Wrecked and Yours Trilogy: A Second Chance Love Story Read online

  She felt like she was suffocating.

  “Please!” she begged. “Let me go! Just let me out!’ Miranda pushed against them, and ran past the bathroom for the entry door.

  Once outside, she didn’t stop. She ran through the oven-like parking lot baked by the June sun. She flew along the street and then down a back alley. Sweat trickled down her back. Her feet ate up the distance, even as her lungs screamed for air. She wanted to hurt, to feel the pain, wishing it would somehow rip away the agony she carried inside.

  At the edge of town she disappeared into the woods, still not slowing down. She jumped over logs and weaved around bushes. After a half-mile, she came to an open grassy clearing.

  She walked up the hill, feeling the white daisies brush her legs, to where an apple tree stood like a lone sentinel. Her tree.

  Miranda skidded to a stop. Sometime during the night there had been a windstorm. She’d barely noticed it, having been roused from sleep to comfort Cassie who’d woken from a nightmare. The tree had split off at the “Y,” at her dreamer’s crook. The branch lay on the ground, still heavy with flowers.

  She stared at it uncomprehendingly.

  Running to the opposite side of the split branch, she slid down the trunk. She drew her knees close and pressed her face into them.

  “Why did I tell him?” she whispered. Miranda cringed in shame and guilt at the sound of her confession. Her hands reached into the dried leaves and clenched. Oh God! Why him? We needed him!

  “Dad!” She screamed at the sky. “DAD! I’m so sorry. Daddy! Come back. I need you. Please, don’t leave me.” She collapsed forward into the dirt.

  The sun was setting when she finally pushed herself up. Her tears had dried, leaving stinging tracks on her cheeks. She looked into the tree’s branches. The wet mark from the broken branch dripped with sap. On the ground, the flowers wilted in mopey clusters on branches that stuck out like witch’s fingers. Miranda pulled off a flower and brought it to her nose. There was no smell, as though the wind stole its scent when it had murdered the tree. She tucked the soft flower into her pocket and turned to go. After half a step, she withdrew it and threw it back at the tree.

  Miranda slogged back through the woods toward her house. When she was a block away from her home, she heard a man yelling.

  “Miranda!”

  She cringed. Her uncle was calling for her. “I’m ignoring you, you dirty, disgusting…” she muttered.

  “Miranda! Get out here now!” A truck door slammed. “I’ve got Cassie.”

  She closed her eyes. You can’t be scared any more. You’ve got to do this. Make it happen. Take care of Cassie.

  Untucking her black shirt from her pants, she ran the rest of the way. Once out on to the street she yelled, “I’m here.”

  Then she frowned. There was a cop car sitting in front of her house.

  3

  ~June Seven Years Earlier~

  Miranda ran past her uncle and the police officer who stood together on the sidewalk. Panic grabbed her throat, and she spun around. Where was Cassie? Was she hurt?

  She hurried to peer into the back yard. The windows of her house were black. Miranda felt a chill. It was as if the house had already rid itself of her family and was glad they were gone.

  “Cassie?” Miranda yelled. “Cassie! Where are you?”

  “I’m here, silly.” Her ten-year-old sister wandered from the side yard with Poppy, her white terrier, looped over one arm.

  “Oh, thank God.” Miranda held her tight, feeling her heart thud against her ribs. Sandwiched in between them, the dog licked Cassie’s face, causing her sister to giggle. Her laughter was like a warm balm to Miranda’s heart.

  The officer cleared his throat, alerting her to the men watching. He raised his hand to wave at her, the other hand clutching a small clipboard.

  “There you are, Miranda.” Uncle Vince walked over to the girls. “We were worried about you.”

  He had been alone with Cassie. Ice-like fear rushed through Miranda’s veins. I should have never left her. How could I have been so stupid? She grabbed her sister by the shoulders and searched her blue eyes. “You all right?” Miranda whispered.

  Cassie nodded.

  “I’m surprised you left her.” Her uncle lit a cigarette with his silver Zippo, snapping it shut with a click. “You made her worried.”

  “I wasn’t worried,” Cassie piped up. “I figured she went to her special place.”

  “And where’s that?” Her uncle’s eyes glittered. “What do you do in your special place?”

  The police officer cleared his throat again. “Seems like the girls are here and safe. You’ll be taking them into your custody now?” He asked like it was a question.

  Miranda reached for her sister's hand. No way, no how. “Yes, officer.”

  Uncle Vince smiled, his incisors flashing like shark’s teeth in the police car lights.

  The men bent down over the clipboard, and Uncle Vince pulled out his cell phone.

  Miranda led her sister behind the truck. She bent down to whisper. "When I say run, you run. Got that?" She looked into her sister’s eyes. "You go to my special place. You run like the first one there wins an ice cream."

  Miranda stood back up. “Run.” She watched Cassie sprint off with a soft scrape of her shoe on the gravel, and exhaled with relief as she disappeared into the neighbor’s back yard.

  It’s time to put your game face on. Girl, you’ve got this. Miranda straightened to her full five-foot three-inches and stepped towards the men. “Hey, I have a question.”

  Her uncle's brow furrowed in irritation. He rubbed it away with a pinch of his thumb and forefinger, and smiled. “Where’d Cassie go?”

  “Oh, she took the dog around back. Anyway, well, school, you know. I, um, I have a final test tomorrow.” Miranda let her eyes puddle as she kicked at a rock with the toe of her converse. “I know it's stupid at a time like this."

  "Grief can take all forms," the police officer whispered behind his clipboard.

  Uncle Vince held a hand out to her; smooth and white. "If you want to go to school tomorrow, I'll drive you in the morning." He pursed his lips.

  Nausea rolled in spikes in her stomach. "Even without all my school books?”

  The men glanced at each other, then the officer said, "Now, don't you worry about that tonight. If you want to go tomorrow, everyone will understand about the books." Then, over the top of her head, he whispered, "Grief counselor, STAT."

  Uncle Vince nodded. He put his arm around her and squeezed tight, his fingers digging into her arm.

  Miranda nodded as though she’d just been comforted, and her skin shivered from his contact. The officer reached out to shake her uncle’s hand. “You have a good family. You’re going to be okay."

  Casually, Miranda took a step backward and stared up at the house. Just be cool, go slow. The officer tapped the notebook, reading over what he had written.

  Just a few more steps, and she would be near the dark shadows of the hedge.

  Uncle Vince glanced over at her.

  "Don't be wandering off, Miranda."

  "Just one last thing," the officer said, and Uncle Vince turned back.

  Miranda fled. Her feet pounded on the marshy grass as she raced for the tree line.

  "Miranda!"

  She ran to the left of the house, along the prickly hedge, and through a gap in the fence. From behind her, Miranda could hear footfalls chasing after her. In a minute she was through the gap and racing the back way to the trees. This was her territory, and she retraced the steps that she’d come earlier, hopefully following her sister.

  She heard a happy yip at her feet, and nearly screamed. Poppy was there, happy to scamper along on whatever fun adventure this seemed to be.

  Miranda stopped to pick up the dog. She grabbed the dog’s jaw, locking her mouth. “Shhhhhhhh.” She held the terrier up on her shoulder like a baby and kept running.

  After fifteen minutes she rounded the ben
d into the daisy field. As Miranda ran up the grassy hill to the apple tree, she let out a whistle, the same one they’d used through the heater vents at night to meet for a midnight snack.

  Miranda stopped and listened. Nothing but the wind blowing through the branches. Poppy clawed to be let loose, so Miranda set her on the ground. She whistled again.

  A pin-prick of alarm rose inside.

  “Cassie, it’s me! Cassie, where are you?"

  Poppy stopped in her tracks, and stared at the dark smudge of trees at the bottom of the hill. She shook with excitement. A figure in a pink dress broke the tree line.

  “Cassie!” Laughter tore out of her in happy gasps. Her sister ran towards her and nearly knocked her down when she leapt into her arms. Miranda staggered back at her force and squeezed her tight. “Great job, Sis. I’m so proud of you.”

  As she held her sister, she wondered how long it would take for her uncle to find this spot.

  “Don’t worry, Chickee, I’m going to take care of you. We’re going to be okay.”

  “Where are we going to go, Miranda?”

  “Don’t you worry about that. I’ve got a place in mind.” She didn’t really, but what choice did she have? They’d head west to Seattle. Somehow she’d get a job.

  * * *

  That night they slept in a shed in someone’s back yard. The sun woke Miranda the next morning, making her squint as it sliced through the crack in the door. Her head pounded with the reality of their new life.

  “Wake up, Cassie.” She shook her sister.

  Her sister sat up and yawned, stretching her arms high overhead. Poppy stumbled over from where she’d been lying and plopped her head on Cassie’s leg.

  “Where we going now?” Cassie asked.

  “Well, we’ve got to get out of here, and maybe find some food.” Miranda looked around the shed for something they could use. Lawn mower, yard tools, and a rusty barbecue. Hanging on the far wall was a camo-patterned backpack. Miranda lifted it off the wall, stifling a squeal at the spider web caught on the back of it.

  “Yuck, yuck, yuck!” She shuddered, scraping the web off with a trowel. She unzipped the bag. It was filled with tangled old rope. “Well,” she said, after she emptied it out and stuffed the rope under the lawn mower. “This bag is a start.”

  Sitting on the workbench was a half-empty pop bottle. She unscrewed the lid to sniff it, then dumped the contents out.

  “All right, let’s go.” Miranda crept to the door and peeked out. No one was in sight. Waving to her sister, she lead her along the fence over to the house where there was an outdoor faucet. Already the day was warm and Miranda pulled at the front of her dark funeral shirt. She tucked her brown hair around her ears then twisted the faucet. They both took a long drink. Afterwards, she held the pop bottle under the spigot, and screwed the lid on tight when it was filled.

  As quietly as they could, they hurried out of the yard.

  They weren’t as lucky on food. After wandering until late morning, all they’d found were a few handfuls of tiny strawberries. Miranda saw green plums on several trees, but knew the consequences of eating them before they ripened. Being up all night sick didn't sound too fun out here in the open.

  There was a fallen log ahead. Miranda eyed it and beckoned to her sister. “Let’s take a second and figure out what we’re going to do.” Miranda walked over to it and sat. She noticed her sister’s braids. “Come here, Chickee.” Deftly, she undid them, and Cassie sighed as her hair was freed.

  “Better?” Miranda asked.

  “So much.” Cassie massaged her scalp as Miranda snapped one of the rubber bands around her wrist. She handed the other to her sister.

  “Put your hair in a pony tail. I hate to say it, but I think we’re going to have to go back into town.”

  “Great, because I’m starving.”

  Miranda was afraid to do it, in case they ran into their uncle, but she didn’t see another choice. They left the cool of the trees and followed the sidewalk out of the housing development and back to the main street.

  “Remember, we’re just two kids who have a half day at school,” Miranda coached Cassie. “Just pretend like you belong.”

  Cassie held Poppy in her arms, scolding her like a naughty child every time she kicked to get down.

  Up ahead were the iconic arches of the town’s fast food restaurant. Miranda frowned and bit her lip. “We’ve got to figure out what we’re going to do with Poppy. Can’t bring her into the restaurant.” She eyed her little sister. The next part of her plan was going to be a hard sell. “I think the next yard we see that's fenced, we leave her there.”

  “What?” Cassie’s eyes bulged. “Oh heck no we aren’t—“

  “It’ll just be temporary until we get food. Then we’ll come back and get her.”

  “What if someone finds her?”

  “We’re going to hurry. No one will find her.”

  “Why can’t I just wait outside for you?”

  “There’s no way I’m letting you out of my sight, Sis. Sorry.”

  Cassie held Poppy closer to her and kissed her furry head. Her eyes slanted with worry.

  “We’ll find someplace safe, I promise.”

  It took a bit of wandering through the neighborhood before they found the right place. A cute house, with the garage door shut, that looked like the family was gone for the day. The back yard was fenced with six foot planking. After quickly scouting the yard, Miranda found a toy pot that she filled with some water.

  Cassie reluctantly set the dog down. “Be good, Poppy. We’ll be right back.”

  They shut the gate. Miranda reached over and grabbed her sister’s hand and gave it three squeezes, their secret code to say they loved each other. Cassie squeezed back.

  “You ready?” Miranda asked. Cassie nodded, making her blonde ponytail swing. “Okay, let’s run.”

  The two of them arrived at the restaurant hot and sweaty, and Miranda regretted the run. She smoothed the fly-aways in her dark hair back where it had gone crazy with curls, and bent to tug at her sister’s shirt. “Tuck that back into your skirt, Cassie.”

  Nodding at the outcome, Miranda pulled open the restaurant’s door.

  The salty, greasy smell assaulted her, and she closed her eyes for a second and swallowed. Cassie’s stomach gurgled, spurning Miranda into action. She led her sister to a booth and gestured towards it. “Sit tight.”

  Miranda meandered up to the front. On the way, she passed a group of construction men, and eyed the trays sitting in front of them. I could just snatch that and run. But she couldn’t risk getting caught, and maybe shipped back to her uncle. You gotta think smart.

  An elderly couple walked to the counter, the wife with her arm resting in the crook of her husband’s.

  I’m not afraid. I’m brave. I’m tough. Miranda ran her sweaty hands down her hair again, then hurried over to them.

  “Excuse me,” she asked the man. “My sister and I have lost our lunch money. Is there any way you might buy us a burger?”

  The elderly man glared at her. His white eyebrows quivered like two snowfields teetering on the edge of an avalanche. “When I was your age—” he began.

  His wife patted his arm. “Oh stop, Edward. This nice young lady needs our help.”

  “Our help, Pauline?” he said gruffly. “Or a handout?”

  Adjusting her green sweater, the woman looked at Miranda. “Well, which is it, dear? How did you happen to lose your money?”

  “I, uh.” Dizzy spots flooded in front of her eyes.

  The man harrumphed. “See, I told you so.”

  Miranda took a step backwards as the words fled her mind. Her cheeks heated.

  “It’s my fault.” Cassie popped up at her elbow. “By the way, I like your hat.” She flashed her dimples at the lady.

  “Oh, well thank you.” The woman lightly touched the brim and smiled brightly.

  “I have to walk to school, and every day I get chased by this really big do
g. I think it’s a Doberman.” Cassie lifted the hem of her skirt. “See this scab right here?” She touched her knee with her index finger. “I fell last week.”

  The old woman frowned and clucked her tongue.

  “So yesterday I gave my money to Jerry Davis, who said he’d bring me a bone or something to give to the dog. But then, he took our money.”

  Cassie curled her hand into her sister’s, her blue eyes brimming with tears. “I’m sorry, Sis.”

  Miranda was in awe. What the heck? Who knew her baby sister could spin such great stories? She pulled her close and kissed the top of her blonde head. “It’s okay. We’ll think of something to do about that dog.”

  “Aww, Edward,” Pauline patted her husband’s arm. “We can afford two cheeseburgers.”

  Edward sighed, but included the cheeseburgers in their order. “And two apple pies,” his wife added.

  Cassie squeezed Miranda’s hand in excitement.

  “Thank you so much,” Miranda said, shaking the woman’s hand, after she passed the girls the food.

  “You’re welcome dear. Would you like to join us?”

  “Pauline.” Her husband rolled his eyes.

  “Edward, they might like the company.”

  He said nothing but breathed heavily out his nose. Cassie stared at it.

  “We have to get back to school, but thank you again,” Miranda said quickly. She gave them a wave and walked back to the counter to get a bag and a couple of cups. Miranda piled the food into the bag while her sister filled the cups, and then they headed outside.

  Cassie paused in mid-step. “Is that Uncle Vince?”

  Miranda whirled around to look. Her uncle was walking into a pawnshop, carrying her dad’s violin. She gasped, both at the sight of him, and at seeing her dad’s precious relic in his hands.

  “Turn around.” Cassie tugged her arm. “We have to go.”