Page 3 of Keeping Penny

Bowie’s hearing was better than the average child’s, likely overcompensation for her lack of sight, so she was able to hear her mom’s question over the roar of the engine and rotor blades.

“I’m great!” she answered enthusiastically. “This is fun!”

Penny couldn’t help but smile. Her daughter was patting the arm of the crying woman next to her, offering comfort. But the six-year-old looked decidedly unfazed herself. Once again, pride swelled within Penny. The two of them had been through some pretty tough times together, and it was obvious her daughter had learned to go with the flow as much as Penny had.

Relieved her daughter didn’t comprehend the danger they were in, Penny sat back. She kept a hand on Bowie’s leg as her gaze was drawn once more to the man flying the helicopter. Well, one of them in particular.

All of the man’s attention was on the instruments in front of him and the terrain outside. His lips were moving as he spoke to the man next to him, or maybe to someone else through the headset over his ears. He oozed confidence and competency, and that alone made Penny feel safe. He obviously knew what he was doing. Neither him nor the other pilot were panicking. From what she could tell, they were working in tandem, getting them away from whatever was happening below, away from whoever was trying to hurt them.

She’d learned the hard way that the only thing that truly mattered in life was Bowie. Her husband had let her down time and again, and when he was killed, he’d left behind a mountain of debt…and an enemy who’d do whatever it took to get the money he felt was owed to him.

Financially, the last two years had been tough. Extremely tough. Most of the money Penny made went toward paying off her husband’s debts. Even though she’d left the city, the man John owed had found her, insisting she give him regular payments to settle the obligation. She and Bowie lived just as many of the locals did…in extreme poverty.

But despite that, they were content, if not happy. The threat of John’s wildly changing moods was gone. Penny didn’t have to worry about whether or not he’d come home from work pissed off at the world, ready to yell at her or Bowie for the smallest things he’d decided they’d done wrong. She no longer walked on eggshells, and the sound of laughter frequently rang out in their tiny one-room hut.

Finding themselves in the middle of an attempt at taking over the government was surreal. And never in a million years did Penny think she’d be inside a helicopter. Still…even though they were basically on the run for their lives, and people were probably shooting at them, she couldn’t hold back another smile at seeing the pleasure Bowie was getting out of the flight.

She had no idea how long they flew, but eventually the sound of the engines changed. Penny assumed they were landing, but she had no clue where. The instructions she’d received at the hotel were vague at best. She and Bowie were at the mercy of the US government now. They had nowhere to go, no family to return to in the States, and no money to stay in a hotel. They could only wait and figure out what came next.

She should’ve been stressed out beyond belief, and while she was a little apprehensive, Penny had lived through worse. And the thought of getting out of Gabon, away from those who thought she should pay for her husband’s sins, was actually a huge relief. Because the truth was, she had no way of leaving Gabon if it wasn’t for the US government intervening and evacuating them.

Penny didn’t like being at the mercy of others, but she’d been that way for much of her life, so this didn’t feel so different. She had faith she’d be all right. That she and Bowie would navigate whatever was in their future together, as they’d done everything else.

Holding on to Bowie’s leg, Penny jerked a little as the chopper landed. Anticipation swam in her veins. What new opportunities awaited her? Would Bowie get to go to a school for the first time in her life? She hoped so. Because while Penny had done her best to homeschool her, she knew the older her daughter got, the harder that would become.

And Bowie was extremely social, more so than her mom. She loved meeting new people, and most of those she met immediately loved her. Bowie would have no problem making friends, and Penny had no fears about her being left behind academically. Her daughter was smart. Probably too smart for her own good.

She wondered where the government might place them in the States. It didn’t really matter, but Penny hoped it was somewhere safe. That’s all she wanted for herself and her daughter…to be safe. It had been so long since she’d known true safety, Penny didn’t even remember what it felt like. To never have to look over her shoulder or cringe every time someone knocked on the door. No longer wonder who might show up out of the blue, saying they were there to collect on John’s debts.

Realizing she was worrying about things she had no control over, Penny did her best to turn her thoughts to the here and now.

The rotor blades on the chopper slowed, allowing everyone to be able to talk once more.

And talk they did. The women began asking the pilots where they were, what was going to happen next, when they’d be able to go back to their homes in Libreville.

The man sitting beside the one who’d helped them into the helicopter climbed out of his pilot’s seat. The rotor blades had mostly stopped by then, and he held up a hand as he took off his headset.

“You’re all safe now. We’re on a US aircraft carrier off the coast. I don’t know what the plans are for you to return to the city, but I’m guessing it won’t be anytime soon. Once we get you out of this chopper, you’ll be brought to a room and someone will come in and explain what happens next.”

Everyone seemed to speak at once, complaining, crying, and generally expressing their fears and concerns about the future. Penny couldn’t blame them, but bitching about the situation wouldn’t help anyone.

“Mommy, we’re on a boat?” Bowie asked, the awe and excitement easy to hear in her voice.

“Yeah, honey. I guess we are.”

“That means there won’t be any dust.”

Penny chuckled. They both hated the red dust that seemed to be everywhere outside the city. The roads were made of the hard-packed red earth, as was the floor of their home, and it got into everything. “You’re right, sweetie.”

“Awesome!” Bowie breathed.

Leave it to her daughter to be excited about something as small as no dust, instead of worrying about where their next meal would come from or where they’d sleep tonight. But then again, those were things for Penny to be concerned about. Not a six-year-old little girl. Penny had always done whatever it took to make sure her daughter was fed and comfortable. That she never knew what the scary men who visited their hut at random times really wanted.

The door to the helicopter slid open, and Penny stared out onto the deck of the aircraft carrier in fascination. Her life seemed surreal right now. First a helicopter ride, and now she was on an actual military ship. Life was weird sometimes.

Hanging back, letting the other women and children get helped out of the chopper first, Penny held Bowie’s hand tightly in her own. She had some anxiety about what came next for them, but she stayed calm. Unlike a lot of the passengers, who were still crying and carrying on, she stood patiently with Bowie, waiting their turn.

“You two okay?”