Page 3 of Operation: Return
Erica Jameson raceddown the sidewalk, picturing people staring at her as they drove by. Who wouldn’t gawk at a full-grown woman, running in heels like the Devil himself was after her, down the small-town city street. Mature trees lined the sidewalk and a car up ahead honked and waved at a pedestrian.
Rock Point was one of those towns that was just small enough where everyone knew your business, and just big enough where everyone had someone to tell. Erica had moved in about three years before and struggled to make ends meet to stay there.
She reached the bus stop, panting and holding her side, as the bus door opened and Pete bounded out after a long day at summer school. Since there was a large portion of Rock Point residents who were considered low-income, the county offered an optional, free two weeks of school where kids could go and do projects, learn things they wouldn’t normally get to, and see friends.
Erica knew it was a mostly publicly funded daycare, but since using the program meant she didn’t have to pay someone for two weeks to watch Pete while she was at work, she wouldn’t complain. Except she’d been asked to stay late today and her boss of only six months had decided her position was being eliminated. She was out of work, again.
“Mama!” The boy launched himself at her, dropping his backpack on the sidewalk as he flew into her arms. He hung tightly on her neck and her thoughts immediately went to his day. Was someone mean to him? Was he struggling? Or, like her, did he just miss being together?
“Did you have a good day?” Pushing for answers was never a way to actually get them.
“Yes! We got to plant dill seeds! The teacher said she’s going to put them all in the greenhouse over the rest of the summer and when we get back to school in September, we’ll have what looks like a tree from that tiny little seed!” He let go and dropped to his feet then gathered his bag. “Why were you running?”
She couldn’t tell him. Not that he wouldn’t understand, he’d been forced to understand so much by age six. “I was just late. What do you want for supper?” She prayed whatever he wanted was already in their cupboard because she couldn’t shop until her employer sent her final check to her in a week.
“Macaroni and cheese.” He grinned up at her.
They’d lived on boxed dinner for so long she could barely stomach looking at it, but she’d gotten what she prayed for. There was definitely the fixings for his favorite at home. “Mind if I make a few chicken tenders with it?” She could at least eat that.
“That sounds good.” He yawned. “Have you heard from Sanctity Ranch yet? Summer camp is supposed to start in two weeks. I can’t wait to ride the horses.” He fell into skipping next to her and she took his backpack to lighten his load.
Without her job, she couldn’t pay the reduced rate the ranch had given her. She’d only just found out that she’d gotten a scholarship to send him, but she still would have to pay $150 for the week. That wasn’t much for a week-long horse camp, but it could just as well have been a thousand now. Pete didn’t need to hear that quite yet. There would be a better time. “Not yet.”
Their little house sat a block away, a little blue two-bedroom ranch with a bathroom and a half and a one stall garage that didn’t open, which was fine because she’d never had a car to put in it. The paint was peeling and the yard needed a trim, but it was home.
Pete rushed the rest of the way and dropped his shoes on the rug at the front door before diving onto the sofa like it was a pool and grabbing the remote. She’d thought, between summer school and the camp, Pete would be away from the television for a third of his summer break. She hung up his backpack on the low peg by the door.
“Need a snack?”
He shook his head, already engrossed in the show. When he relaxed like that, he looked a lot like his father, a man she hadn’t seen in seven years and would never see again. She blinked rapidly at the sudden burn in her eyes and headed for the kitchen.
She turned on the tap and let it run while she went for a glass in the cupboard. The water took quite a while to get cool enough to enjoy after not running all day, but bottled water was a luxury and so was space in the refrigerator. When the glass was full, she took a long drink, trying to ignore the emotional tsunami raging inside. Taylor Creed had been the best man she’d ever met and the last and only man she’d given her heart to.
She should be glad her son looked like him. Especially since Taylor’s parents were gone now too. Pete was all that was left of Taylor’s lineage. But she wished she’d have told him how she felt before his parents got the visit that changed her life forever. They’d known she was pregnant with Taylor’s child when they died. At least they’d known he would live on, in a way.
The flier for the Sanctity Ranch hung near the phone on the wall. She hadn’t ever taken that phone down, it had come with the house, but she didn’t have a land line. The bulletin board was handy though. When evening came and the sun wasn’t beating down, she’d send Pete outside to play on the swing set, then she’d call the ranch and let them know Pete couldn’t attend. Maybe they’d take pity on her and pay the full fee, but she doubted it. A reduced fee meant they could help more struggling kids.
She peered into the living room and Pete had let his eyes drift shut. He was curled on his side, fast asleep. Even though he was just like every other boy who wanted a puppy and a chance to go to camp, he never complained when she had to say no. That time would come and it would break her heart. There was only so long she could let him down before he came to expect disappointment as normal.
If she could prevent one thing from growing in him, she wanted it to be apathy. Anger and bitterness were tough to control and heal, but apathy—feeling nothing—was worse than anything else. She thanked the Lord again for bringing her a few sweet friends when she’d found out she was pregnant with Pete. They could’ve been mean and judged her. She wasn’t married to Taylor after all. Instead, they’d given her a baby shower. They’d helped her find a low-income apartment and a job. One of them had acted as Pete’s first daycare while she’d worked.
After she’d moved to Rock Point, she hadn’t found friends like that again. If she’d known they were so hard to find, she might not have left, but there was no going back now. How often would she have to pray for improvement in her life before her prayer was answered? Or would she live like this forever?
Tears stung her eyes at the thought of her son growing up without having the things that would make school and life easier for him. What could she do to make his life better? She’d tried everything. Her skills were few since she’d never gone to college, nor had she been able to keep a job long enough to move up the ranks in any work environment.
Anything. That’s what she would do to give Pete a better life. Better than what he’d had to that point. There had to be a way for her to make money that wasn’t illegal. A job where she wouldn’t be fired for needing time off when Pete got sick, had conferences or extra curricular activities, or she was sick herself.
The only device she owned with internet was her phone so she grabbed it and scanned the help wanted listings in the local paper. Most of them were for fabricators and welders. Talk about things she knew less than nothing about. She’d do better working on a cow farm than in welding.
She felt a gentle nudge to speak her desires out loud. Heat crept up her neck at the idea. Yes, Pete was asleep but what if he woke up to hear her talking to herself? She shook the thought from her head. No, she wouldn’t teach him to be ashamed of his faith. But she still kept her voice down.
“Lord, I don’t know what we’re going to do. You know my future. It looks bleak to me. I know you’ve got me in the palm of your hand, but I need some help, some reassurance. Can you send someone to help me?” She opened one eye and glanced at the flier. “Soon?”
ChapterTwo
Years ago, when he felt free to justbe, Cole loved to drive in his car with his arm propped out the window, music loud, wind blowing his hair. Now, he still sat with his arm relaxed on the door, but the window was closed, the A/C was on, and his music was loud enough to jam, but he wasn’t bothering anyone else when he had to slow down for towns. Maybe he was getting old.
He clenched his teeth as he glanced at the gas gauge. He’d have to stop soon, but he hated the idea that he’d be even later. Early in the day, he’d decided he could leave after chores, since the drive was only two hours from Wayside Ranch outside of Piper’s Ridge to Rock Point where Erica now lived. He’d thought he’d be able to get there before he ran out of gas, but he’d guessed wrong.