Shadows of the Redwood - By Gillian Summers Page 0,43
“I’m going to get some sleep. If I had a hammer, I’d make sure Risa did, too.”
Knot was now sitting in the front seat between Keelie and Sean, the air from the vent blowing his fur. He rode sitting up, eyes closed as if meditating.
“Risa, put your seat belt back on,” Sean said, eyes on the rearview mirror. He was a good driver, and Keelie relaxed after she realized that they were not going to all die before they got to the highway. He wore a Silver Bough shirt, jeans, and leather jacket. He looked good. Real good.
“I’m going to die back here.”
If Risa kept up the annoying whine, she might vanish on the road to L.A., Keelie decided.
They stopped for a snack at a burrito stand on the side of the road. Despite Keelie’s efforts, Knot snagged a burrito from their picnic table and wolfed it down. They’d all pay for that, Keelie knew. The gasbag kitty would be at poisonous levels.
The road down to L.A. was mostly arid, with ocean and sand and palisades on one side, and rock and gorse and hills on the other. Risa didn’t like it, and even Sean looked uneasy at the lack of trees and greenery. No elves here, Keelie thought. And that’s probably exactly why Mom had chosen to live here.
They neared Los Angeles as the sun was rising, and Sean pulled over at a restaurant. Everyone piled out to wash their faces, eat breakfast, and brush their teeth. Laurie decided to drive the rest of the way, and Sean gave Keelie the evil eye (or was it the “save me!” eye) as he climbed into the back with Risa. Keelie gritted her teeth as Risa cooed, but she wanted to have a front-seat view of her old hometown.
Laurie drove confidently, making Keelie jealous as she smoothly negotiated the crowded freeway and streets like a pro.
“Want to see our old school?”
“Why?” Risa sounded bored. “Let’s just get this errand done, okay?”
Keelie glared at her, then smiled at Laurie, who was grinning as she drove. “You know I want to go by there.”
“We can’t let anyone see me because I’m skipping, but we can look.”
“What’s ‘skipping’?” Sean asked from the back seat.
“That means not going to school when you’re supposed to,” Keelie explained.
“Lord Elianard would come to my house to find me if I did that. And my father would never allow it,” Risa said.
Sean nodded. “We studied when it was time to study.”
“Understood. There are no elf slackers. But here, a bus comes to pick you up at your home and take you to the school building, and there you spend the day working, and in the afternoon the bus takes you back home.”
Sean and Risa looked interested at this insight into human life. As Laurie turned into the street that went by the back of Baywood Academy, they leaned forward to look. Laurie pulled over and they got out.
The soccer fields were in back, separated from the street by a row of slender Bradford Pear trees, now in full stinky bloom. Dozens of girls in burgundy shorts and dark blue T-shirts with the gold Baywood logo were playing soccer. They laughed and talked, and occasional blasts of the referee’s whistle split the air.
Keelie’s surge of nostalgia at the familiar sounds and smells was marred because she also heard the thoughts of the trees. She knew now that the Bradford Pears were watered too little and their roots were shallow, planted by landscapers looking for an inexpensive solution.
We need water.
I’ll try and find you water, she promised.
Although sad for the trees, Keelie was also annoyed. She couldn’t enjoy her moment of remembrance of her life that once was without it being invaded by the needs of the now.
“Why did we stop? There’s nothing interesting here, just a bunch of girls playing a game. We could have stopped in the garlic fields. That was interesting, but no, you all said it was stinky and just farms.” Risa crossed her arms and stalked back to the car.
Sean didn’t say anything, but Keelie could tell he didn’t see the point of stopping here, either.
“I’m sorry if it’s boring,” Keelie said. “I had some really good times here.”
“It’s good to remember,” Sean said. “Did you wear one of those outfits to play?”
“No, I ran track. My shorts were shorter.”
His eyebrows rose. She left him to think about that.
Laurie was back behind the wheel. “I don’t want to be seen. Hurry up.”