A Chance for Change (now published so sample only)

Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Sam was diligently shovelling horse manure when Chance found her. He watched her from a distance, admiring her fluidity and gracefulness at such an unpleasant task. She had been acting strange all afternoon and Chance had a bad feeling that she was about to distance herself from him again.

"What do you want Chance?" She asked rather abruptly.

"I just wanted to know if you needed to rehash today." He asked as he approached her.

She was dying to agree but she had come to the realisation today of how much she was coming to depend on Chance. Telling herself he was only here for a year wasn't helping either, that just plain hurt. He was causing such a riot to her senses that he was constantly on her mind.

She needed to move away from him before she lost control of her life again. She knew deep down that if Chance left now she would be more devastated than when Tony died and that scared her. She could only imagine how she would feel when his year was up. She put the shovel down against the wall and rested her tired body. Chance approached her almost cautiously, sensing that things weren't right.

"I can't do this anymore Chance. I can't let you into my life anymore." She whispered her despair to him and he felt his heart begin to thud in panic.

"What do you mean Sam?" He asked, wanting to reach out and hold her.

"I'm starting to depend on you always being there to back me up." She told him quietly.

"What's wrong with that?"

"Because in less than a year you'll be gone and I'll be left here alone, depending on myself again. I can't put myself through that for a second time. I can't lose you the way I lost Tony; I wouldn't be able to cope with that again." She explained to him, he felt his anger flare up but in a way he understood.

"Why can't we make the most of it then?" He said reaching out to touch her but she flinched away.

"It's just....It's not possible." She told him before she scurried out of the barn.

"You can't run away forever Sam." His parting words caught at her but she kept going.

She whistled as tears formed in her eyes and a harsh pain stabbed her in the chest. Bill came charging toward her and then she was away. Away from something that had become so precious to her that she had to give it up.

She rode without conscious thought as dusk approached, randomly wandering the same way her mind was. What if Chance was right? Was she making the wrong choice? It was then she realised exactly where her subconscious was forcing her to ride to.

A derelict weatherboard cottage stood ravaged by time and the elements. This was Tony's secret place, where he had always gone for a bit of peace. Sam could only hope to find the answer to her problem inside.

"Tony are you here?" Sam called as she entered the dust ridden cottage. She swished spiders out of her way as she walked further in.

"Sammy?" A male voice called from within " What are you doing down my way?"

A ghostly figure of a tall incredibly handsome man drifted into the room as Sam dusted off a seat to sit on. Sam looked up and saw her brothers familiar face and she smiled at the same time she felt tears prick her eyes.

"I don't know what to do." She blurted out.

"Well go ahead and lay it on me. Solving my sister's problems is the one great goal I have had in my death." He answered dramatically and Sam laughed softly.

"You know I'd really like to hug you right now and I can't. You always make me feel better."

"I'm sorry but there is just not enough of me to hug as you know." Tony looked down at his ghostly form "Anyway why don't you tell me the difficulty this time. No don't let me guess. Brandy?" Tony scratched his head as Sam shook hers "Gee that's what it usually is. Mum or Dad? The property? The will? Rodney? Or the whole stupid Murray family?"