I asked Melody to marry me and with her response, I found out that I was no longer an expecting dad with a pregnant fiancée. I was a single teenager. It devastated me almost as much as losing my mom had.
Pushing down the emotion that was starting to well inside of me, I lightly knocked on the doorframe. It got Sherlock’s attention and he lifted his head. But when he saw it was me, he lowered it back down onto Luna’s lap.
I lifted my arm and knocked again, this time a little louder. Luna’s eyes were transfixed on the screen.
After several more attempts to get her attention and not wanting to resort to Jimmy’s SWAT team knock, I changed my tactics to something that I knew at the very least would get Sherlock’s attention again. Placing my fingers in my mouth I whistled, and it did the trick.
Both Luna and Sherlock perked up and looked over at me. When she saw it was me, Luna waved her arm for me to come in and then immediately turned her attention back to the television.
When I stepped inside I saw that she was watching a cartoon with dinosaurs that I didn’t recognize. It had been a long time since I’d watched cartoons. I used to put them on for Jimmy so I could get homework done. His favorite had been a different dinosaur named Barney.
It was strange how those times felt like a lifetime ago, but also like yesterday.
I looked around and didn’t see any sign of Skylar.
“Is your mom around?”
“She’s talking to Lee Lee,” Luna responded without taking her eyes off the screen.
The last thing I wanted to do was intrude, but I didn’t feel good about just leaving. At least that’s the reason I was telling myself that I needed to stay. If I were being totally honest, if it was anyone else, I would’ve just left.
But I wanted to see Skylar. I wanted to see how it had gone with Mrs. Birch. Honestly, I just wanted to talk to her.
Still, I felt like a creeper just waiting around. So I decided to make myself useful. I’d noticed the kitchen sink was dripping last night so I figured I might as well fix it. I went back out and grabbed my toolbox and this time I didn’t bother knocking, I just let myself back in.
As I walked to the kitchen my mind was cataloging the things that needed my attention. There was a warped slat of wood on the floor and it was a tripping hazard.
I made a mental note to check beneath the house to see if it was structural or just warping from the drip that had been coming from the ceiling. I was so concentrated on what it would entail to repair the floor if it was a structural issue that I didn’t notice Skylar through the screen door. She was standing in her sunroom that was just off the kitchen.
Her back was facing me, and I was going to turn to leave to give her privacy when I heard her hushed voice.
“I don’t know who they were.”
I froze when I heard the tension in her statement.
“No, they didn’t hurt us. We weren’t even home when they broke in.”
Broke in?
“I just packed up and left.”
There was a moment of silence and I found myself straining to hear what she was going to say next. I’d wondered what the story was for her relocation. And now I might just find out.
“No, I didn’t give notice. I just quit.”
“Yes.” Her hand flew up and she let out a frustrated puff of air. “I had to quit.”
“Because I was moving across the country.”
“Because I didn’t have a lot of options.” She shifted her weight from her left to her right leg. “Stay in Seattle in constant fear, looking over my shoulder, wondering when they were gonna come back and hope it wasn’t when we were home. Or I could leave. I chose to leave.”
Her tone was calm on the surface, but I could hear the stress just beneath it.
“No, they won’t find us here.”
She sounded sure, but I sure as hell wasn’t.
“Because no one except Milly knows where we are, and I swore her to secrecy.”
This sounded like real danger. I needed to put in a security system.
“No! You stay in school! We’re fine.”
“Ashley Nicole, this is not up for debate.” Her tone was firm. “Luna and I are fine. We are thousands of miles away.”