her bounds. She had a good thing here, and she didn’t want to mess anything up.
“A what?” Mia asked, looking totally confused.
“A spaghetti pool. We used to do it for our sensory kids that struggled with food,” Bonnie explained. “We’d fill a kiddie-pool with noodles and just let the kids play with it. They don’t have to eat it unless they want to. It’s just for playing with. It really helped take the fear out of food. They could squish it and play with it. Since we have so much left over, I thought we could do it here.”
Mia looked impressed. “A spaghetti pool... I like it,” she said softly. She started to nod and then looked carefully at Bonnie. “Elena said you have a childcare background?”
“A degree in special education,” Bonnie told her.
“I love it. I’ll tell Elena to set it up in the morning.” Mia smiled. “Thanks.”
Mia seemed pleased with the idea, so Bonnie continued. “I have some other ideas if you want them. I primarily worked with autism and sensory processing disorder, so I have a lot of experience with coming up with sensory-friendly play.”