“How can we help?” Matt asked.
“Actually, I’m here about a different matter.” Charles started telling Stokely about the missing quilt and his friend, Sarah. Stokely interrupted his story saying, “Are we talking about that old lady in Cunningham Village who lost her quilt and is trying to say it was stolen?”
He felt his heart rate respond. “Excuse me? That old lady is a friend of mine and she’s not trying to explain away a lost quilt. It has been stolen. This is a very competent woman and I would hardly call her an old lady.” Charles was livid.
“Calm down, friend. Calm down. I’m sorry. I just saw the report and I’m quoting what the investigating officer said.” Stokely had hoped that retirement would enable Charles to take life a little easier. When he learned Charles had a serious stroke, he wasn’t surprised.
“May I see that report?” Charles asked.
“I shouldn’t show it to you, but I will. It’s right here on my desk waiting for my signature.” He shuffled through a pile of reports and file folders until he found it. “Here, read it.”
Charles’ hand was trembling as he took the report. The officer had reported that the complainant hadn’t reported the item missing until a month after the fact. She didn’t seem concerned that someone might have been in the house. He added that it was his professional opinion that she was simply attempting to cover up the fact that she had lost the quilt. Twice in the report he referred to her as old. “How old is this officer?” Charles asked.
“Oh, he’s a young guy right out of the academy. Why?”
“Because he seems to have a distorted opinion of senior citizens. We aren’t all addled and he needs to be told that. I hope you don’t send him into Cunningham Village again without some sensitivity training.”
The two men sat and discussed the case. Actually, Charles was unable to defend the fact that Sarah hadn’t reported the loss as soon as she discovered it. That had bothered him, too, but he certainly didn’t attribute it to her trying to cover the fact it was misplaced. For one thing, she was quick to accept responsibility for anything she did. That was one of the things he loved about her. One of the many things. He would ask her about that, assuming she would ever speak to him again. He had come on too strong and he knew it.
On his way home, he thought about stopping at Sarah’s but decided against it. He didn’t want to push too hard. But, as he approached his own house, he saw Sarah and Barney sitting on the porch. He parked the car in the driveway and walked up to them. Barney was overjoyed to see him, Sarah not so much. “Hi,” he said cautiously.
“Hi,” she returned the greeting with equal caution.
“I’m sorry?” he said tentatively.
“Is that a question?” she asked.
“I guess the question is will you forgive me?” he asked humbly.
“I’ve thought about it, Charles. I know you were only concerned about me and my safety, but I just can’t have you coming at me like that.”
“I truly am sorry, Sarah. I didn’t mean to carry on the way I did. It’s just that my years on the force have warped my mind to the point that I see things other people don’t see. I’ve seen the carnage left by the desperate people who’ll break into another person’s home. I’m so sorry. I just don’t want to lose you.”
“You’re more likely to lose me by being overprotective than by the ugly things that live in your mind, Charles.” He walked closer and sat down next to her on the glider. He took her hand. She didn’t object.
“I’m still learning, Sarah. Please give me a chance. I care for you more than you can imagine.”
“I know you do, Charles. And I care for you. I think we both need some time to think about what’s happening between us.” Sarah stood. Barney hopped up and stood by her side, tail wagging. “We’re going to walk on home now. I’m glad you’re okay”
Charles wanted to hold her in his arms, but held back. “Do you want a ride?” he asked.
“No, thanks. We need the exercise.” The two turned and walked briskly up the street.
Charles returned to his car and picked up the bag of locks he had purchased, planning to install them on all of Sarah’s doors and windows. “I’d better hold off on this project,” he told himself.
Chapter 25
“Hi, everyone. Today we’ll be making our final block and next week we’ll begin putting our quilts together.” Katie was conducting the class again this week. “After class today,” she continued, “you might want to take a look at fabrics and choose your sashing and borders.”
Katie went on to explain that her mother had gone to Ohio to be with her sister. Not wanting to go into any more explanation, Katie immediately moved to the design board and laid her own blocks out. “We have eight blocks made and one to go.” As she passed out the instructions, she added, “Today we’re going to make the flower basket block. I’d guess this has to do with carrying provisions, don’t you think?” she asked.
Several people smiled and nodded and they began working on their blocks. Sarah was sitting at the table next to Danielle and her grandmother, Delores. They were talking about her high school friends and Delores was giving her the age-old advice about friends. “You’re judged by who your friends are,” Delores was saying. “And you know I don’t approve of that girl.”
“That girl is just fine, grandma. She’s an A student and planning to go to college. I don’t know why you don’t like her. Lighten up.”
“Lighten up?” Delores responded, straightening her back and raising her eyebrows. “Is that any way to speak to your elders?” Danny simply sighed.
Delores got up to freshen her coffee and Danny turned to Sarah, “I don’t know why she gets so upset about my friends.”
“Where do you go to school?” Sarah asked casually, not wanting to get into the middle of their tiff.
“I live in Hamilton over on the east side. There are a lot of wild kids in my school, but they aren’t my friends. I have a couple of girlfriends and they aren’t the ones that get in trouble.”
“In Hamilton?” Sarah said curiously. “Do you happen to know a Caitlyn Buckley?”
“I don’t really know her. She’s a grade below me, but she hung out with someone I know, Britney Harris. How do you know Caitlyn?” Danny asked.
Sarah felt growing excitement. Could it be that Danny knows something that would help us find Caitlyn? “I’m a friend of the family,” Sarah responded. “Did you know she ran away?”
“No. I had no idea,” Danny responded. “But I’m not surprised. Britney told me Caitlyn was coming to school with bruises and that she cried a lot. I don’t know what that was all about. As I said, I don’t know her personally.”
“I wonder if this Britney might know where she is. I was hoping to help the police find her.”
“The police?” Danny said, suddenly looking up at Sarah. “Is she in trouble?”
“No. She’s not in trouble. But she’s young and we want to make sure she’s safe. It can be dangerous for a young girl alone.”
Danny looked thoughtful. “Britney moved and I’m not sure where she moved to. Maybe I could find out…”
“I would so appreciate that, Danny,” Sarah said. “Would you call me if you find out?”
“Sure.” Sarah wrote her number down for Danielle, hoping the young girl would follow through. In the meantime, she made a note of Britney’s full name, just in case. This may be our first lead.
Sarah worked quickly on her block and rushed out of the shop just as the class finished. Once she got home, she called Amanda immediately and gave her Britney’s name. “I asked this young girl to find out what she could about where Britney moved,” Sarah explained, “but I decided we shouldn’t wait. Maybe Hamilton can find out something through the school.”
“I’ll get this to them right away, Sarah. This is good information. Thanks.”
* * *
A few hours later, Amanda called. “It’s not good news,” she began. “My friend just called
from Hamilton and said Britney’s parents haven’t mailed in their request for transfer forms yet. They aren’t due for another month and the secretary said she thought she remembered that Britney and her parents were traveling this summer.” Amanda went on to explain that the secretary didn’t remember where Britney was moving, but thought it was somewhere on the east coast.
“That doesn’t narrow it down much, does it?”
“No, but they have other ways. They’re going to talk with the father’s employer. I’ll let you know.”
“Please do.” After hanging up, Sarah snapped Barney’s leash on and said, “Come on, fellow. Let’s take a walk.” As she pulled the door closed behind her, she turned and locked the deadbolt, something she rarely did when she was simply walking Barney in the neighborhood. She then stepped over to the concrete planter, tilted it to the left, and removed the extra key stored there. “I guess I haven’t been as careful as I should be,” she said to Barney. Barney smiled and trotted off, leading her to some of his favorite sniffling spots.
After their walk, Sarah took her quilt class tote bag into the sewing room and took out her blocks. She had the eight blocks she made in class, the one she made from the instructions Ruth gave her from the class she missed, and four more she had made on her own. She had found a few patterns in the reproduction quilt book she purchased from Ruth and had also printed out a few patterns she found online. The previous year, Andy had encouraged her to take a computer class at the center and she had become proficient at using the search engines to find things that interested her.
She decided to make one of the new blocks. The instructions online were for an nine inch block and the ones she was making were twelve inches so she had to adjust the pattern to increase the size. “Charles would be good at this,” she told herself, wishing she could talk to him.
She wondered why she had insisted on taking time away from their relationship. She had told him they both needed to think about what they wanted, but it was pretty clear that Charles already knew what he wanted. He was careful to say he cared for her, but he had slipped up once and used the word love. She knew he loved her; she could tell by the way he looked at her and even the way he tried to protect her. Why am I fighting this so?
Her thoughts immediately went to the day Jonathan died. Her world died along with her husband that day. For months she had wallowed in grief and self-pity. She had spent most of her time sitting alone in her garden. She was not herself and she never wanted to feel that way again. Sarah knew it wasn’t logical to reject an opportunity to love and be loved just so she wouldn’t have to lose that love someday. And yet, that’s just what I’m doing.
Sarah went to the phone and dialed Charles number. He answered on the first ring. “Sarah?” he answered, sounding both relieved and apprehensive.
“Charles. I need for you to help me with a math problem. And also,” she added hesitantly, “I need a hug.”
Charles was quiet on the other end. He tried to speak but was afraid he would choke up. He was afraid to let her know how much he cared for her and how he feared losing her.
“Charles, are you there?” she asked.
“Yes, my love. I’m here and I have a hug right here I would like to share with you. I’m sorry about earlier…”
“Stop,” she interrupted. “I was behaving badly and I’m sorry…”
“Let’s agree to accept each other’s apologies and go on from there, okay?” Charles suggested with a chuckle.
A few minutes later they shared that much needed hug on the front porch. Sophie watched from her window and shook her head. “These young folks!”
Chapter 26
“Hi, Britney. This is Caitlyn.”
“Cat! Where are you?” Britney was shocked to hear from her friend. “Do you know the police are looking for you?”
“How do you know that?” Caitlyn asked with surprise.
“Some woman called my Mom. She wanted to know if we knew anything about where you might have gone. She told us you took off several months ago. Where are you?”
Caitlyn was reluctant to give Britney any information. Even though she was her best friend, Caitlyn was afraid of what Britney’s parents might do. “I’d rather not say,” she said. “I was going to ask if I could come stay with you, but it’s not a good idea if your parents know the police are looking for me. I was hoping we could tell them it was just a visit.”
Britney was quiet for a moment. “My Mom was very worried about you when she heard you were probably living on the street, but she said she was glad you got away from your dad.”
“You told her about him hitting me?”
“Yes. I know I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone, but I told my Mom. We were trying to think of some way to help you, but then dad got transferred to Long Island and we had to move really fast. Mom is worried about you, Cat. I think she might let you come here. I’ll ask her when she gets home. How can I reach you?”
“I bought this cheap cell phone. I’m not sure how long it’s good for, but I’ll give you the number. Let me know what she says.”
“How are you getting along? Are you alone?” Britney asked, unable to imagine what life on the street would be like.
“This woman has been helping me. She tells people I’m her granddaughter. She helps me find food and places to sleep. Sometimes people give her stuff because she has me. It works out.”
Britney could tell a difference in Caitlyn’s voice. She sounded tired and sad. “Are the police looking for you because you ran away, or are you in trouble for something?” she asked.
“I haven’t done anything wrong. Maybe they’re looking for me because my dad, I mean, Buck, reported me missing. I don’t know why he would since he threw me out.”
“Buck? Why are you calling him Buck?”
“Because he’s not my dad.”
“You never told me that!” Britney responded sounding surprised that her friend would keep that a secret.
“I didn’t know. My Mom told him that just before she left. Buck said my dad is a criminal. I don’t know who he is, though. It doesn’t matter. Who was the woman that called your mom?”
“Mom said her name was Miller. I don’t know who she is. Mom is supposed to call her if we hear from you.”
Caitlyn didn’t know anyone named Miller. She wondered who the woman was and how she knew about Britney. And now she knew for sure the police were looking for her as well.
“So, I’ll ask Mom if you can come, and call you back. Okay?” Britney was saying. There was a pause, and Britney said, “Cat? Are you still there?”
“Yes. I’m here. Just call me after you talk to your mom. Bye.”
Mattie was waiting nearby while Caitlyn made the call. “Any luck, sweetie?” she asked.
Mattie had first noticed Caitlyn behind a donut shop in Middletown. Caitlyn was packing discarded donuts into her backpack. Mattie had always wanted a daughter, and she took Caitlyn under her wing.
Mattie had a pronounced limp and appeared to be in her late sixties, but could have easily been younger. “Life on the street does that to people,” she had told Caitlyn. “Old before our time.” Caitlyn didn’t know Mattie’s last name if she even had one. She said she had been on the street most of her life. There was a time she lived in a hospital, but it closed down.
One day, a month or so before Caitlyn called Britney, Mattie told her they should go to Hamilton. “It’s a bigger town and has shelters and soup kitchens.”
Caitlyn was worried about going back to Hamilton, but she was hungry and sleepy. There wasn’t much help for them in Middletown. Mostly they were searching for food behind restaurants and sleeping in alleys.
Mattie and Caitlyn got a ride with a truck driver carrying chickens from Middletown to Hamilton. They rode in the back among the crates of chickens, but it was a warm summer day and a pleasant ride for them both. “Anything is better than just hanging out on the street,” Caitlyn had told Mattie.
Things were better for bot
h of them in Hamilton. They slept in a shelter every night and ate at least one meal a day at the soup kitchen. Caitlyn was beginning to get color back in her face, and the gnawing pain in her stomach was gone. There was no chance of being turned in since Mattie told everyone Caitlyn was her granddaughter.
But Caitlyn missed having a home, and she missed her friends. She even missed school. When she found Britney’s cell phone number in the bottom on her backpack, she wanted desperately to hear her friend’s voice. For days, she thought about calling Britney, and one day it occurred to her to ask Britney if she could come visit them. She knew Britney’s mother liked her. Maybe she’ll let me stay. She wasn’t even sure where Britney was living now, but thought it was worth a try.
“So,” Mattie repeated. “What did your friend say?”
“She’ll call me back. I don’t know what her mom will say, but I’m afraid they might turn me in. Britney said the police are looking for me.”
“We can’t let that happen,” Mattie said. “Did you tell them where you are?”
“No.”
“Good girl,” Mattie praised, giving her a motherly hug. “We’ll be just fine.”
Caitlyn wadded the phone number up and tossed it in the nearby trash can, along with the cheap cell phone.
Chapter 27
“Well, that was some display on your front porch last night.”
“Sophie, let it go,” Sarah imploded.
“I will. But not forever. On another subject, I was calling to see if you signed up for the hula hoop class?”
“I did. Why?” Sarah asked sounding confused.
“Because I was wondering if you would drive us to class since I might not be able to walk home after I break my body doing this crazy thing.”
“WHAT? You signed up?” Sarah exclaimed.
“Don’t sound so surprised. I’m just as willing as the next guy to make a colossal fool of myself. And I just might surprise you. I was quite a hula hooper in my day.”
“Oh Sophie! You’ve made my day,” Sarah responded enthusiastically. “This will be such fun. I’ll pick you up at 10:15.”
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