Jailbird (9 page)

“Nonsense. Come on, let me introduce you.
Sheriff Taylor, this is Neena Allen and her brother Conrad.”

“Good to meet you,” the middle-aged man’s
smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“You too, sir,” I tried not to sink back into
Conrad too much.

“What brings you to our little town?”

“Visiting my sister,” Conrad answered and I
hoped the line of questioning would end there.

“We’ll let you two get back to your
conversation,” I smiled at them both politely. “We’ll see you
later, Charlie… Sheriff Taylor…”

“Enjoy your breakfast,” Charlie eyed me like
he was trying to decide what I was up to.

“Thank you,” Conrad nodded. I’d already
scampered away like a frightened bunny.

“You played that real cool, sis,” sarcasm
dripped from his voice.

I shrugged guiltily and we turned our
attention to the menu. I was sipping my coffee and eagerly
anticipating a short stack of pancakes when Charlie slipped up
beside me to kiss my cheek.

“You look amazing today,” he whispered
against my ear. “You just keep getting prettier every day.”

“Thank you,” I flushed and did my best to
hide my face, hoping Conrad hadn’t heard him. From his smirk, I
assumed he had.

“Have lunch with me today.”

“We’d planned on working at your house today
if you don’t mind,” it occurred to me I should have asked
sooner.

“Sure, sure,” he reached in his pocket to
produce his keys. “I’ll swing by about noon with some lunch.”

“I can make something,” I offered, accepting
the house key he’d pulled off the ring.

“Nah. I’m in the mood for barbeque. I’ll
bring some pulled pork home and we can make sandwiches.”

“Okay,” I leaned my face into his hand and
smiled.

“See you then,” he smiled back before turning
his attention to Conrad. “Have a good day, sir. Don’t let her
abscond with the family silver.”

Conrad gave a nod and cheerfully informed
Charlie that he’d do his best. I’d have been irritated, but it was
cute seeing them get along.

“Well that was a homey little scene,” Conrad
lifted an eyebrow and pinned me with an amused gaze. “If Ben could
see you now…”

“Don’t you dare,” I rolled my eyes.

“That poor boy tried so hard to get your
attention.”

“So how come no one’s caught your attention
yet?”

“We don’t really need to talk about that
now.”

“Then we don’t need to talk about Benjamin
Carter, do we?”

“So we’re harvesting dandelions today,
eh?”

I smiled and thanked the waitress for the
plate of pancakes she set in front of me. When we were alone again,
he leaned towards me and lowered his voice.

“Do you know what happens after dandelion
season?”

“Not really,” I thought about it for a second
while I took a bite of pancakes. “I was thinking about using some
of the money I make from the dandelions to get some of the tools
I’d need to make jewelry in the winter.”

“So, you plan on just living from season to
season?”

“I can’t exactly apply for vet school.
Technically I can’t even apply for a job right now,” I reminded him
in a low voice.

“True,” he let the subject drop while we
finished our breakfast. When we were alone in his truck, he brought
it back up. “You need papers.”

“I know,” I stared out the window. That
thought had been nagging me for a while.

“Let me see what I can do,” he seemed to be
mulling over the possibilities. “You’re going to need a place to
live, too.”

“I’m working on it. I appreciate the time in
the motel. Anjelita and Manny have been amazing, but I can’t stay
on their couch forever.”

“If you find a place and you need help, let
me know.”

“Are you Daddy Warbucks all of a sudden?”

“We do okay,” he shrugged. “I can help you
get on your feet.”

“I don’t need you to save me.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I mean it. You don’t have to do this. I’m
headed in the right direction now.”

“I know you are. This’ll just get you there a
little faster. Besides, you deprived me the satisfaction of
cracking Todd Winslow in the skull. You owe me this.”

“That’s a horrible thing to say,” I slapped
his arm.

“Well you did,” he replied defensively.

I rested my head against the window and
watched the scenery pass by. There was no sense arguing with him.
He seemed determined to make me out into some sort of damsel in
distress. It was a little frustrating. Of course, it was also nice
to have clean clothes and a room of my very own.

The morning passed quickly with Conrad
working at my side. We covered twice the ground I had with Charlie.
Conrad had spent just as many hours as I helping our mama and
grandmother harvest dandelions as a child. Sometimes we reminisced
about childhood. Sometimes he filled me in on current gossip from
home. Whenever conversation veered to Gabrielle, his face would
light up but inevitably fall.

“You’d like her, you know.”

“Don’t,” I stood and stretched my aching
back.

“Why not? Don’t you at least want to see
her?”

“The day they took her out of my arms, it
felt like a piece of me had been ripped out. It was the single most
excruciating moment of my life. But it’s done and she’s happy now
and I won’t take that from her.”

“She wonders who you are. Why you left
her.”

“That’s better than knowing the truth.”

“Sometimes I’m not so sure about that.”

“Come on; let’s get these processed before
Charlie gets back.”

Conrad gave me a look that said he knew I was
just ducking the subject but he was going to let me off the hook
for the time being. I figured I’d take what reprieve I could get.
Truth was, I was dying to know what she looked like… what kind of
person she’d become. I just remembered a big-eyed baby with a head
full of black hair that stuck out in every direction. She’d been a
little disproportionate; her eyes and mouth seemed too big for her
head. I was pretty sure she would have grown into those by now.

Conversation turned to Mary O’Donnell and
Conrad’s first visit. We rehearsed his story and discussed when his
visit should be. We had that ironed out and had gone on to what
semi-precious stones were indigenous to the area and what would be
best for making jewelry. That’s the discussion Charlie came home
to.

“What? Are you through with dandelions
already?” he teased as he set his briefcase on the counter.

“I have to do something with all the silver
I’m heisting from you. It melts down nicely,” I made a face at
him.

“Good to know.”

“Just planning ahead, actually,” I relented.
“Dandelions have a great growing season, but I don’t want to go all
winter without income.”

“So you’re planning on sticking around,
then?”

“Looks like it,” I was startled by his
question. He seemed pleased by my response, which got me even more
flustered.

“You guys got a lot done,” Charlie let out a
low whistle as he surveyed the rows of jars lining his dining room
tables. “Good thing Rita said you could bring a few jars by the
diner this afternoon.”

“Really?”

“Really,” he broke into a broad grin. I could
feel a matching smile spreading across my face. “She said if you’d
make up some smaller jars to put on the tables as samples, she’d
let you set up a display at the counter. Just to see how it
goes.”

“That’s amazing! Did you hear that,
Conrad?”

It was a little victory, but it felt much
larger. My enthusiasm permeated lunch. Any animosity Charlie and
Conrad still felt for each other seemed to dissipate over the
course of the next hour. By the time Charlie headed back to his
office, I was deliriously happy. My world seemed more right than I
ever thought possible.

That evening, Conrad met the Torres family.
Isabel was fascinated, declaring him the tallest man she’d ever
seen. Anjelita was instantly determined to find him a soul mate.
Manny was happy to have someone new to discuss carpentry with. Mamá
Torres was delighted to have a new boy to fuss over.

All in all, the evening was a success. The
only damper was Anjelita’s concerned frown when I told her I’d be
moving out. I’d expected her to be happy to be rid of the fixture
on the couch. Instead, she’d frowned and insisted, “You have to
promise to come to dinner at least once a week.”

“Absolutely. At least,” I assured her with a
hug. Truth be told, I wasn’t exactly rolling in cash and the hotel
room only had a microwave and mini fridge. The dinners would be
welcome.

“Will you be by tomorrow?” Charlie walked me
to the door.

“Bright and early,” I nodded. We stood there
awkwardly for a moment, a little unsure how to part. “I guess I’d
better get going.”

“Conrad looks ready to leave without you,” he
agreed.

“He’s got a long drive tomorrow. Well,
bye.”

“Goodnight.”

I felt a little out of sorts as I fumbled
with the truck door. Conrad’s look of amusement didn’t sit well
with me so I stuck my tongue out at him.

“I’m really glad you called,” he surprised me
with his sudden declaration.

“Are you really?” My heart lifted just a
little. “You don’t hate me?”

“Even when I didn’t know what was going on, I
didn’t hate you. I certainly don’t now. I’m glad you called.”

“I’m glad you came.”

“Me too.”

Silence descended over us. I was going to
miss him when he went home. It occurred to me that I would be
living alone the next day. Other than my time wandering in the
woods, I’d never really lived alone before. It made me wish I had a
really big guard dog, but the motel probably wouldn’t like that too
much.

Conrad decided to get a shower before bed so
he could get an earlier start the next morning. I could tell he was
anxious to get back to Gabrielle. I had just curled up in my pretty
pink pajamas when there was a knock at the door.

“Neena… it’s me,” I heard Charlie call
through the door as I searched for something to slide on over my
PJs.

When I realized it was him, I stopped
searching and opened the door. He came in and looked around the
room as if to verify we were alone.

“You have my house key,” he reminded me.

“Oh, sorry,” I guiltily went to look through
my shorts pockets. “Here you go.”

“Thanks,” he seemed to be deliberating
something as he paused. “I didn’t really say a proper goodnight
earlier.”

“Is that so?”

“It is,” he pulled me to him, kissing me like
he’d been thinking about it all day. Or maybe it just felt that way
because I had been thinking about it all day. Either way, we were
both so intent on the kiss we didn’t notice the water had turned
off. It wasn’t until Conrad spoke that we jumped apart like two
teenagers busted by their parents.

“I swear I can’t leave you alone for even a
minute.”

“It’s his fault,” I jerked my thumb in
Charlie’s direction.

“I’m sure it is,” Conrad’s eyes gave away his
amusement. It was moments like these that I felt the strongest
glimmer of hope for a normal life. Or rather, it felt almost like
the ten-year nightmare hadn’t happened.

Chapter Nine

My life settled into a pleasant, steady
rhythm in the months after Conrad’s visit. I went everyday to
Charlie’s house to make dandelion jelly and coffee. The jars of
jelly began selling from Rita’s countertop. Slowly at first, then
quickly enough I had to harvest six days a week to meet the demand.
Word about the jelly spread and soon the coffee was sitting on the
counter at the general store. Of course, I always sold both from
the Torres vegetable stand and split the day’s profit with
them.

It didn’t take long at all for me to save
enough to buy some basic tools so I could start stringing jewelry.
If I wasn’t actively making something with dandelions, I was
stringing rocks and semi-precious stones into necklaces and
bracelets.

Conrad didn’t have good news from his visit
with Mary. It could have been worse, but I could tell from the tone
of his voice that he was worried about her. Worried about her, and
even more upset after having caught a glimpse at what my life had
been.

I don’t know how he did it, but the week
after Conrad called to tell me I was right to be concerned Mary
being alone in prison, he called to say he’d found her a lawyer and
they were appealing her sentence. I hated to see him spending
resources on something else I’d drug him into, but maybe they could
get Mary out of that place. So I bit back any protest and let him
try.

My relationship with Anjelita and her family
deepened. They were such an integral part of my life I couldn’t
imagine a day without them. Anjelita became the sister I’d never
had. I’d like to think she felt the same way about me.

There through it all was Charlie. I saw him
every day and still it felt like it was never enough. The more time
I spent with him, the more the craving grew. He’d stopped asking me
about my past and I started to get over the guilt for not telling
him. The more time passed, the easier it was to forget who I was or
where I’d come from. I stopped plaguing myself with questions about
“should I” and just allowed myself to be pulled further and further
out to sea by the tide on a rather comfy boat.

I’d even let myself get sucked in where Cara
was concerned. At first I was drawn to her as I was Isabel, because
I much preferred her outlook on life to many adults. Then I found
myself offering to pick her up from the Torres place to help
Charlie out. If she was sick, she stayed with me so Charlie didn’t
have to cancel appointments. Next thing you know, we were almost as
inseparable as her father and I. When school started, I walked her
home as often as her daddy did.