Sure enough, when Sofia knocked, Elizabeth Jane bellowed through the door, “I know why you’re here, and I’m not in the mood!”
“Please,” Sofia begged, but the door remained shut and Liz remained silent.
“I’ll wait here all day if that’s what it takes.” Sofia pressed her cheek against the cool painted wood and sighed. “Please let me tell you how very sorry I am. Please.”
When Liz still didn’t respond, Sofia sank down onto the porch steps and waited. Although she had the urge to pull out her phone and get lost in a mindless little app game, she kept her hands tucked firmly under her thighs and passed the time without entertainment.
It wasn’t long before Dorian joined her outside, lowering himself onto the stairs beside her. “We returned Delilah to her owner yesterday.”
Suddenly, Sofia was crying… again. “I know. That must have been hard.”
Dorian nodded and steepled his fingers in his lap. “It was. Especially for Liz, but the guy was really nice. He tried to give us a reward which we, of course, refused. But he also said Liz could visit Delilah—Fanta—any time, and he even told us the breeder he got her from in case we wanted to adopt a pup from a future litter.”
Sofia sniffed. “This is all my fault. I’ll pay for it, of course. I’ll do anything to make it right. I am so, so sorry.” She still didn’t have any money or any prospects for money, but some way, somehow, she would figure this out for her friend.
Dorian placed a reassuring hand on her arm. “No need to do that. I’m already planning to take Liz to the next SDRO adoption event so she can pick out another new used dog. I’m not worried about that one bit. But…”
He took a deep shaky breath, and Sofia wondered if he might cry, too. “You know Liz doesn’t have all that many friends. The ones she does have she trusts with her whole heart, and you broke that.”
“I know. I was so selfish. I was just scared. It doesn’t make it right, but—”
Dorian stopped her again. “Liz told me she shared what happened last year with her father and… well, father. That you know she’s been lied to her entire life.”
“Yes, I do. I do.” The more Dorian spoke, the worse Sofia felt. Liz was never going to forgive her, which meant Sofia would also lose her new friends, Scarlett and Lauren, in the wake of this fight.
Dorian cleared his throat, his voice remained strong and steady. “That’s what makes this hurt her so deep. That someone who knew all that could still mislead her like you did.”
“I was just trying to help the dog. I thought—”
“I know, and I understand. I lied to her, too, in the beginning. And I regret that every single day.” Liz had forgiven Dorian, and now they were engaged to be married. But Dorian hardly knew her when he’d hurt her. Sofia had been friends with Elizabeth Jane for years, and yet that hadn’t stop her from shamelessly using her friend to lessen her own guilt.
“Should I go?” Sofia asked, hating to give up but not knowing what else she could do. “I don’t want to make things worse. I already hate myself for breaking her trust.”
Dorian shook his head and a wistful smile crossed his face. “Like I said, she loves with her whole heart. And once you’re inside, there’s no getting out.”
Sofia braved a smile. Could this mean it wasn’t too late after all? “How can I let her know how sorry I am?”
“Show up.”
“I did. I’m here,” Sofia insisted, new hope swelling in her chest.
“And keep showing up.” Dorian stood and brushed off the seat of his pants. “Don’t give up on her, and she won’t give up on you.”
“So, see you again tomorrow?” Sofia ventured.
He nodded. “And the day after that.”
“Could you just tell her what we talked about? Thank her for being such a good friend to me and tell her that I promise to do better. I never break my promises. Just ask Wolfie.” She laughed sadly, remembering her earlier conversation with Oscar about the unknown fate of her beloved wolf hybrid.
“One day I will,” Dorian said with a kind hand on Sofia’s back. “We’ll have you and Wolfie over to meet the new member of our pack. By then, this whole thing will be history and you and Liz will be better friends than ever.”
“Do you promise?” she squeaked.
Dorian hugged her, chuckling as he did. “Yeah, and I never break a promise, either.”
Sofia left the ranch, but not before handwriting an apology letter to her poor friend Elizabeth Jane. Dorian promised to pass the note on to his fiancée and told Sofia he would also have a talk with Liz on her behalf.
When Sofia made it back to her apartment, she was surprised to find Hunter waiting on the stoop outside her building.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, falling into his arms with a grateful sigh.
“Well, it’s about a quarter past 6:30.” He flashed his phone before her eyes to prove his point. “You said we could have a second chance at our first date, and last time I picked you up at 6:30. So here I am again.”
Sofia chuckled and stretched to kiss him on the cheek. Funny how natural it felt now when their first kiss had only happened earlier that day.
A dark thought made her fall silent again. “I don’t want to go back to the textile factory.” Hunter had given her a special place, and she’d wasted no time in tainting it with bad memories. Now she couldn’t think of the building without also remembering the horrible stench of the fighting ring and the fire that followed.
Hunter hummed in agreement. “Understood. I actually found a different place to take you this time, but first, can we have some dinner? I’m starved.”
“Mmm, me too. Are we going to the Conoco-Phillips like you had planned before?” Food. She hadn’t eaten anything the whole day, as her stomach now reminded her with a rolling groan.
They both laughed and kissed again.
“Not this time,” Hunter said. “Couldn’t book it on such short notice, but I did have time to make some home-cooked vegan fare for the two of us to share in the park.”
Sofia pulled back to stare at him with wide, horrified eyes. “Wait, you’re a vegan?”
Hunter looked equally shocked as he insisted, “No, I thought you were.”
“Eww, why?” She smushed her face into a grimace.
“All the selfless animal love?”
They both broke apart in giggles and kissed again.
“Just goes to show how much we still have to learn about each other.”
“Well, usually we’d get these things out of the way on our first date, which is why we have to try to get it right this time.” Hunter winked at her, causing Sofia to laugh again.
“Hey, I’m ready, if you are.”
“Me, too.” He held his hand out, which Sofia gladly clasped between her own as they headed forth together.
Despite the startling lack of any dairy or meat, Hunter’s picnic meal turned out to be fully edible, and maybe even a little bit delicious though neither would admit it.
“Next time I’m taking you to a steak house,” Hunter promised while gnawing on some kind of seaweed wrapped morsel. When night began to fall, he draped an arm over Sofia’s shoulder and pulled her closer to his side. “Ready for part two?”
Sofia stretched up to kiss him. “And three.” Then kissed him again. “And four.”
“And five?” Hunter asked, initiating yet another kiss. “But we seriously have to stop there or you won’t get your surprise.”
They both laughed as they belted into his truck. Sofia’s heart skipped a beat when he delivered them both to the police station.
“Don’t look so nervous,” Hunter said, kissing her hand. “I promise you’ll like it.” He guided her inside, said a few quick hellos, and then led her to the roof.
“What is it with you and roofs?” Sofia asked with a giggle, still breathing heavily from the anxiety of walking through the station. Stop thinking of yourself as a criminal. You’re on the straight and narrow now.
Hunter st
retched his arms high overhead, then did some kind of Karate Kid move that had Sofia bursting with laughter. “Like you, I enjoy being one with nature.”
“Are you sure you’re not the vegan?” she asked between gasps for air. “Because if so, you should probably just admit it now. I’m pretty sure I’ll like you anyway.”
“Wow, you would like me even then?” he asked with a wink as he rummaged in a metal box pressed against the door wall.
“Even then,” she assured him.
“Jeez, it’s like we’re already halfway to happily ever after.”
Sofia giggled. “Well, it’s only our second first date, so I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
“Speaking of seeing things, check this out.” He pulled an old projector from the box and blew a thin layer of dust off the case.
“Are you going to show me slides from your vacation?” she joked. Each moment she spent with him felt lighter and lighter, easier and easier, like it was meant to be.
“Nope, even better. Hold this.” Hunter gently handed her the projector, then pulled a pair of bean bag chairs out from behind a potted plant.
Sofia laughed so hard she almost dropped her parcel.
“Careful now,” he warned. “That’s vintage 1990’s.”
“Well, there’s a decade I never want to see again.” Images Sofia hated remembering flashed across her mind. Celeste and Allie laughing, taunting. Sofia crying, plotting her revenge, and…
“I bet you were hot back then, too.” Hunter kissed her on the cheek and took the projector back from her hands. “Okay, pick your favorite bean bag chair and point it at—” He motioned toward a gray facade of bricks across the roof. “—That wall.”
Sofia shook her head to clear out the last of the high school memories. “What is it?”
He glanced up from the rickety side table on which he was arranging the projector. “That? It’s a storage shed.”
“No, your plan. What are we doing?” She hit him playfully in the shoulder and he grabbed her wrist, pulling her into his chest.
“Drive-in theater, no car required,” he said with a proud grin.
“I’ve never been to a drive-in before.”
Hunter kissed the top of her head, then released her from his arms. “You’re going to love it, especially when you see what we’re watching.”
“Ooh, what?” Hunter was an expert at building the anticipation. Sofia had never like surprises before, but maybe with him she could learn. Especially if he kept up this cute, haughty act whenever he had something special to reveal.
True to form, Hunter wagged a finger at her. “Nope, you’ll have to wait and see like the rest of the audience.”
Sofia laughed yet again. “Well, I’m assuming you already know, seeing as you set this whole thing up.”
“But that sparrow over there—” He pointed again where, sure enough, a little bird sat fluffing its feathers. “He’s excited for the surprise. Now take a seat, and let the show begin.”
Sofia carefully arranged herself in the bean bag chair, letting the tiny Styrofoam beads cradle her rump in a way that fell just short of heaven.
Hunter dragged his bag closer so the two of them could hold hands as the opening credits streamed through the projector in a single bright beam. When the old Universal Studios logo spun its way across the globe with an exciting string crescendo, Sofia squealed and clapped her hands.
“Yup, definitely a child of the nineties,” Hunter observed with a laugh. “But it’s okay, because I am, too. Oh, hey. Catch!” He leaned forward and dragged the metal box closer, then tossed two shiny snack packages her way.
Sofia studied them in her hands, a rush of nostalgia warming her heart. “A Fruit Roll-Up and… Capri Sun?”
“Yeah, they’re vegan, right?” Hunter joked, then seeing the look on Sofia’s face added, “Next time I’ll make sure to get Combos and Nesquik since I know you can handle the real stuff.”
They each punched the little yellow straws into their silver drink pouches, then did a cheers.
“You know,” Sofia said after a long, luxurious sip, “I’m starting to think that maybe not everything about growing up is so bad after all.”
“It got you here,” Hunter pointed out, balling up the Fruit Roll-Up and shoving the whole thing in his mouth.
“It got me here. And…” She turned her attention back to the movie where a cartoon dog ran across the screen. “Wait, is this… Is this Balto? This movie’s almost as old as I am!”
“I figured you would like it. After all, my man Balto’s half dog, half wolf. Plus, he saves the day. Kind of like you and Wolfie.”
“So I’m half dog?” Sofia asked, faking an outraged expression.
“Hey, I didn’t mean it like that. Wolfie’s the half-breed, and you’re the hero.”
A hero. She liked that.
And she liked this.
To think she had almost thrown it all away.
The next day, Sofia returned to work a new woman. So much had happened over the weekend to forever change her life, and she planned to continue on the road to redemption until she’d finally rid herself of every last ounce of guilt.
Following up on their call, the owner, Jean, had set aside security footage for her to review during her downtime, but Sofia already planned to confess for her part in Preeti’s thefts.
If she lost her job, then so be it. But Jean deserved to know.
The best way to cure a guilty conscience, she’d begun to discover, was to show your full hand and let the cards fall where they may. No more hiding, cheating, or lying. No more bending the rules and squeezing through to get what she wanted.
It was time to live an honest life—to completely commit.
And, sure enough, despite Sofia’s attempts to block the cameras at the time, the tape had clearly picked up Preeti’s shoplifting and the fact that Sofia had watched the whole time from less than three feet away. The tapes also revealed that when Sofia had gone to the back of the store to retrieve a different-sized garment for a customer, Preeti had deftly unlocked the cash register and grabbed a wad of twenties. Sofia felt so betrayed. She hadn’t even noticed her keycard missing at the time.
Of course, she’d tell Jean everything—that she’d rescued Wolfie from that dumpy yard, that a friend had stolen the pet supplies she couldn’t afford, and then in turn blackmailed her in order to steal from Jean’s store. She would take full responsibility, but there was no hiding Preeti’s face from the security footage. There weren’t many Indian people in Alaska, and even fewer who hung around the mall during the work day. Preeti would be identified within hours, if not faster.
Sofia’s skin still prickled whenever she thought of Preeti—how the girl had forced them to involve her in the rescue, then refused to help and accidentally started a fire when they were making their escape. Getting nailed for shoplifting and petty theft would be a far lighter sentence than she actually deserved. It wasn’t up to Sofia to decide but she could at least offer Preeti a heads up about what would soon be coming her way.
Unable to look upon the girl who had caused her so many problems, Sofia instead decided to text Blinky: Come by at lunch. There’s something you need to know.
“Sofi, you have the D-Man all kinds of worked up,” Blinky announced, striding into her store an hour later. “What did you do to him?”
Sofia groaned. She was not in the mood for this happy banter, not when people and animals had been seriously hurt. “I’m sure Preeti’s already told you everything, so cut the act.”
“Yikes. Not your best self today, eh?”
She scowled at him. Was this really all a big joke to Blinky? To the others? “Don’t you feel bad about... everything that happened?”
He shrugged, but then his head jerked to the side and a twitching fit took him over. “Things happen, especially when you’re not careful. Next time he’ll be more careful.”
“Maybe he will,” Sofia answered thoughtfully. “But there’s not going to be
a next time for me. And there might not be for your girlfriend either.”
“Whoa, hey now!” Blinky closed the distance between them and leaned over her counter, bringing his voice to barely above a whisper. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means,” Sofia gestured toward the monitor she’d been using to review the store’s video feed. “Our security cams caught her stealing the other day, and my boss is going to see this when she comes in later tonight.”
“Is that all?” Blinky laughed, but his facial convulsions gave away his underlying anxiety. “Destroy the tapes. Problem solved.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and stared him down. “No, I can’t do that.”
“Are you serious, Sofi? Don’t be ridiculous. If you don’t destroy the tapes, then you’ll be caught, too. I know you stood by and watched. The camera must have picked you up, too.”
“It did.” He had her there, but what he didn’t know is how little she cared about getting caught herself. She just wanted to make things right for Jean and everyone else.
“Then what are you going to do?” He laughed again. It’s what he always did, whether happy, sad, cruel, scared. She wouldn’t miss his laugh when it was gone. “Make creative edits to the video because you have some kind of grudge against my girl?”
Sofia sighed. “No, I’m going to turn the tapes in as-is. I never wanted any of this. I’m done.”
Blinky shook his head and continued to laugh bitterly. “You think I dragged you in kicking and screaming? No. You asked for my help, and I gave it to you. You can’t have it both ways, darlin.”
“I know that now,” she said softly.
“So you don’t want to be my friend anymore? Boo hoo. Give me the footage and I’ll leave you alone, princess, but I’m not leaving here without it.”
“Then I guess you’ll be here when my boss arrives. That will be awkward.”
Blinky raised back to his full height. His brows pinched in anger, but his voice remained steady. “I don’t get what your deal is today, but let me remind you we can make your life very hard. You’ve done a lot worse than shoplifting. What if we turned you into your cop boyfriend? I bet he’d love to slap some cuffs on you.”
Season of Mercy Page 13
