AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“...Went by the handleSpankKing69on a number of gig apps,” said a deep, disembodied voice.
Oh my gosh, SpankKing!
The story continued, zooming in on SpankKing’s scowling face. “He’s said to have hired at least eleven unsuspecting workers to babysit for him, only to give them a weasel instead of a child. He never returned for the animals or paid the workers.”
That was exactly what had happened to me.
The picture changed to the front steps of what looked like a government building. “He was apprehended upon unleashing a cage filled with seven weasels in the state capitol while proclaiming ‘weasel for president.’ An additional thirty-two weasels were found in his home. With all current charges, he’s facing a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.”
Wow. I stood on the chair, dumbfounded.
The story changed to something about an upcoming festival. I turned the volume back down, turned on the closed captioning, and climbed down from the chair.
A girl who looked vaguely familiar came up to me as I stared down the new coffee machine that wasn’t here the last time I was. She had mousey brown hair and a button nose, and she looked no older than fifteen.
“It’s all set. I started her up this morning,” the girl said.
“Hi, I’m—” I started.
“Morgan, I know. Greg is always talking about you. Plus, we met when I was still a kid.”
It dawned on me then who she was. She looked like the little girl who used to live next door.
“Gina?” I asked.
“Yep.”
“You’re so big.”
“Time does that,” she said with a warm smile. “You look mostly the same as I remember.”
“Thank you,” I chuckled. “How’d you end up working for my dad?”
“Well, it’s just until I go off to college. Or maybe part time if I go to the community college. Maybe I’ll be like you. You’re doing what you love, right? That’s what your dad said. He says you went off to follow your dream and moved to Epiphany.” Confusion crossed her face like she just realized we weren’t currently in Epiphany. “You’re going back after your visit here, right?”
I didn’t have a good answer to that.
“I’m taking a break.” I got back to wiping tables.
“He’s so proud of you—your dad, I mean. He talks about you constantly,” she said.
It was another twist to my heart. He was proud that I’d gone off to follow my dreams. I’d been proud of me, too. It hurt to think about it now.
“Hey, Peanut,” my dad called from the back.
Grateful for an excuse to escape, I smiled at Gina and hurried into the back.
“I need your help with something,” he said. Then he threw up his hands in the universal sign to stop. “Hang tight. I’ll be right back.”
He’d just asked me to come back here.
“Okay,” I said, and waited.
He scurried to the front and spoke to Gina. I couldn’t make out what they were saying, then he returned, a weird smile on his face. “Okay. Come on.”
I followed him out of the shop and down the street away from the small cluster of businesses that made up the town.
“What are we doing?” I asked, realizing this couldn’t be about getting more cups or coffee filters. There was nothing out this way but open fields, forests, and the occasional farm house.
