The Broken Child

Chapter One

Three Weeks Later
****
Margot sat at her desk, sketching Nutty the squirrel on the ledge of the open window. She heard the loud stomping of her father coming down the hall. Margot shooed Nutty off the window ledge and leaned forward to close the window. Instead, she shut the window halfway before she heard the doorknob turn. She quickly sat back in her chair and shoved her drawings out of sight, pulling out a book instead.

Her father opened the door "Get here, girl!" he slurred.

Margot stood up and watched him move closer. He leaned in so close, Margot could smell the alcohol on his breath. But, suddenly, his gaze transferred to something behind her. He reached forward and pulled out the drawing she hid of Nutty. He looked at her.

"What have I said about drawing, girl?" he said, harshly.

Margot looked down and muttered softly "it's a waste of time...."

Her father growled and grabbed her by her hair and yanked it so she looked him in the face "What was that, girl?!"

"It's a waste of time." Margot said, louder.

Her father nodded slightly, then spit on the drawing. After that, he threw it to the floor and stomped on it. Margot stared at the drawing lying on the floor as her father left the room. She looked up when she heard the front door slam shut and frowned as she came to a conclusion. She grabbed a backpack that she had found in a closet and stuffed her pencil, pencil sharpener, and drawing pad in it. Then, she snuck very quietly to the kitchen and took the money jar her father had. After slipping that into her bag, she shoved a few spare changes of clothes into the bag and pushed the window open.

When she landed on the ground, she ran into the woods, past the creek to the interstate. She reached the side of the interstate and walked along on the shoulder. She must've looked suspicious or in danger, because after she'd been walking for a little while, a police car stopped in front of her. Margot stood there for a second, before attempting to turn around. The officer got out of his car.

"Hey, kid! You lost?!"

Margot turned around and smiled "Uh, I might be. I took a walk early this morning and my family left without me. Can you take me to Manhattan?"

The officer looked at her "Well, I personally can't take you to Manhattan, but I can take you to another police station that can take you to Manhattan. Come on, kid."
****
Margot rode in the backseat of the police car for a while until the officer pulled to a stop in front of a police station. He opened the door for Margot and she got out.

"Follow me. We'll go find someone who can take you back home."

Margot smiled and followed him into the building. The officer opened the door and led her in. The police station was sleek and 'modern', but had an odd feeling that it'd been there for a long time. The officer clapped a hand down on Margot's shoulder and said;

"Robbie?! Are you here?!"

A man appeared in a doorway "AY! Gabe! What brings you here?!"

Gabe pushed me forward slightly "Margot, here, needs someone to give her a ride to Manhattan."

Robbie looked at me and smiled "Sure thing." he stood up and approached Margot "Wait here while I get my keys. I'll take you home."

Robbie opened the door for Margot and she got in the car. He was a very talkative person, asking Margot questions about her life that she had to lie about. When he asked what  her parents names were, she had to lie and said the first thing that came to her head.

"Brice and Layla Izzy."

Robbie continued his conversation until they had probably been on the road for two and a half hours and he asked 'You hungry?'. Margot was a bit surprised by this, but said she was, so Robbie pulled the car into a McDonald's drive thru. Margot had never had anything from McDonald's besides a cold fry, so she was incredibly relieved and excited when Robbie asked her what she wanted. After they got their food, Robbie handed her her mcdoubles and fries through the open partition and continued driving.

Margot did her best to not make her face look like she was having her first McDonald's burger and she must've succeeded, because she wasn't questioned about it.
****
Robbie was driving down the streets of New York City when they both heard the police radio go off and say:

"We got a missing girl from Lewiston. She's got brown hair and brown eyes. Her father has claimed she's runaway."

Robbie turned back to me "So, got anything to say, kid?"

"Uh.... thank you for taking me home?"

Robbie laughed and attempted to lock the door, but Margot opened the door before he could. She ran out of the car into oncoming traffic. She jumped on the hood of an oncoming car and crawled out of Robbie's reach as he reached out for her ankle. She reached the sidewalk as Robbie started running after her. She ran into an older woman for a moment and said quickly;

"Sorry, ma'am!"

Then, ran away again, leaving the woman scowling. Margot ran to the end of the block and turned left before running into an alley between what she assumed to be apartment buildings. A door opened and Margot a young woman's voice say;

"Quickly. In here."

Margot looked to her right to see a woman ushering her toward the door. Margot hurried through the door as Robbie turned the corner into the alley. He looked around for Margot for a second, before he shrugged his shoulders in frustration and walked a back to his car.
****
Margot slumped in a chair to catch her breath, throwing her bag down next to her feet. The woman walked over to the fridge and pulled out a carton of orange juice. She looked at Margot as she got out two glasses.

"I'm gonna pour you a glass of OJ. You better not refuse it."

Margot took the orange juice gratefully and sipped it slowly.

"So, why were you running from a police officer? You steal something?"

Margot shook her head "No, I ran away from my.... guardian."

The woman nodded slowly and stood up. She set her glass down on the coffee table and held out her hand "I'm Cassie Lang."

Margot shook Cassie's hand and smiled "Margot.... just Margot. No need to use my last name."

"Nice to meet you Margot." she smiled "So, you need a safe place to stay?" Margot nodded "I've got the perfect place in mind. But, we'll wait until nightfall. Less likely for people to see you're face."