Promises to Keep

by Shirley Hailstock

McKenna wondered if that was a confirmation that she had been abused. “Is that a yes or a no?”

  For a long while, the girl scrutinized McKenna. “You can come,” she finally said. “But don’t try anything funny. And don’t get too close.”

  McKenna almost laughed. Her words sounded like something out of a movie. She crossed the parking lot and the road and entered the field. The girl looked at McKenna’s approach as if she could read something in the way she walked.

  “That’s far enough,” the girl said when McKenna was ten feet from her.

  McKenna stopped. “This is for you.” She held up the bag. “I’m going to toss it to you.” Before the girl could give her alternate instructions, she pitched it.

  The girl caught it awkwardly, balancing quickly as the heavy objects inside the plastic bag shifted. Keeping her eyes on McKenna, she briefly checked the contents.

  “It’s shampoo, lotion, a toothbrush. Nothing that will harm you,” McKenna told her.

  “Who are you?” She frowned.

  “My name’s McKenna Wellington. I’m from Chicago.”

  “And the man? Is he your husband?”

  McKenna shook her head. “He’s a college professor. We’re traveling west to the coast.”

  McKenna noticed that she spoke very good English. She’d been educated somewhere.

  “How old are you?” McKenna asked.

  “Why?” The girl’s face was straight, serious, but there was a vulnerability there, too.

  “Are you a runaway?”

  “No, I live a mile from here.” Her voice was challenging, laced with sarcasm.

  “Why?”

  “Why what?” the girl challenged.

  “Why did you run away?” McKenna deliberately kept her voice even.

  “None of your business.”

  “Why did you come to find me?”

  “I wasn’t looking for you. I just happened to see that car.” She gestured with her chin toward the red car in the parking lot.

  “It does stand out,” McKenna said, not looking around. “Why did you call out to me?”

  “I wanted to know why you leave me the food.”

  McKenna smiled. “Parker got the food.” She indicated Parker standing by the car.

  “The professor?”

  McKenna nodded. “He saw you first.”

  She almost smiled, but quickly the expression left her face.

  “I suppose as a man who often comes in contact with people your age or older, he’s been trained to notice the signs.”

  “I’m not a runaway.”

  “Let’s see,” McKenna started. “You wash up in public restrooms. You come to Dumpsters for food. You wear the same clothes day in and day out, including a jacket in this heat. You’re afraid of meeting people. You think someone is looking for you. You have no real place to sleep or you’d be able to wash yourself and your clothes. Did I miss something?”

  The girl dropped her gaze to the ground, but immediately raised it again. Her jaw took on a challenging stance.

  McKenna waited a moment longer for her to reply. “I guess I have my answer,” she said. “I’m going now. Parker is waiting for me. We’ll leave you some food at the usual place tomorrow. If you want a shower, I can offer you mine, but we’re leaving in a few days.”

  McKenna turned and made her way back to the car without looking at the girl. She figured if she could get the girl to trust her, she had to let her know she was telling the truth.

  * * *

  “DEFINITELY A RUNAWAY,” Parker said as McKenna slid into the passenger seat.

  “Do you think she’ll return?”

  He nodded. “It’ll take her a day or so, but she’ll come. I think she wants someone to talk to. She just hasn’t found anyone she trusts yet. But we may be gone by the time she gets around to doing that with us.”

  McKenna frowned. “I told her we were leaving in a few days.”

  “She’ll show,” Parker repeated.

  “You sound positive.”

  “She made first contact. We’re the closest thing she has to a lifeline, as far as we know. She’ll come before we leave.”

  “If she doesn’t, do you think we can stay a couple more days?”

  Parker glanced at her. She couldn’t read his expression. They hadn’t had this situation before.

  “You want to make sure she’s all right?”

  “I want to try to get her to go home, unless that’s where the abuse happened. If it is, we should get her to go to a safe place.”

  “It’ll eat into our funds if we stay longer. We’re already feeding her and providing her with personal hygiene products,” Parker pointed out.

  The cost wasn’t much, McKenna knew. Not if they were getting it from their pre-Route 66 days. But their funds now were low and they were very conscious of what they could spend. The girl had become another person to feed and possibly clothe.

  “We’ve already proven we can cope with what we have and what jobs bring us.”

  “Don’t worry,” he said, putting his hand on her arm. “We’ll stay and make sure she’s safe and has a place to stay.”

  McKenna smiled. The car was small. Parker’s hand remained on her arm. He wanted to let her know that he agreed with making sure the girl was safe. But he hadn’t taken it away. McKenna felt its weight, the warmth and strength of his hand. Inside, her stomach tightened.

  * * *

  THE ROOM AT THE bed-and-breakfast where McKenna and Parker stayed was huge, with light gray walls and maroon appointments. It also had its own entrance, which was a plus for the rental. No one had visited them since they’d taken the room for the three weeks they’d been in Carthage. Both turned and stared at each other when the unexpected sound of someone approaching seemed to reverberate through the entire room.

  Parker’s brow rose and McKenna hunched her shoulders. Together they went to the door and peered through the curtain.

  “Well, look who it is. Seems you were right,” McKenna said.

  McKenna pulled the door open. The girl stood there.

  “For the owner of a multimillion dollar company, you certainly didn’t pick the best side of town to stay in,” she said by way of greeting.

  McKenna wanted to laugh, but she kept her face straight.

  “Would you like to come in?” Parker asked.

  The girl hesitated.

  McKenna noticed her looking about the room. “It’s probably safer in here than out there,” she said.

  The girl stepped across the threshold. She was carrying a backpack, but in her hand was the plastic bag McKenna had given her this afternoon.

  “Did you come for the shower?”

  “I came to see if you really are who the internet says you are.”

  “Internet?” Parker spoke for the first time.

  “I went to the library and looked her up. Found you, too.”

  “Enterprising,” he said.

  “Why are you here?” the girl asked.

  “First things first,” McKenna said. “You know our names. We don’t know yours.”

  “Julie West,” she said.

  The name rolled easily off her tongue, but McKenna knew that wasn’t her real name.

  “All right,” she conceded. “Just so you know, I don’t believe that’s genuine, but at least we have something to call you.”

  Julie looked at the floor, then back up.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked again. “I don’t think you’re specifically searching for me.”

  “So, you are a runaway,” McKenna said.

  “No, I’m a survivor.”

  “I see,” McKenna said. The look she gave the girl conveyed something else. “Do you want to use the shower fi
rst?”

  “First?”

  “Then we’ll talk.”

  “I didn’t come to talk.”

  McKenna’s brows rose. “All right. The shower is through there.” She pointed toward the bathroom door. “I’ll give you something to put on and we can wash your clothes while you’re in there.”

  McKenna pulled a T-shirt and a pair of shorts from a drawer and offered them to her. Julie stared at them.

  “I promise we’ll give you your things back in the same condition, only clean.”

  The girl took the clothes and went into the bathroom. She kept her backpack with her. Moments later, she slipped her dirty clothes out the door and McKenna heard the lock click before the shower started.

  “Why don’t I go wash these? You two can talk,” Parker offered.

  “Where will you be in the meantime?”

  “I’ll go get a coffee and check the internet and see if I can find a Julie West.” Parker smiled and took the clothes and his computer.

  Julie spent a long time in the shower. McKenna figured it had been a while since she could wash her whole body. When she came out, she was wearing the clothes which were too large for her slight frame. It was obvious she wasn’t eating regularly. Even though McKenna didn’t know her, she could tell she should weigh more.

  Her hair was blond, the dirt and grime rinsed away by the shampoo. She’d brushed it away from her face, which was devoid of makeup and shining clean. It showed a girl on the verge of womanhood.

  “Are we alone?” she asked.

  “Parker went for coffee. He felt you’d be more comfortable without his presence.”

  She shrugged as if it didn’t matter to her.

  “He’s a college professor and he’s looking out for your welfare...”

  “I don’t need anyone to look out for me.”

  “All right,” McKenna said, choosing not to fight. “There are some snacks and drinks on the table. Help yourself.”

  Julie checked the table first before getting a soft drink. They had no milk, which they’d been leaving for her. She also took a box of cookies but did not eat them. McKenna assumed she’d stockpile them for later.

  She took a seat in a chair near the door.

  “We’re going to be here awhile,” McKenna said. “At least until your clothes dry. Are you going to just sit and stare for all that time?”

  “Why are you staying here?” The girl asked.

  “The price was right.”

  “You got all the money in the world and...” She looked around. The room was clean, but old. The furnishings showed their age, but they were sturdily built. “Why would you stay in a place like this?”

  “What’s wrong with it? It’s clean. We get a free breakfast. It’s convenient to our jobs. What’s not to like?”

  “You do know this is not the best part of town.”

  “You said that. Yet you’re living in worse conditions than we are.”

  “You don’t know where I live.”

  “I don’t have to. I know how you clean up, so I assume you sleep outside. What happens when the weather changes? Where will you get food when we leave?”

  Julie took a sip from her drink. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine.”

  “I do worry about you,” McKenna told her.

  “Why? You don’t know me.”

  “That’s right. I’ve shared my food with you, shared my bathroom and for the moment provided safety.”

  “You want something in return?” The belligerence was back.

  “No, but what happens to you when the police pick you up? And they will.”

  “Not if I don’t do anything illegal.”

  “You don’t have to. There’s probably a missing persons report out on you. And if we discovered your habits, surely someone else will in a town this small.”

  “I’m careful.”

  “We discovered you.” McKenna delivered the words softly, giving them more impact than if she’d shouted.

  Julie looked down, then took another drink.

  “What’s wrong with home?” McKenna asked, again using the same soft voice.

  Her head snapped up and she glared at McKenna. “I don’t have a home.”

  “Did anyone hurt you there?”

  “I wasn’t abused.”

  “Just like you’re not a runaway?”

  For a long moment, the girl stared at her. McKenna held her eyes steady and let her look.

  “I didn’t have a soft life like you, but I’m not here because someone tried to rape me.”

  “That’s good to hear.” McKenna paused. “How old are you? Fifteen? Sixteen?”

  “I’m old enough.”

  “For what?” McKenna asked. “To have found me on the internet and believe I had a cushioned life. And that makes you angry with the world because your life is different?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Didn’t you?” McKenna took a seat opposite Julie. “Okay. Even if you didn’t, just what kind of life did you have, Julie? One in which you ran away, live on the streets and hunt for food. You chose that. Nobody forced it on you.”

  She sat up in her chair. “What do you know about it?”

  “Nothing. Why don’t you tell me?”

  The air in the room was thick with anger. McKenna took a deep breath.

  “I apologize,” she said. “I know nothing about your life and all you know about mine is what’s in my company bio. You’ve used the shower. Parker will be back with your clothes soon. You can leave and follow whatever life you choose for yourself. We’re leaving shortly anyway.”

  McKenna got up and took her purse from the desk. She and Parker had very little money, but she was willing to part with some of it for the girl. She and Parker could get to the next town and find work. She took out several bills and went to the chair where the girl sat.

  “I don’t need that.” Julie said.

  “We’ve argued enough tonight. Take the money.” McKenna put it on the window ledge next to her chair and went back to her own seat.

  “She got married,” the girl mumbled, just loud enough for McKenna to hear her.

  McKenna turned around. “Your mother?”

  Julie nodded.

  “And you don’t like her husband?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “What is it, exactly?”

  “It was supposed to be just us. Just the two of us.”

  “Was that what you two promised each other when your father...” She left the question hanging, unsure if the father had died, left, or the couple divorced.

  “He died,” she filled the answer in for McKenna.

  “I’m sorry. Obviously, you and your father were close.”

  She looked up. For a split second, McKenna saw her eyes mist. She blinked and it was gone.

  “We were. But he got sick.”

  “What happened?” McKenna thought Julie’s father had to have been a relatively young man. Julie was a teenager. When McKenna was her age, her father was in his forties. Women married later and had children later, but even if he was in his fifties, that was young, too.

  “They said it was an aneurysm in his brain. He was fine one minute and the next he was gone.”

  “When was that?”

  “Five months ago.”

  Five months, McKenna thought. Then it hit her. Julie’s father had barely died before her mother remarried. The girl was still grieving. No wonder she was angry.

  “I’m so sorry, Julie.”

  “It’s all right. I’m...”

  “You don’t,” McKenna said when the girl had stopped speaking. “You accept it. You learn to live with it. But you never get over it.” McKenna’s parents were both gon
e. She had lost them when she was in college. Lucky for her, they had provided for her welfare. Though not rich, her life in that sense hadn’t been affected significantly. But she understood how Julie felt. “Did you run away because your mother remarried?”

  “They didn’t need me there. And they didn’t want me.” Tears clogged her voice.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Of course, I’m sure.” The tears were replaced with teenage belligerence. “They—”

  At that point the door opened and Parker stood there. McKenna checked Julie’s reaction, but her own was the more surprising. Julie only looked at him as a familiar stranger. McKenna felt her heart skip a beat.

  “May I come in?” he asked.

  “Sure,” Julie said. “The more the merrier.”

  Parker closed the door and went to Julie. He held his laptop in one hand and extended his other to her. “Hello, Joanna. I’m Parker Fordum.”

  Which one of them was the more surprised wasn’t evident. “Where are my clothes?” Julie asked.

  “The dryer is still running,” Parker said. Julie didn’t accept his hand and he dropped it, then moved to sit next to McKenna on the edge of the twin bed. “McKenna, meet Joanna Marie Pearson of Cedar Creek, Arkansas.”

  “How did you find out?” Julie or Joanna asked.

  “I’m good with the computer, too. Finding you was only a matter of adding the elements I knew about you to the missing persons database.”

  Joanna rose. “Then my mom...”

  Parker put his hand out to stop her. “I didn’t call her. I think you should do that. She’s distraught with worry, from what I saw of the news reports that said they’re searching for you.”

  Joanna resumed her seat. “She doesn’t care about me. She probably only reported me missing because I’m a minor and she’d get put in jail if she didn’t.”

  “Joanna,” McKenna used her real name for the first time. “You were smart enough to find out about me on the internet. You thought your mother had sent someone to find you. But did you never check to see if they were actually looking for you? You’re obviously intelligent enough to do an internet search. Didn’t you ever try to find out?”

  Joanna looked embarrassed. “I didn’t want to see her. There were times I started to look, but I’d close the program and leave the library or wherever I found internet service.”