Chapter 4

Out in the world again, where will Suzy go? Who can she trust?

Checking her pockets, she pulled out only a hundred dollars. Nothing close for a down payment for a room. She sighed, wondering how she was going to get a place to stay for the night. Standing there in the cold wind, Suzy realized something else. She needed food and better clothing for the change of the seasons. Sighing again, she walked to the nearest warm building. Walking through the door, Suzy was greeted by a little bell chime, warmth and the aroma of incense. She closed her eyes and inhaled the sweet fragrance and let it do its job; calm her nerves.

“How may I help you, my dear?” The soothing voice belonged to a small elderly woman of oriental decent. She walked out from behind a shelf of Buddhas who were holding dark purple and blue candles.

“I’m just looking.” Kat smiled at the woman and advanced a little more into the shop. The amazing variety of objects in there dazzled Suzy. The gold colored statues of the many different gods and goddesses of the elements, the sun, the moon, and even a few Greek gods and goddesses, stood tall surrounding a little table holding jewelry. The many different jewelry displayed were similar to one another but also entirely different. Some had red rubies, some green emeralds, some blue sapphires. The dull light in the shop glimmered off their surfaces. Along the far walls of the shop, bookcases stood tall and proud holding many different historical writings in different languages. Some looked like guide lines for rituals and ceremonies for new Children of the Moon and Children of Mother Earth. But what caught Suzy’s attention was the rock collection and crystals. An energy source emanated from them that gave her a sense of peace. She slowly glided her hands over them and picked up one. This one had power but was soft in giving it out. Slowly the crystal’s energy sent out its tentacles and wormed its way into Suzy’s hand. The gentle touch barely noticeable but enough for Suzy to know it was alive.

“She seems to like you,” the woman appeared at Suzy’s shoulder, causing Suzy to drop the crystal in surprise, “and she doesn’t normally reach out to people.” She picked up the crystal and looked at it closely. “Maybe she chooses you for a reason. You are a troubled soul, and she wishes to help.” She took Suzy’s hand and placed the crystal in her palm. Folding Suzy’s fingers over it, the woman seemed to peer into Suzy’s soul by just that mere touch. Suzy jumped back and put the crystal in the bowl.

“I don’t have money for such a wonderful crystal.” Suzy shrugged. “And besides, I’m not in any trouble. I’m doing just fine.”

“Hmm, you say it, but you do not mean it.” The woman stroked Suzy’s cheek, “You are still young. Life has yet to show you Her splendors.” She patted her cheek and turned to walk away. “Oh, there is a room up the stairs and to the left you may rest in for the night.”

Entirely stunned, Suzy just stood there staring after the little woman as she disappeared back into the little dark corner she had originally come from. She didn’t know if she should take her up on the offer or venture back out into the cold. She really didn’t want to sleep in a tree like she was planning on doing but then she didn’t have enough money to even think about finding a room. The woman didn’t say if she had to pay but that didn’t mean anything. Clearly, the woman was trying to sell her the crystal but how did she know Suzy needed a room to begin with? Was it her clothes? Did she just look that damn desperate? Suzy didn’t think so but she wasn’t sure. She hadn’t changed in a few months and being on the run did make a person look a little on the rugged side. Then another thought jumped into Suzy’s mind: What if the woman is just a rouse to get her to feel comfortable before they snatch her and put her back into the training facility? What if it’s a trap?

Suzy made up her mind and rushed out of the store. She ran to the nearest park and looked around, making sure no one was following her. The cold bit into her exposed skin, causing her to shiver. She looked around again, scanning the grounds for a comfortable place to sleep and found a huge tree with many branches. The leaves all gone, Suzy had to find a comfortable branch out of sight from the ground so she wasn’t found by the cops cruising the neighborhood. She curled up in a little ball to keep warm but no matter what she did, she felt her limbs slowly lose their feeling. When she was all numb, she finally drifted off to sleep.

 

The sky still dark, Suzy found herself awake. The stars were hidden by the clouds and a little drizzle began to fall. She shivered and slowly climbed down the tree, careful not to slip and fall. By the time she was out of the park, the freezing rain had soaked her to the bone. Walking down the street, she found an ally-way with an overhang from the two buildings standing side by side. Squeezing between them, she found a little cubby hole. It was just big enough for her to crawl through but the sound of rats fighting kept her from entering it. So she lied down a little ways away from it and tried to fall back to sleep.

“Ok, so you see how this ‘K’ looks different than this ‘k’?” Suzy’s father asked, drawing the two K’s right next to each other. Suzy nodded and looked up at her father’s smiling face. “I want you to draw them. Can you do that for me?”  Suzy took the pen from her father and uncertainly started to write the letter ‘K.’ She drew the first long line going down and then tried to do the other two strokes but messed up. She cried out in frustration and tried again. She didn’t want to disappoint her dad so this time she held her left hand with her right to keep the lines straighter. Finally making the leg of the ‘K,’ Suzy raised her hands in accomplishment. Her father congratulated her and hugged her. “See? I knew you could do it!”

“Yeah! I can do it!” Suzy smiled and did a little dance of excitement repeating “I did it. I did it.”Her father laughed and picked her up.

“Now it’s time for a little nap, Sweetheart.” He carried her to bed and tucked her in. “When you wake up, we’ll go to the park since you were such a good girl today.” He kissed her on the forehead and left the room, the door standing open only ajar.

Suzy was shaken out of her daydream by a man at the opening of her little crevice. “Hey, you alive in there?” He shook her foot again. “Hey, c’mon. Wake up already.” She couldn’t really move do to the cold and she was too exhausted to move, so she just laid there, hoping he would go away. Instead of going away, she felt him take her shoe off. She didn’t know why he was going to steal her shoe but she didn’t really care, they didn’t really keep her feet warm anyway. She was surprised when she felt his warm fingers on the top of her foot.

“You got a pulse?” Another voice asked.

“Yeah, but it’s slight. She’s almost frozen.” Her shoe was being put back on, and she was being dragged out from her temporary bed. “Help me with her. She’s as stiff as a board.” Any warmth she had accumulated during her time curled up was lost in a gust of wind when they had freed her. Her teeth started to chatter and all her muscles began to spasm like crazy. “Jesus! She’s barely wearing anything for this weather. Go get the car. I’ve got a spare jacket in there. It’s not much, but it’ll help her.”

Suzy felt warm arms hold her and she heard someone running. A few minutes later, the footsteps were back and a jacket was being pulled on her. Feeling a little warmer, her spasms subsided to small shivers. Resting her head on his shoulder, she wondered where he was taking her but a deep needed sleep washed over her before she found out.

Author's Note

Don't know if I'm adding on to this chapter or if I'm just moving to the next chapter. Let me know if you want this one to be longer or if I should just make another chapter.

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

Old men like me need larger letters. I like the girl. Her strength is better. Her view on life is more controlled. A very strong chapter. thank you.
Coyote