gurl4dalion

This isn’t right. Mom should have been home by now. The young girl sat in a rocking chair by the window, standing up suddenly when she heard a car pass by. Disappointment clouded her face as she slowly eased herself back into the rocker. I can’t just sit here for another two hours jumping every time I hear a car come by. Suddenly deciding to get a snack, she rummaged through the fridge and cupboards. Not that she was hungry. Far from it. She just wanted to pass the time somehow. Anything to keep her from worrying. But then, maybe she should worry. Something just didn’t feel right. Mom and Jared should have been home five hours ago. She hadn’t answered her cell phone, and when Samantha had called the Smith’s, they had told her mom had left two hours ago. Ms. Marge Johnson and her 4-year-old son Jared had attended a welcome home party for the Smith’s, because Marge was best friends with Mrs. Smith, a travel agent. Jared had come along because he had been a little fussy, his forehead was a little warm. Marge just decided it would be better to bring him, instead of going without him, and worrying the whole time. Oh mom, where are you? If she didn’t show up within the next half-hour, Samantha decided to call the police. Enough worrying. Time to grab the Good Book. Sam walked to the dining room table and reached for the musty leather bound book. It had been her grandfather’s for over 50 years, and now was hers. She cherished the musty smell and fingered the leather as she slowly opened the thick book. As always, she closed her eyes, and prayed for the Lord to show her where to read. Lord, You know how worried I am. So plea—RIIIIINNNNGGG!!! Startled, Samantha almost jumped clear out of her seat. Mom. She prayed with all her heart as she reached for the phone. She hesitated for a quick second before pressing the talk button. “Hello?”

Chapter 2

“Hello, is this Samantha Johnson?” a gruff male voice reached her, freezing her with thoughts that blasted through her brain and shook her. “Miss? Are you Samantha Johnson? Hello?”
“Uh....yes...yes, this is Samantha Johnson.”
“Miss Johnson, this is Officer Jackson speaking. I’m sorry to inform you that your mother has been in a serious car accident.” Breath steady. She’s gonna be okay. So is Jared. They have to be.
“Miss Johnson, I’m sorry. I know this must be a great shock to you. We need you to come identify the bodies, and we’ll take care of the rest. We’re assuming you have no father, am I correct?” Mom is dead. Jared is dead. He wants me to go identify the bodies. Come on, Sam, answer the man. You can grieve later. To her horror, her body didn’t want to grieve later. Hot tears slipped down her cheeks, and she strained to keep her voice steady. “Officer, that is correct. I can’t drive, so is somebody going to come pick me up?”
“Yes, I’ll send Officer Mcgrady over. She’ll be there in about 15 minutes, is that okay with you?”
“Yes, officer, that’s fine. Thank you.” Click. The 14 year old girl slowly sunk to the floor, and put her head in her hands. “Oh God, how could this be happening?! They can’t be dead! What am I going to do? I’m all alone!...” Samantha cried, making no effort to restrain her tears now. She sat there for ten minutes, barely conscious of the time. Finally, she stood, up, went to the bathroom to clean herself up. Puffy red eyes and a pale face greeted her in the mirror, as she splashed cold water on her face. Gently wiping the water off with a wash cloth, she heard a knock at the door. They didn’t waste any time, did they. She thought ruefully as she made her way to the door. As she opened the door, she did a quick size-up of Officer Mcgrady. A female, with about 5’6 with light blue eyes, straight blonde hair any woman would dream of, with a muscular build. Sam silently opened the door wider, allowing the officer to enter. “I’m just about ready, just let me shut some of the lights off, and get the keys.”
“Okay.” A slight pause. “I can only imagine how you must be feeling right now, Samantha. Your fourteen...right?”
Samantha nodded, and went in the back room to shut off a light. She came out a moment later, and stopped right in front of Mcgrady. “Look, officer, my dad died years ago, and it was just me, Jared, and mom. All I have left is some aunt in Nebraska who lives in some dump, who knows where. We’ve tried contacting her, tried to give her money, but all she does is smoke, drink, and party every day. I will not go live with her.”
Officer Mgrady had remained silent through the sudden outburst, with no expression. “I can understand that. But if she’s your only relative, I’m afraid you’ll have to go to her. Now, we’ll talk about that later. Please come with me.”
Samantha shook her head, but saw no other option.
There was silence on the way there, and there wasn’t anything to say anyway. It was on county road 11 where Sam saw flashing lights ahead in the darkness. Her stomach turned and tossed, and her heart seemed to stop. As the vehicle slowed to a stop, Sam didn’t wait for it to make a complete stop. She started running, until she saw the white sheets spread over two bodies. One was small, and the other was medium sized. Oh Lord. All noise was gone. Everything was numbed out as she stumbled towards the bodies. She couldn’t seem to take another step forward. She barely felt someone’s hand gently leading her forward. The tears came, and her vision blurred. Then it cleared again, and she was right next to them. Now it seemed as if she were dreaming, as she reached down, and pulled the sheet away from the face. Instant shock brought her out of the dream, and the noise came back, and the numbness was gone. It was not her mother.

Chapter 3

“I’m telling you, this is not my mother. Nor is that my little brother! My mom has light brown hair, this lady has blonde hair, officer!”
Samantha struggled to keep her voice down as she rubbed her head and closed her eyes.
Officer Jackson sighed, and shook his head. “But I thought for sure this was her. A witness came up and identified both of them as Marge and Jared Johnson. I just don’t get it.”
“Who identified them?” Samantha asked, her interest piqued.
“I’m sorry, the witness asked to remain unknown.”
Samantha frowned at him, confused. “Why would they do that? I mean, there’s nothing to be afraid of.” The big man shook his head. “Seems a bit suspicious to me. Everyone knows everyone in Belleville.”
“That’s true, everyone does. So it shouldn’t matter. Please tell me, officer!” Samantha begged, curious to find out.
“For the last time, no. Now, we have police searching for your mother and little brother, and we need to get you home. I’ll have Officer Valdez drive you home. Wait here.” With that, he left, and Samantha stood alone in the small office. She was at the police station, and it was 12:15. She looked out of the window, into the darkness, and thanked the Lord that it was not her mother and brother lying on the ground out there. The police hadn’t been able to contact anyone yet, no relatives, or anyone for the woman and child. Where were her mom and brother? Had they been kidnapped? It didn’t seem likely. But her uneasiness grew as she thought of the possibilities. A rough voice slightly accented Italian voice broke into her thoughts. “Miss Johnson, I’m Officer Tony Valdez. I’m going to be giving you a ride home. You all ready?” She turned to the speaker. One smiling brown eye greeted her. The other was hidden behind a black patch. Tony Valdez was definitely Italian. He had black wavy hair cut short to his head, and his face showed he had been in plenty a fight. A crooked nose, a busted eye, and a long white scar that ran on the left side of his head. She tried not to stare and she smile, and shook his hand. “Yes, I’m all ready.” He was almost as short as she was, but he wasn’t small, he was very broad-shouldered. He ushered her to the squad car, and he slowly pulled out of the accident scene. “I appreciate the ride.” Sam said quietly.
“No problem. Wow, it must have been someth’n to pull back that sheet and it’s not your mom, huh?”
“Yeah. I really thought they were dead.” She swallowed. Tony noticed, and was about to make a change in the subject, when Sam said, “I think somebody kidnapped them, I really do.”
Tony mulled that over for a moment before replying. “Could be.” He seemed reluctant to say anything, and Samantha sighed. “Not you too. Officer Jackson wouldn’t say anything either. Please, Mr. Valdez, it is possible, isn’t it? I mean, I think it’s weird that a witness identified them wrong. The witness it probably someone I know!”
“Probably is.” He turned a corner, focused on Samantha. “Just call me Tony. I hate all that Mr. Stuff. Listen, Samantha, I really don’t know what to say. Yes, she could have been kidnapped, and a lot of other things could have happened too, but we don’t want to jump to conclusions. they’ll turn up, don’t worry.” Sam looked at him uncertainly. “I know, but I can’t help it. She’s been gone it seems like forever, and I don’t know what to do.” Tony looked at her for a minute, then shrugged his big shoulders. “Samantha, I have a good Friend. Whenever I’m feeling down, or alone, I always go to him for help.” Samantha smiled. “I know, I do too. I guess I just need to trust in Him.” Tony gave her a warm smile. “I’m glad you know Him. Most people aren’t very friendly when I bring Him up. But you need something, or Someone to believe in when your a policeman, just the things you see, and do, it’s just really hard. But every night, I get to lay everything at His feet, and get ready for a new day. It’s just great, I’m glad He’s in my life.”
“Me too. Thank you for being understanding. It seems like Officer Jackson, and Officer Mcgrady weren’t very understanding.” Tony snorted, then made a good effort in looking ashamed. “Sorry about that. I’ve had some trouble with them in the past.” “I can understand that.” Sam said, smiling.

Piczo