Wishing Pearl Read online

  Bailey winked at Jordyn and laughed. “We thought you’d never ask. Welcome to the jungle.”

  “So I heard you were looking for me.” A hand snaked around Olivia’s head to press on the locker beside hers.

  She jumped at the raspy male voice in her ear and dropped the stack of books she’d pulled from her locker. She whirled around to find a complete stranger behind her. A creepy one with a metal ring through his lip and black greasy hair tucked behind his ears. “Who are you?”

  “I’m Emma’s boyfriend, Seth. I used to go here.” His stringy black hair fell over his eye as he cast a shady glance down the hallway. “We probably don’t want to talk about making a transaction right here, do we?”

  “What kind of transaction? What are you talking about?” Maybe he had the wrong person.

  “I was told you want some of what only I can provide.” He lowered his voice and nodded, imploring her with his eyes to catch on.

  “Oh!” Olivia put her books back and slammed her locker door. She had no intention of cracking a single one of those boring tomes, so why lug them home?

  Seth followed as she made her way out to the parking lot.

  “I have a hundred bucks on me. What will that buy?”

  “Shh. Are you insane?” he hissed. “Lower your voice. People aren’t that crazy about a drug deal going down on school property, you know.” Seth glanced in every direction.

  Drug deal? That sounded so criminal. But that was what she was doing, wasn’t it?

  “A hundred bucks will set you up for a good while. And when you need me again, you won’t have any trouble finding me.” Seth reached for her book bag and let something slide out of his sleeve into the bag.

  Olivia dug into the pocket of her jeans, pulled out a crumpled bill, and handed it to him in plain sight.

  Seth chuckled and shook his head. “Girl, you need to get a little sneakier before we meet again.” He pocketed the money and lumbered off across the school yard like something out of a movie.

  Standing on her front porch, Olivia lifted a tired hand to wave good-bye to Jordyn and twisted her watch to the front of her wrist. Ten o’clock on Saturday morning. Mom would most likely be out shopping. What about Charles? Olivia rummaged in her bag but couldn’t find a garage door opener to see if his car sat inside.

  No matter what, she couldn’t let him see her—bloodshot eyes, ragged clothes, alcohol on her breath, an aura of cigarette smoke. If he saw her … she didn’t even want to think about what would happen. But if Olivia could get to the shower before anyone spotted her, she’d be fine. No other choice—she’d have to make a dash for it and hope for the best.

  Olivia punched in the security code to unlock the front door and stepped into the house. The massive wooden door swung to a close. She grabbed it and eased it into position so it wouldn’t slam. The click of the doorknob seemed to reverberate throughout the house, along with Olivia’s heartbeat. She froze and listened for a moment. Silence.

  Starting toward the stairs, her footsteps echoed in the foyer. No other sounds at all. Perfect! The house even felt empty. Tiptoeing past the family room, she thought she must’ve gotten lucky. Mom and Chuck almost never went upstairs—they used the intercom to beckon her when they wanted her—so once she made it to her room, she’d be home free.

  Then it happened. With one foot on the bottom step, she heard the sound she’d been dreading. Her mom’s voice called from the kitchen, “Liv, is that you?”

  Oh no. Sound normal. “It’s me. I’ll be right down. Have to go to the bathroom … bad!” What was Mom doing home on a Saturday morning? Why wasn’t she out shopping?

  “No need to go upstairs to find a bathroom, silly. There are three on this floor alone. Then come in here. I’ve got something I want to talk to you about.”

  Oh great. “O–okay. I’ll be right there.” Olivia hurried into the powder room in the hallway and splashed water on her face. She dropped her knees to the floor and rummaged in the cabinet under the sink for some kind of perfume or body spritz. Lysol? It would have to do. Holding the can at arm’s length, Olivia misted her body with the aerosol spray. She gagged on the institutional smell, but she had no choice. Once the cloud settled, she squared her shoulders, smoothed the wrinkles in the clothes she’d had on since the day before, and tested her breath in her cupped hand. Gum! Olivia dug in her bag for a piece and popped it into her mouth. Enough stalling.

  Mom wrinkled her nose when Olivia entered the kitchen. “What is that smell?”

  “Oh, I just used some Lysol to … um … freshen up the bathroom.” Olivia tottered as she climbed atop a stool at the massive island. She steadied herself by gripping the granite as she selected a banana from the fruit bowl. As she peeled it, she tried not to look at her mom.

  After an eternal pause, Mom cleared her throat. “Olivia, I had wanted to talk to you about going somewhere, just the two of us today—” Her voice sounded stern.

  Her hands frozen on the half-peeled banana, Olivia tried to smile. “That s–sounds nice.” She still didn’t look at Mom.

  “—but I can clearly see that last night was a repeat of a few weeks ago. In fact, you’re still drunk, aren’t you? You’re slurring and stumbling. You reek to high heaven of who knows what.” Mom cleared her throat. “You leave me with no choice.”

  Olivia put down the fruit. That didn’t sound good.

  “We’re going to check out that place Officer Stapleton recommended, Diamond Estates.”

  The words fell like bombs exploding in Olivia’s pounding head.

  “I’m really worried about you.” Mom rubbed her newly wrinkle-free forehead with her manicured fingers. “I tried being your friend, but that didn’t work. And I have neither the time nor the energy to deal with you. It’s beyond my capabilities.”

  Mom didn’t have the time to deal with her? What else did she have to do with the hours in her day? She didn’t work. She didn’t volunteer. She didn’t go to the gym. The problem was simple: she just didn’t want Olivia to get in the way of her me time, as she called it. Traitor.

  “Since your dad died, it’s seems like we’ve lost our way.” Mom looked up at the ceiling.

  Olivia stared at the floor. We’ve lost the way? Last Olivia checked, she was the kid in the relationship. Wasn’t it the parent’s job to lead the way?

  “We don’t go to church. We never talk.”

  Whose fault was that? Olivia had sure tried—at least early on. Though she had a lot to say, her face remained stone cold.

  “And you’re slipping out of control.” Mom took a deep breath. “You took money from my purse, didn’t you?”

  How did she know about that, and why hadn’t she brought it up before? “No! How could you accuse me of that?” Should have known. Mom was clueless about everything, but she would surely notice money.

  “Olivia, I’m not stupid.” Mom sighed. “Did you honestly think I wouldn’t realize a hundred-dollar bill had disappeared—more than once?”

  Uh-oh. “I’m sorry.”

  “You stole money from my purse. You lied to me about where you were going to be. You drank alcohol—a lot, from the looks of things—and we both know this isn’t nearly the first time.” She gestured to Olivia’s face. “You smoked, too, I’m guessing. In fact, let me have your purse.”

  Olivia clutched her bag to her chest. “Mom! This is my private property. How dare you?”

  “You’re a minor, and you’re living in my house—nothing is private property.”

  “This isn’t your house! It’s Chuck’s house. Nothing here is yours.” Olivia had never screamed at her mom like this. “You want it? Here!” She took her pack of cigarettes out of her bag right in plain view. Maybe if she fessed up to the cigarettes, Mom would think they were the only problem and not go digging around for more. Olivia thrust her bag at her mom and planted her fists on her hips.

  “I really hate doing this.” Mom peered into the bag and shook it a few times to move the contents around. “Is th
ere anything I should know about in this purse? You can spare us both the humiliation by just telling me now.”

  “I’m not embarrassed at all. Have at it.” She leaned back against the counter and waited. As long as she didn’t look in the zipper pocket on the front of the purse.

  “Olivia, I don’t want to have to search your things. How about you just come clean with me. What’s in here?”

  “There’s nothing in there that would matter to you.” Beer tabs, cigarettes, matches … the marijuana. But so what? There wasn’t a thing Mom could do to her that would matter—if she even cared.

  Mom sighed and pawed around in the bag for a minute, then zipped open the pocket on the front. She looked inside and gasped as she pulled out the baggie. She pinched it between two fingers and dangled it inches from Olivia’s face.

  Mom’s dark circles looked magnified through the plastic.

  “So it’s come to this, Liv?” She dumped it into the garbage disposal—bag and all. “We’re going to Colorado whether you want to or not. It’s only a visit—a tour of Diamond Estates.” She spoke matter-of-factly, leaving no room for debate. “Charles already knows I’ve been thinking about it. We’re leaving on Monday. It won’t be bad—maybe we’ll have a ski day or find a spa somewhere, but we’re going.”

  Olivia stormed from the kitchen, a mallet shattering her heart with each stomp up the stairs. Slamming her bedroom door behind her, she flopped on her bed. No tears—experience had proven there was no point. No prayers—no one listened to them anyway. No dreams—they all turned to nightmares in the end. She’d bet anything Mom planned to buy Olivia a one-way ticket and not bring her home. After she booked a spa day for herself, of course.

  Abandoned … first by God and now by Mom? Didn’t see that one coming.

  Chapter 9

  The airplane slipped beneath the fluffy clouds like a scalding fire poker through a marshmallow. What had been a sunny afternoon blanketed in white fluff turned into an angry day canopied with sinister storms. How could the clouds look so perfect and happy on one side but vengeful and dangerous on the other?

  Olivia white-knuckled her armrests as the plane bounced up and down and listed from side to side as it made its descent. As they neared the ground, she held her breath. There seemed no possible way the unsteady plane could make safe contact with the earth at such a speed.

  Mom let out a tiny snore and shifted in her seat. How could she sleep through all the chaos while Olivia’s life flashed before her eyes?

  The moments before The Accident flooded Olivia’s memories. She squeezed her eyes shut against the vision of her daddy hitting the roof of the car. Why hadn’t he fastened his seat belt after he secured Olivia in hers? Oh, how life would have been different if only he’d done that one thing. That one decision, or lack thereof, ruined everyone’s life—forever.

  The plane broke out of the turbulent air as it flew low and parallel to the ground while making its final reach to touch the earth. The wheels made contact with the asphalt, and the plane bumped along topsy-turvy until it skidded to a stop. A collective sigh of relief was heard and felt throughout the plane.

  “Oh, did we land?” Mom yawned and stretched her arms above her head.

  Olivia exhaled and unpeeled her cramped fingers from their grip on the armrests.

  The intercom beeped. “This is your captain speaking. I’m glad to be on the ground. How about you?”

  Cheers erupted throughout the cabin.

  “Well, be assured, it wasn’t nearly as bad as it probably felt—you were safe the entire time. On behalf of myself and the rest of the flight crew, I thank you for your patience with the turbulence. If you have a connecting flight, you’ll be met at the gate with your flight information. Please be aware that some flight times have been adjusted due to the weather. And if this is home for you, welcome to Denver.”

  Olivia snorted. Home? Never.

  “Come on, Liv. Let’s get out of here.” Mom picked up her carry-on, and Olivia grabbed hers from the overhead compartment. They wedged into the narrow aisle, waiting for the dad in front of them to gather a stroller, car seat, and four carry-ons while the mom wrestled a cranky toddler. The dad glared at a teenage boy who stood behind them, lost in whatever blared through his iPod.

  Olivia wondered if he really had music on, or if he was just pretending so he could avoid his family. Olivia chuckled. I feel your pain, kid.

  Finally off the plane, they took a series of escalators, glided on two moving walkways, and navigated several long corridors before they found the exit to the carpool lanes. “This is what I love about not checking bags—no waiting.” Mom smiled as they bustled past the passengers waiting at the baggage carousel and stepped outside.

  “Uh-huh.” Olivia stared at the ground.

  “Okay. That’s it.” Mom pulled Olivia over to the side, away from the waiting cars. “Listen to me, Liv. We aren’t here as a punishment. We’re only here to see if maybe these people could be of some help to you. Believe me, it’s not what I want. But you’ve slipped away from me these past couple of years, and I want my daughter back.”

  Then be my mom. Simple as that.

  “I know you think I’ve changed. I know you think I don’t know a thing about real life anymore. But I hope you realize, losing your dad was hard on me, too. I still miss him every single day. This hasn’t been as easy on me as you seem to think.”

  Olivia nodded, counting the tiles around her feet.

  “Would you give it a chance … please? Worst thing, we hate Diamond Estates but get in a day of skiing and go home. How bad could that be?” The lilt of hope filled her voice.

  “Promise you’re not planning to leave me here against my will?” Olivia tried to sound defiant but suspected that it came out more like the plaintive mew of a kitten.

  “Oh, Liv. You can’t possibly think I would do that.” Mom pulled Olivia into a tight embrace. “I would never leave you here like that. I promise.”

  “Okay, then I’ll try to relax.” She offered a hesitant smile. “Are we really going to get to ski?”

  “Most like– Oh, here’s our ride.” Mom pointed to a white van with a magnetic logo on the side that read DIAMOND ESTATES, WHERE THE FINEST GEMS ARE PULLED FROM THE DEEPEST ROUGH.

  The driver pulled the van over to the curb a few yards beyond where they stood.

  Mom handed Olivia a bag. “Here we go.”

  Olivia followed a few steps behind, through the exhaust fumes, as her mom pulled open the door and spoke to the driver.

  A boy about her age, probably a year older, with piercing blue eyes, stepped from the van. He nodded at Olivia, and a lock of his shoulder-length wavy brown hair fell in front of his face. “I’m Justin. I’ll be giving you a ride up the mountain and then taking you on a tour of the grounds until my dad gets back from the hospital.”

  “I’m Olivia.” She climbed into the van and shut the door without another word. What must Justin think of her? Obviously she was a problem child or she wouldn’t be there. How embarrassing! But whatever he thought probably came pretty close to the truth.

  “He’s cute, but he needs a haircut,” Mom hissed at Olivia before Justin made it back around to the driver’s seat after loading their bags.

  “Shh, Mom.” Olivia rested her elbow on the armrest and laid her forehead in her hand. Mom could be so embarrassing. But cute? Try again, Mom. How about gorgeous? Like he should be in a magazine.

  Justin climbed in and pulled away from the curb.

  “So, you said your dad is in the hospital? Is he okay?” Mom touched Justin’s forearm.

  “Oh no. It’s not him who’s sick. He’s picking up one of the residents who’s been in the hospital for a couple of days and is ready to come home.” Justin peeked at the mirror. “She’s been sick, but she’s fine now.”

  “So, if I remember correctly, your dad is the director of the program?”

  Nothing like giving the kid the third degree, Mom. “Yes, ma’am. Dad is Ben Bradley,
the director, and my mom, Alicia, helps out when she can. She also works as an emergency-room nurse at the hospital where Dad is now.”

  “Oh. Interesting. I’m a nurse, too. Well, I was until … Well, I’m not working outside the home right now.”

  Hah. Ask her how much she works inside the home. Not that he would care. Olivia closed her mind to the chatter and gazed out the window at the flat interstate terrain. After about forty minutes, they began their climb into the higher elevation. The windshield wipers did their best to bat away the falling snow as the van wound its way up the mountain road.

  Justin didn’t seem the least bit concerned about the travel conditions.

  After about twenty minutes of climbing, the van made a sudden sharp turn toward the tree line. Olivia squealed and clutched the door handle, her eyes scrunched tight against the coming crash. At the last second, just before they would wreck, she peeked with one eye and spotted the narrow driveway carved between the clusters of tall spruce.

  Justin slipped the vehicle between the trees and parked in a small clearing. He turned off the ignition. “Here we are.”

  Mom fanned herself with her leather gloves. “Phew. Thought we’d had it there for a minute.”

  “Sorry.” Justin’s neck reddened. “I forget how that turn can seem the first time. I should have taken it slower.”

  Heart still beating wildly, Olivia stepped out of the van onto a blanket of fresh snow that crunched beneath her boots. Snow didn’t do that very often in Illinois—it usually slopped like slush and threw dirty globs onto the back of a person’s leg with each step. She breathed the fresh mountain air deeply into her hungry lungs. Would the mountain itself gasp in horror if she lit up a cigarette out here? She gazed up the mountain into the dense, snowcapped forest, then turned in the other direction to look behind her.