She turned to go, but Mrs. Sanders said, “Not so fast.”
Georgie’s hopes plunged. In the last few days she had thought a lot about how she could make it up to Mrs. Donovan for destroying her father’s ship and realized she couldn’t. Her remorse and the pain of losing her dad were so raw that Georgie decided leaving the medal and book would show Mrs. Donovan how she felt. Now it seemed that Mrs. Sanders wasn’t going to let her.
Mrs. Sanders reached past Georgie and picked up the medal. “You’ve gotten fingerprints on it,” she said as she pulled her handkerchief from her sleeve and gently wiped the medal. “There, now. It’s nice and shiny.”
Mrs. Sanders set the medal back on the desk. She put her arm around Georgie’s shoulder. “Much better, don’t you think?” She gave Georgie a rare smile.
“Yes, it is,” Georgie said, and together they left the room.
Georgie walked down the hall and had almost reached the front doors when Mrs. Donovan came bursting through. “Mrs. Donovan! I—I thought you were gone,” Georgie said.
“It’s been one of those days,” Mrs. Donovan said. “One step forward, two back. I left my satchel on my desk.”
Georgie swallowed hard. She thought she’d have the weekend to prepare for Mrs. Donovan’s reaction. “Oh, well, gotta go!” Georgie called.
The crisp autumn air smacked Georgie in the face when she ran out the door. What kind of dumb luck was this? What if she’d taken just one minute longer in Mrs. Donovan’s office? The thought sent a chill through her.
She rounded the corner and tried to quicken her steps. But Mrs. Donovan’s office was right there; Georgie felt herself being pulled to the window.
Mrs. Donovan already held Georgie’s red book in her hand. Despite the cool afternoon, Georgie’s hands were sweaty. Mrs. Donovan’s back was to her and Georgie couldn’t see her face. Mrs. Donovan laid the book down and stood there, still as stone.
Georgie steeled herself. She would just have to take whatever happened next.
Mrs. Donovan picked up the medal. She held it a moment, then carried it to the bookcase. She set it on the shelf in the exact same place where the ship in the bottle had been. Then she turned on the small spotlight.
Mission accomplished, Georgie headed home.
Acknowledgments
Once again, I’m indebted to my agent, Steven Chudney, and to my editor, Beverly Reingold, for their hard work and faith in me. John J. Bonk, Lisa Williams Kline, Lee P. Sauer, Manya Tessler, and Laura Backes gave help and guidance throughout the writing of Georgie’s Moon. Thank you, all.
I owe special thanks to Walter R. Griffin (2nd Battalion, 26th and 7th Marines, Vietnam, July 4, 1969–July 4, 1970) for sharing his firsthand knowledge of the Vietnam War.
Thank you to Wendell Minor, a man who surely paints with his heart, for the breathtaking jacket art.
It pains me, but I must reluctantly thank my mischievous brother, Mark Lincicum, on whom the character Denny is based. Mark majored in driving me crazy. He thinks I left out his best tricks, but truth is stranger than fiction—had I included them, no one would have believed me.
Also by Chris Woodworth
When Ratboy Lived Next Door
The author gratefully acknowledges Dr. Steven L. Burg, Adlai E. Stevenson Professor of International Politics, Brandeis University, for his critical reading of the manuscript.
The characters in this book are purely fictional.
Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2006 by Christina Woodworth
All rights reserved
First edition, 2006
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First eBook edition: March 2015
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