Love You Moore (12 page)

“
It’s going to be a very long day for
you.” Abby expressed with concern.

“
It’s worth it.” He replied. “I’ll get
more time with you. I can spend some time writing then visit with
my family.

Abby spent most of the plane ride fighting
back tears. She was going to miss him. Holly spent the time reading
a book she had picked up while in LA. Jimmy sat next to Abby again
in silence holding her hand. When they landed in Owls Head, Abby
couldn’t hold back the tears. She could barely see as she descended
the stairs. They had left her Jeep in the parking area so they
wouldn’t need to be picked up. Holly said good-bye to Jimmy with a
hug and peck on the cheek, thanking him again for a great trip,
took Abby’s keys and headed for the Jeep, not hiding her distain
for the cold weather. Jimmy turned to Abby, who by now, was all but
bawling.

“
I’m sorry,” she blubbered, “I don’t
mean to cry like a baby, I’m just going to miss you and I don’t
know when I am going to see you again.” she was full blown sobbing
now, she felt like an idiot but couldn’t stop.

He pulled her to him and she buried her face
into his chest.

“
We’ll see each other again before you
know it. You’ll be busy with school activities and your friends,
the time will fly by. I will call you every day. We’ll e-mail and
text. Don’t forget Skype, we can video chat too. Don’t be sad,
Baby.” He tried to comfort her.

They heard the jet engines start back up. He
had a schedule to keep. He had to go. They kissed good-bye. He got
back on to the plane and waved as the pilot closed and locked the
door. Abby felt like her heart had stopped beating. She turned and
walked to the Jeep, she didn’t want him to see her still crying.
Holly had turned on the car and had the heat on high. She knew it
was going to be a night of tears, she had called her parents to let
them know they had landed and to let them know she would be with
Abby tonight.

School was the same. She got through the
first three weeks of December without incident. As Jimmy promised,
they talked every day. It wasn’t the same as being together but she
would take whatever she could get at this point. Her parents
decided one weekend that they were going to have an overnight
Christmas shopping trip in Portland.

“
Maybe you can get Holly to come over
and keep you company.” Her mom suggested.

“
Maybe, I am sure one of us will be at
the others house at some point this weekend. Don’t worry about me,
go have a good time.” She assured them.

Abby had finished up with her holiday gift
shopping about a week earlier. She and Holly had taken a day trip
to Augusta. Abby needed some scrapbooking supplies and some photos
printed for the gift she was making for Jimmy. What does one get
for a rich boyfriend that has everything he needs? Abby hoped she
knew. As Abby was watching out the window at the falling snow, she
saw the mail truck pull up.

“
SHOOT” Abby cried and jumped out of
the chair. “I hope they left the mail key.” She said to herself out
loud.

Her parent had installed a mail box with a
lock and a key three years ago. They had heard there had been some
kids messing with the mail and wanted to take precautions. Her mom
was always home to collect the mail when it was delivered so Abby
had no idea where the key was. She had no plans for the moment so
figured she would spend some time looking for the key to pass the
time until Holly came over. She looked all through the drawers in
the kitchen, the key hooks were empty on the wall. No key in the
armoire in the dining room. She wasn’t prohibited from her father’s
office but out of respect, she didn’t want to rummage through
there. Once she had looked every possible place she could think of,
she decided she would just look in the top drawer of her father’s
desk. If it wasn’t in there, she was done. She walked in to her
father’s sanctuary. A red and gold oriental rug covered the wood
floor, there were shelves filled with books that covered three
walls. Behind the desk was a painted portrait of her mother and
father when they were married. She walk behind the big oak desk and
opened the thin top drawer. She moved a few papers around and found
the key.

“
Sweet!” she exclaimed and left the
office to retrieve the mail.

She opened the box and pulled out a variety
of items, Christmas cards, utility bills, credit card statements,
sales flyers and one letter that made Abby freeze in her
tracks.

The blue envelope sat on the table. Abby
thought it was a hideous blue, a mix between a slate and
cornflower. It was addressed to her, mailed from The Maine State
Prison in Warren. Abby’s hands were shaking as she picked up the
envelope. She contemplated waiting to open it when her parents
returned from their weekend away. Should she call them and tell
them about the letter? No, she didn’t want to spoil one of the few
times they could actually get away. She turned it over and slid her
finger in between the folds of the flap and tore it straight
across. It was open. She still wasn’t sure she should read it yet.
Hands still shaking she reached inside and pulled out the folded
letter, she placed it on the table. She ran her hands through her
hair, pickup it up and opened the letter. After two seconds she
dropped the letter back on the table. Abby was now hyperventilating
and the room was spinning. She was glad she was sitting down or she
would have fallen down. She heard ringing, she wasn’t sure if it
were in her ears or if the phone was actually ringing, she didn’t
care. Abby wasn’t sure what a panic attack felt like but this had
to be close. Abby closed her eyes and the memories of the day she
had tried so hard to block out came flooding back.

* * * * *

Chapter 11

If Abby had heard once she had heard it a
hundred times, her Uncle Roy was trouble. Her father’s brother was
constantly the topic of conversation when it came to the heartache
her grandmother had suffered. Grammy Frances had passed away nine
years ago when Abby was eight. Uncle Roy had shown up to the
funeral drunk crying how no one loved her as much as he did. Her
father was completely embarrassed but not surprised. His brother
often showed up drunk wherever he went. But to have this display in
front of the people he worked with was about as much as he wanted
to deal with today. Her father had slowly gotten out of his seat
and escorted Uncle Roy out of the funeral home all the while Uncle
Roy shouting how he had no right to keep him from seeing his
mother. After that my father was the one that was called anytime
Uncle Roy was too drunk to drive home from any one of the bars in
Rockland. The cab companies stopped taking him as a fare, he gets
belligerent and physical when he drinks so it was too much of a
liability to the cab companies if Uncle Roy had ever assaulted a
driver. So whether it was the middle of the afternoon or the middle
of the night, her father would stop what he was doing, pick him up
and take him home to sober up. He did it mostly out of the respect
of his late mother but also the less Uncle Roy was arrested the
less his name was in the papers and the less it was brought to his
superiors attention. He didn’t fear being fired because of his
brother actions, that was not his company’s policy but still, he
had to face customers every day and they may lose faith in a person
that had a convict for a brother. So, he did what he could to keep
his brother out of the papers.

Abby was home alone that afternoon when the
phone rang. She was 14 and certainly old enough to care for herself
for a couple of hours while her parents went out for awhile. It was
one of the local bars her uncle frequently inhabited.

“
Yes hello is Tom there?” She heard
when she answered the phone.

“
No I am sorry he isn’t, can I take a
message?” Abby replied

“
Ugh just great.” The caller moaned.
“Now what?”

“
This is his daughter maybe I can
help.” Abby tried to sound older to gain some confidence from the
caller.

“
This is Dan at the Time Out Pub, we
have Roy here and he needs a ride.” Abby’s dad had gone to all the
local bars and given his name as a contact if and when his brother
needed a ride.

“
Um ok, well I am not sure what time
they are coming back” Abby looked around to see what time it was
when she noticed the keys to her mother’s SUV.

“
Well I can’t let him leave and walk
the streets as drunk as he is, he’ll end up arrested or worst dead
in a ditch hit by a car.” Dan was obviously frustrated.

“
Ok wait,” Abby said. “I’ll be right
there.” Abby hung up the phone and grabbed the keys.

Her father had let Abby drive lots of times,
mostly on the back roads where traffic was slim to none. She knew
the fundamentals of driving. It was only about five miles to the
bar on the main road. It was a sunny spring day late in the
afternoon so no worries of wet or snowy roads. She could pick up
Uncle Roy, take him home and be back all within 30 minutes. This
would save her father embarrassment and make sure Uncle Roy made it
safely home. No one would be the wiser if she returned home before
her parents.

She made it to the bar no problem. Slow and
steady. Uncle Roy was leaning on a table outside the bar. She
pulled in to the parking lot, retrieved him from the table and put
him in the passenger side of the vehicle. Abby backed out of the
parking spot and pulled out of the parking lot onto the road. No
one had seen her. Uncle Roy lived in a trailer off Rt. 131 heading
towards St. George. Abby had just turned onto Rt. 131 when her
uncle spoke to her. She thought he had been sleeping or passed out,
either way she was fine with it, but now he was awake.

“
So, how old are you now Sweetie?” he
asked slurring his words.

“
14.” Abby answered and focused on the
road.

“
14 huh, well you are certainly turning
in to a fine young lady.” He was staring at Abby, this made her a
little uncomfortable.

“
Why are you sitting so far away?” He
started to unbuckle his seat belt.

“
I don’t think you should do that.”
Abby said looking back and forth between her uncle and the road.
“That’s not safe.”

Well I thought I’d sit a little closer to
you, you sure are pretty.”

Abby could feel his breath near her face. She
turned to look at him. He was sitting very close. He put his hand
on her leg.

“
Please, Uncle Roy I just want to get
you home safely, it’s getting dark, please put your seatbelt on”
Abby begged.

“
Well Abby I just want a little kiss,
you have a kiss for your old Uncle Roy?” He leaned over to kiss
her

Abby backed away as far as she could, pushing
him away with her right hand leaving her left hand on the wheel.
She had to correct the vehicle a couple times to keep it in her
lane. His hand was moving up her leg towards her thigh. He then
unbuckled her seatbelt and pulled her towards him. Abby screamed as
she tried to keep the vehicle under control, pleading the whole
time for him to stop. She didn’t see the oncoming minivan crest the
hill. Roy had her pulled half way into his seat when she crossed
the center line and hit the van head on. The SUV hit the ditch on
the opposite side of the road and rolled over, Abby felt herself
being ejected from the vehicle. She heard screaming, she felt
herself hitting the ground, she heard her leg snap and she barely
saw the rock before she rolled into it and hit her head.

She woke up in the hospital 12 days later.
Abby tried opening her eyes, they were heavy. She tried lifting her
hand to her face but felt it heavy too. “What is wrong with me” she
thought to herself. Her parents had seen her move when they rushed
to her bed side.

“
Abby, Abby Honey can you hear me?” she
heard her mother ask, she sounded like she’d been crying. Didn’t
they have a good time on their day out she wondered?

“
Abby Sweetheart, it’s Dad, can you
open your eyes Baby?” She thought even her dad sounded
weird.

Was it late, she didn’t remember going to bed
but she must have if she were sleeping when they got home. Abby
tried again to open her eyes. She could see through the small slit
she was able to make them open. She wasn’t in her room. She tried a
little harder and her eyes got a little wider. She wasn’t in any
part of her house, what was going on?

“
Mom.” She said just barely a
whisper.

“
Yes Baby, Moms here, I‘m right here.”
She was crying Abby confirmed.

“
Why are you crying?” Abby wanted to
know that before she wanted to know where she was. She hated to see
her mother upset.

“
Because I’m happy Baby, you’re awake
and everything is going to be ok.” She kissed Abby’s forehead.
That’s when Abby realized she had a major headache.

Abby squinted her eyes and tried to rub her
head when she saw all the tubes connected to her arm. Abby tried to
sit up. Her parents kept her still in the bed.

“
Lie back Sweetie.” Her father urged.
“Don’t try to sit up, let me get the nurse to help you.” He hit the
call button.

Nurse, get what nurse, Abby thought, trying
to figure out what was happening. She started to panic. She tried
to focus on the room. Mint green walls, an annoying beeping sound
that was getting faster and the smell of antiseptic, hospital Abby
concluded. But how did she get in the hospital, she was home, her
parents were away and she was home, how did……? The stark
realization of what had happed hit Abby like a ton of bricks. She
stopped moving. She felt her left leg with her hand, she had a cast
from hip to toe. She raised her hand slowly to her head, a small
bandage covered a sore spot at her left temple most likely the
cause of her major headache. She stared at her parents, put her
hand to her mouth and started to cry.