by Ava Louise
The rain continued falling. They spent over two hours walking to the various look-outs and seeing the view. Maggie made sure to take pictures from each vantage point. Finally they had had enough of the cold rain and hurried back to the truck. They had not seen anyone else atop the tiny mountain, not even the owner of the gray car. Climbing inside, Maggie started the truck up so she could turn on the heater. There was a constant biting wind at the top of Mt. Erie.
“We can sit here and eat our picnic,” Maggie said encouragingly. She pulled the basket from the back seat, placing it on the bottom of the console between the two front seats. “I made several types of sandwiches; I wasn’t sure if you had tried any of them before. There is peanut-butter-and-jelly, an American classic, along with bologna sandwiches and ham-and-cheese sandwiches. Then we have cut up fruit and veggies with dips.”
She arranged the selections along the console and dashboard of the truck. They both ate heartily, after all the walking around they did. Maggie told Daxon about all the junk food she had missed over the last two weeks. “You have to try Oreos with milk. That is the perfect midnight munchies fix. Or Taco Bell! Oh, I missed them, too!” Maggie knew she sounded like a kid excited over a bag of candy at Halloween, but she really was a foodie at heart.
After eating their picnic, Maggie cleared away the leavings, packing them back into her basket.
“Guess we should get back. When do you have to leave to go back to the ship?” she asked Daxon as she put the truck in gear and headed back down the mountain.
“I need to leave tomorrow. Will you return with me, please, Maggie?” Daxon hated the idea of leaving her here on Earth while he was so far away. He worried about her being attacked again. Last time she came away with a broken arm and concussion; next time could be much worse.
Maggie drove in silence for a few miles. She wanted to go back, but she also wanted to see justice done, too. That store clerk deserved to rest in peace, which would not happen if his killer was allowed to roam free. “Daxon. I have to stay here. I have to see this through. If I don’t, I won’t be able to look myself in the mirror ever again. But as soon as this is over, I want to come back to you on the starship. I swear!” She prayed he would understand. If you can’t respect yourself, how could you expect anyone else to respect you? And she knew she would lose her self-respect if she let Juan Santiago walk free of charges.
Daxon was silent the whole ride back to her apartment. Maggie was unsure if this was a good thing, meaning he was thinking it over, or if it was a bad thing, meaning he was waiting to get back to the apartment so he could stomp off again. Of course, he would have to wait for a ride to come get him, she figured. That makes stomping away a bit difficult.
Daxon carried the picnic basket inside, removing his hooded jacket once they were behind closed doors.
“Are you going to speak to me, or not?” she asked nervously.
“Yes. I was just thinking about what you said about respect. I think I finally understand what you have been saying. If I try to put myself in your place, it makes sense to me. I would lose my self-worth, too. I understand, Maggie.” He still looked sad even though not as confused as earlier. She ran into his arms, wrapping her smaller arms around his waist, pressing her nose into his neck. She was so relieved to finally get through to him.
Maggie’s phone rang from the depths of her purse. She rushed to dig it out before the caller was sent to voicemail. “Hello?”
Maggie listened to the caller, her eyes getting wider. She walked to the less-than-attractive floral couch and fell into the cushions. Daxon could only watch her, wondering what her caller was saying that made her face go so pale.
“So what now? Do I need to do anything?” she asked the caller. After a couple of minutes more talking on the part of the caller, Maggie ended the call. She sat on the sofa with a thoughtful, stunned look on her beautiful face.
Daxon went to her, sitting beside her on the couch. He clasped her shaking hands in his. “What is wrong? What has happened?” he asked in his deep, caring voice.
“It’s over,” said Maggie softly.
Confused, Daxon’s brow scrunched up. “What is over? Explain. Who was on the phone?”
“It was Detective Romano. Juan Santiago and Julio Ramirez were killed in jail early this morning. Some sort of fight broke out between them and a couple of white supremacists. They’re dead. There’s no trial or anything now. Justice, of a sort, has been dealt. I’m free.” Maggie sat in silence for moment.
Daxon’s mind whirled with questions. Did this mean she no longer wanted to be with him? She came to them partially due to her fear of the gang members and their attack. Now she had no reason to keep a low profile. His forehead furrowed even more. He had to know; had to ask. “What will you do now?” he asked hesitantly.
Maggie turned to Daxon, blinking away the reverie she had slipped into. Pulling her hands from his, she placed a gentle hand on each side of his face. With a smile that lit up her face, she said, “Let’s go home. I put my faith in you, in us. Let’s go home.” She sealed it with a kiss that rocked him to his core.
☆★☆
Four months later …
“Mamzell, I need you!” cried Maggie. Unbelievable. Someone had slipped an aerobic-workout tape to this kid, she was sure of it. She reached over to the nightstand, grabbing the small container of cat treats. Shaking the container lightly brought the cat running up onto the bed.
Daxon followed the cat from the living area. “Is the kicking keeping you awake again?” he asked gently, with a smile on his beautiful lips.
“Yes! I’m so sleepy, but every time I start to fall asleep, your child starts tap dancing on my insides!” Luckily, Maggie had discovered the secret to getting the baby to settle down. She placed three tiny cat treats on the peak of her swollen abdomen. Mamzell gently stepped her way to them, lying down on Maggie’s rounded stomach. Maggie pet the cat as she consumed her cat treats, which in turn made Mamzell start purring deeply. In only a few seconds, the baby inside stopped its bruising workout and settled down to sleep.
“Oh, thank heaven. Peace. Thank you, Mamzell, I love you!” Maggie let out a deep breath, smiling at her Nordonian spouse. Now she could go to sleep. If the baby was this active this early in the pregnancy, she didn’t want to dwell on how active it would be in a couple more months! Thank goodness for cats and their purring! “Good night, Daxon, I love you.” The last was said on a big yawn.
“Sweet dreams, my Maggie. I love you, too.”
☆★☆
Thank you so much for reading my debut novel. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. If you enjoyed the book, please be sure to recommend it to your friends and family. If you are comfortable doing so, please leave an honest review at whichever site you purchased the book. This means a lot to independent authors! Also, please look me up on Facebook to find out how the next book in this series is coming along. The next book will be Shirley’s tale.
Thanks again to all my friends and family members that supported my efforts to get this book out there. Without your encouragement Maggie’s Story would still be tumbling around in my head in circles. Most especially, thanks to my husband of 25 years, Chris, for picking up the workload around the house when I became engrossed in writing. Last, but not least, thanks to Mamzell for all your help, too. Yes, Mamzell is real! She is my constant companion and spoiled rotten; I wouldn’t change her for anything.
~Ava Louise~
