Chapter 19: Fagua

I had a suitcase crammed full of clothes I’d never possessed in my life, and all I could think about was how to get out of this town. Everything that had happened in the space of two weeks had made me feel degraded. I got out of the elevator and kept walking, and walking, not knowing what direction I was going in, or even what I was doing, but walking seemed to solve my problems.

Downtown was confusing, and I felt like I’d been walking in circles. A big clock chimed, confirming I’d been walking for over two hours. I’d never walked so far in my life. It was as if my anxiety was going into overtime, and the more I walked, the more it relaxed me until I was hungry.

I stumbled across a diner, which was pretty quiet, and I strolled inside, dragging my case with me. I was a healer. This must be why Pa didn’t want me to leave town. He wanted me to stay and heal the wolves. So many damn thoughts ran through my mind. Like Winter and why he and his brothers had lured me here in the first place. They had made out like Keith was the jerk, but he wasn’t, not entirely. Maybe he had been the innocent one after all.

So many damn questions and no answers.

I slumped into the empty booth, thinking I didn’t even have to read the menu to know I craved every scent that was teasing my nose right now, from pancakes to greasy hamburgers. At this rate, the hundred dollars I had in my purse would be spent today.

“You look as if you could do with something stronger than anything we serve here,” the pretty blonde server said.

I blinked my eyes for a second, wondering if it was Ma in front of me. They appeared to be the same age, and even had the same pointy, sharp nose and sparkling blue eyes.

“No.” I shook my head to clear it. “Just whatever your special is, I could do with something to eat. I haven’t eaten for a while.”

She winked. “Leave it to me. I know just what you need.”

I chuckled, thinking she did not know what all I’d been through. It didn’t take her long to come back with coffee and a big hamburger with all the trimmings. I laughed for a split second about the guys being here. I had a quick vision of Husk demanding he wanted four more of them. The pile of fries around the burger were still steaming, and I couldn’t wait to dig into everything. I doused the fries with salt and pepper then wondered if one of the guys liked them this way too, or if they’d grumble I’d ruined them, or maybe drown them in ketchup.

I shook my head at the idea. They were the last people I should think about.

“Hopefully, this will put a smile on your face.” The server left a giant chocolate piece of cake complete with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles on top.

As I ate my mind didn’t wonder. The food was so good, and I was so starved I ate it all, even licked the whipped cream off my fork.

I noticed a guy looking at me. I turned my head away because I didn’t want to give him the wrong idea. But he stepped up to me and hovered over my table. I finished the last bite, and I closed my eyes for a split second to savor the taste and ignore him. He was a middle-aged man with an oversized belly and a balding head, which he tried to disguise with his fading baseball cap. I knew it, before he even lifted the hat off his head by the way it sat so low on his head and no hair poked out anywhere. There were so many truckers like him, humans who stopped in at our diner. It was rare, but enough for me to know he must be one of those guys.

“Agua, right?” He pointed at me.

“No. Fagua.”

So he knew me.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to stare and scare you. It’s just I recognized you and couldn’t remember your name. Your parents own the diner and pretty much everything in SmallHeath. I’ve stopped over there twice.”

I motioned for him to sit because he seemed nervous just standing in front of me.

“Not nearly everything in town. But, yeah they own the diner and the factory.”

“And the bar and the store.”

I nodded in agreement. “Yeah, they did, but I hardly go in there so sometimes, I just don’t think about it.”

“Well, there’s not much else in SmallHeath.”

That we could agree on.

“Anyway, I’ve taken up enough of your time and you have to have the berry pie too. It’s worth dying for. I need to be heading back on the road.”

It was as if the last part of his sentence gave me an idea.

“Where are you heading?”

He sat down. This was when it hit me. Like so many truckers, they were on the road all the time, and when they came into the diner, they loved to talk. It was a lonely job; it paid well but still lonely.

“I’m not going to SmallHeath, but I could get you near there. If you like?”

I nodded. Home. Where else could I go? Ma and Pa would be so angry I’d left, but relieved I was okay. And I had questions for them, like why they’d never told me about this apparent healing ability I had. At the thought, my gut clenched with remorse of leaving Sky when he was dying. No, that couldn’t be true. It had to be another lie Husk had thought up to try and keep me trapped there.

“I gather you came to see the bright lights, and it wasn’t all it cracked up to be.”

“Something like that.” I shrugged.

“I have to get a few things, then I could meet you back here in about twenty minutes. Sound good?” He shot to his feet, as if the idea of us traveling together was a bonus for him. He didn’t realize he was helping me out, in more ways than one.

“You’ve got a deal.” I smiled at him.

He ducked his head, and as quick as he was by my side, he was out of it again.

“Are you sure honey, going with Frank?” My server came up to me with the check. “I mean he seems nice and all, but a pretty young thing like you, needs to be careful.”

She was worried about my safety, but she didn’t have to be. Besides I sensed underneath his gruff appearance, he had a big cuddly exterior. Frank seemed to be a nice guy.

“Seems to be a nice guy, and I could really do with the ride.”

She put a gentle hand on my shoulder. “Be careful.”

I was about to say something to reassure her, but before I got the chance some rude customers complained about their food and let everyone know they had an issue with their order. I hated people like that. I’d come across them one too many times at the diner. They didn’t have issues with their orders, but whatever problems they had in their lives. Without a care for anyone else but themselves, they decided they needed to take it out on their server. As if we were really the one causing their bad day.

When she returned, I asked for two pieces of the berry pie to go. One small way I could pay Frank back for taking me back close to home.

As soon as she brought the pies, I tucked them to my chest. I felt better already, the feeling of a good meal had satisfied me so much and the kindness of the server made me forget for the time while I was in here.

“Thank you.” I took a note of the server's name—Wendy—and the address.

Outside, Frank waited at the door. It was time to go home and face the music. I knew it was going to be a long drive. We had over sixteen hundred miles to travel. I had to think about what I would say, the parts I would tell my parents and the others I’d leave out. Either way, I knew once I got there, they’d make it difficult, seeing as I left and didn’t have the courage to tell them to their faces, but had left a note.

“Ready?” Frank asked as I pushed open the door.

“Uh-huh.”

“I picked up some things, you know, in case you get hungry on the way. Some nuts, water and pretty much extras of everything I usually take on a trip. Hope that’s okay?”

“Here.” I handed him one of the pieces of pie. “Did you bring some extra bottles of beer?” I knew there was no way they didn’t drink on the road.

“I didn’t think you were a beer kinda gal. But you can share mine.”

“Thanks.” I didn’t want him to feel guilty about not buying any for me. Especially seeing as he’d been so considerate and brought things for me to snack on, during the trip.

“Great. Let’s get out of here.”

Frank’s gestures and words made me realize my first instinct was right, even if it wasn’t about the wolves or Keith. Frank was a gentle giant, and he’d proved I was right. I just had to worry about what to say to my parents. For sure that would be the hardest part.

****

When we stopped for a meal, I insisted on paying for my own meal. The money dripped away, After Frank dropped me at the nearby town, I counted my cash. I only had twenty bucks left. I tried to pay for gas at our last stop, but I had nothing left on my card. I’d forgotten about my trip with Keith and having to pay for nearly everything. Frank grumbled I shouldn’t pay for anything, but it still made me feel so guilty I couldn’t even do much for him.

I lied when Frank dropped me. I had said I could get on the bus. I waved to him at the bus stop even though I only had twenty bucks left with an empty stomach.

I knew I didn’t have enough money for a hotel. I made a bed out of some of my clothes and slept in them. It felt comfortable, and if the morning sun didn’t rise and shine through the leaves, then who knew how long I would have stayed outside. I was tired from staying up and not sleeping in the truck. Frank had spent most of the time talking. He’d confessed he often fell asleep at the wheel, which was the reason he was happy to have someone to stop him from dozing off and having a nasty accident.

Morning came way too soon. I stumbled and felt weaker with every step I took. The candy bars in my bag weren’t satisfying me. I knew my way home, not because I had any sense of direction, but I was being drawn to it. The smell of the wolves being near told me not to lose hope. I had to perceive and not let my past stop me from getting home.

My instincts were trying to get me to survive, but as much as I tried to push him out of my head, Winter always flashed into my mind and I hated him for it. Then I would hate myself for hating him even more.

My thoughts became like a hamster on a wheel, going nowhere.

I felt like I walked for hours, dragging my suitcase behind me. One of the little wheels popped off and rolled down the drain. I was about to give up to hitchhike again, when an ambulance blared past onto a street across from me. Wait, that looked familiar. It was the road home.

When I had started this journey, home was the place from which I’d wanted to escape, but I found myself homeless and hungry and so tired I wanted to cry. I wished I had some water and could at least wash my face and make myself presentable, but there was no time for anything as a truck approached me.

It was a red Toyota pick-up truck. Part of me wondered if I dreamed or if it was really my parents’ truck. As it drew closer, with the dark shade of red and the black logo of the diner covered the side of the truck. It really was Pa.

He came to a dramatic stop with tires squealing. He wasn’t alone. Ma sat next to him in the truck.

With a scowl, he opened the door and I put on a fake smile. I hurried forward and dropped my suitcase. He took it from me and put it to the side on the sidewalk.

“Fagua, my sweet child.” He wrapped his arms around me, and he didn’t even bother to shut the truck door. He looked as if he’d aged a few years over the last couple of weeks. He had shadows under his eyes.

“We’ve been looking for you everywhere. We were so worried. We didn’t know what to think. We couldn’t get a hold of you on the phone.”

There was an underlying tense tone to his voice, and it threw me off.

He pulled back, his eyes narrowing. “Did you lose your phone?”

I was about to answer, when he hugged me again.

“It doesn’t matter. You’re here now. That’s all that matters. Here with us again.”

Everything happened so fast. Pa wasn’t a nervous man, but as he hugged, and kissed me on the cheek. He was scared about something. It had to do with me leaving. He thought he lost me, but I knew better than to think was the only reason.

As for Ma, she just stood by the side of the truck. Pa shoved my case into the back. I moved slowly towards her. She didn’t greet me the same way Pa had done. Her blue eyes dulled as I stood beside her.

“Hurry up and get in the truck you two.” Pa motioned for me to hop in. Then he climbed in and closed the door.

Tentatively, I reached out and touched her hand. “I’m so sorry, Ma.”

“Why the hell did you come back?” she whispered, then yanked open the passenger door.