AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What has you smiling like that?” she asks, looking at me.
“The thought of getting a dog. I haven’t had one since I was a little girl. I’ll need to find an apartment that allows pets first, though.”
“Well, I’m sure we can find you something. You’ll be getting your first check soon. People around Fraser will work with you starting out,” she responds.
I fidget nervously. I don’t know how to talk to her about the check situation. Well, it’s more of a ‘lack of having an ID’ situation. Without that, I can’t get a check cashed.
“Andi,” she says, her voice firm.
She must have spotted me chewing on my lip and wringing my hands.
I sigh. “It’s just that, well…” I pause. I’m nervous and don’t want to lie. I feel like I can trust Irene, and she said she’s been where I am. But the fear of anyone knowing anything real about me terrifies me. “I don’t have an ID… with, uh… mycurrentname,” I finish, hoping she gets the message I’m trying to convey in as few words as possible. What I said is the truth, but it doesn’t give too much away.
Her eyes continue to focus ahead, processing what I just said to her.
“I will make your checks out to Andi Sparks. You will sign them, Andi Sparks, and I will cash them for you at the café. No oneneeds to know,” she says without a glance as we pull into the store parking lot. She puts the truck in park, getting out without another word.
Shocked, I scramble from the truck. But before I can bring it up again, she says, “We need two of these flat buggies. One for each of us.”
“Got it,” I respond, following her inside.
Inside, Irene is a woman on a mission. I trail behind her, barely keeping up. We load numerous twenty-five-pound bags of sugar and flour, fresh fruits to turn into pastry filling, and alotof bags of coffee beans. It seems like the list is endless, but there isn’t a word of complaint from me. I’m glad to be out and seeing new things.
Walking down an outside aisle, something catches my eye just beyond the exit door. There’s a payphone.There’s no way that works.
I haven’t seen an actual payphone in years, but I have to go see if it works. My cart is already full, and I glance over at Irene, then back to the payphone.
“Irene, I’m going to leave my cart right here. I need to make a call. I’ll be right back,” I inform her cautiously. I’m determined to contact Addy.
She nods at me, a smile on her lips. “Go ahead. I can manage.”
Leaving my cart with her, I head toward the exit. Every step I take is a fight not to sprint across the store and out the doors. When I get inside the booth, I take a hopeful breath and grab the receiver. A relieved sigh escapes me. Much to my surprise, there’s a dial tone. Addy should be on her school campus right now. She has classes until 2 in the afternoon Monday to Thursday. So, I’m not too worried that my family will be around her. I just hope she isn’t in class. My hands are shaking, but I quickly dial Adalyn’s number.
“Please insert 25 cents,”a voice says over the phone. It’s been many, many years since I’ve heard that. If I weren’t so nervous, I’d laugh. I frantically search my handbag for a quarter. Luck is on my side when I locate a loose one at the bottom of my bag. I squeal as I pull it out and shove it into the coin slot.
It’s ringing!
“Hello?” she answers, her voice curious. She probably thinks it’s a spam call.
I almost burst into tears immediately. Trying to calm myself, I choke out, “Addy,it’s me. Can you talk?”
“YES! Oh, my gosh!Yes, I cantalk.” she cries. “Andrea, is it really you?! Where are you? Are you okay? I’ll come get you; just tell me where you are!” Her rapid-fire questions come between sobs.
“Yes, it’s me. I’mokay. I’m so sorry I had to leave in such a hurry. I wanted to take you with me, so we could stick together like we talked about, but it all happened so fast. Please forgive me.” Tears flood my eyes, blurring my vision as the need for her to understand grows. I can’t bear the thought of her being angry with me or feeling betrayed.
“It’s okay. I’m not mad at you. I know you wouldn’t have left like that if you didn’t have to. I’ve been so worried.”
Though I was confident she’d forgive me, guilt still filled me.
“I need you to listen to me, okay?” I take a deep breath, steadying myself.
“What is it?”
“I can’t come home right now, and I can’t tell you where I am because it isn’t safe for you to know. It’s better this way, okay? I don’t have my cell phone because I had to ditch it so no one could find me. I’ll call you every chance I get. If you’re around anyone when an unknown number calls, let it go to voicemail. We can’t chance them finding out we’ve talked.”
“Christopher tracked your cell phone to the train station. He knows you left, but he doesn’t know where your ticket destination was. The cameras were down at the station the day you left, and he won’t get the courts involved. It’s been a dead end, after dead end. Andrew told him he wouldn’t help him either. Something is going on with them. Things are tense. He said someone attacked him, and when he regained consciousness, you were gone. I think he’s trying to make it look like you had someone attack him so you could leave.” She audibly tries to catch her breath as she finishes.
I take a moment to compose myself. Anger flares inside of me when I think about him trying to make himself the victim. Classic fucking Christopher.
