The Hope of Refuge by Cindy Woodsmall Read Free Book Online Page B

took Lori’s hand and hurried down the steps and toward the road.
    “Mom, wait. You forgot the beer bottle.”
    “Lori, shh. Come on.” She elongated the last word, and Lori obeyed.
    The man seemed unable to move other than rubbing his left shoulder. “Malinda?”
    Her heart stopped as her mother’s name rode on the wind.
    He blinked and opened his mouth to speak, but he said nothing.
    “Daed?” A young woman called to him.
    He turned to glance behind him. Cara couldn’t see who called to him, but based on her voice, she was close. The man looked back to Cara. “It makes no difference who you are, we don’t need thieves, drunks, or addicts around here.”

    “But I’m not—”
    He wasted no time getting inside the pasture and shutting the noisy metal gate, ending Cara’s attempt to defend herself.
    Part of Cara wanted another chance to explain herself and ask questions or at least follow them as they turned their backs to her and headed through the field. Why had he called her by her mother’s name? But she feared he might lash out and scare Lori if she dared to ask questions. It would do no one any good if her search for answers began badly. Awash in emotions, she took Lori by the hand and continued down the road. Did she look like her mother had? Did that man know her mom?
    “Mom, what’d that man say to you?”
    Unwilling to tell her the truth, Cara improvised. “Something about monks and leaves being in the attic… maybe?”
    She giggled. “I think he’s confused.”
    “I think you’re right. I’m feeling a little confused myself. How do the shoes feel?”
    “Pretty good. Thanks. I might not need those Band-Aids.”
    “You’re one tough little girl, you know that?” Cara bent and kissed the top of Lori’s head.
    She’d thought it could mean a sense of connection for herself and Lori to meet people who knew her mother… but now it felt like a mistake. Her mother’s past was hidden to her, and the man looked horrified to think she might be Malinda.
    They walked on and on, putting more than a mile between them and that man. While trying to sort through his reaction, she studied the land. Another barn in need of paint stood a few hundred feet ahead of them, but not one thing felt familiar. Her arms and shoulders ached from the miles she’d toted Lori. Surely they’d covered nearly every mile of Dry Lake—every road, paved and dirt. As they walked Mast Road, she had no hint of what to do now.

    She tripped again, and it seemed that stumbling got easier as the day wore on. Whatever they were going to do for shelter, Cara had to find an answer soon. There wasn’t a house in sight, but perhaps they could sleep in that slightly lopsided barn.
    As they approached the old building, Cara spotted something of interest on the other side of the road. Holding on to Lori’s hand, she crossed over. Walking up a short gravel driveway, she noticed a huge garden planted beside it. Ahead of her lay a bare foundation with only a rock chimney still standing. She stepped onto the concrete floor and walked to the fireplace. The stone hearth had a rusted crane and black kettle.
    “That pot looks like a witch’s cauldron, huh, Mom? Like in Harry Potter.”
    Cara ran her fingers along the metal. “It’s for cooking over an open fire. The house that used to be here must’ve been hundreds of years old.”
    Something niggled at her but nothing she could make sense of.
    Lori tugged at her mother’s hand. “Look at that tree. I’ve always wanted to climb a tree, Mom. Remember?”
    She remembered.
    “I think I can climb that one.”
    “Maybe so.” With reality pressing in on her, Cara tried to hold on to the positive. They were free of Mike. She had Lori. Still, she had no idea how she’d start over and pull together a life for them with no help, no money, and no belongings.
    After interlacing her fingers, she gave Lori a boost up to the lowest branch. If nothing else, she’d finally given Lori one of her