Running from the Light

Chapter 1

She was late.

The butterflies in her stomach stepped up another notch as she rubbed her hands down the sides of her skirt.

Bad things happened when she was running late.

Grabbing hold of her daughter's tiny hand, Cassidy Conrad shoved open the heavy side door of the building, steering the four year old outside.

Instinctively, she looked around.

The driveway that led to the carpark was empty, the long shadows of late afternoon shading their path. With nothing out of place, she strode forward, her pace slightly faster than usual. She was being silly, overly dramatic, yet the jittery feeling was still there.

Drew had always been amused by her need for scheduling and order. Being on time had never really worried him, much to her annoyance. Today her routine was completely off. They were leaving half an hour late. No one else would care about running a little late. Still, she hated it. It just didn't feel right.

From the moment she had come off stage, there had been one problem after another. She'd been unable to find her handbag, leading to a ten minute search. Finally it had been found in her dressing room rubbish bin beneath a pile of tissues.

Then, a woman from the publicity department had arrived with a pile of CD's she needed signed. While the woman chatted inanely about an upcoming gala that Cassidy had been scheduled to attend, she had done as she was requested as quickly as humanly possible.

By the time the accountant had arrived, tears had begun welling behind her eyes. It had taken a frustrating twenty minutes to sign the miriad of forms he had thrust at her, as usual giving her little indication of their meaning. Cassidy had signed her name in silence. After all these years, she knew better than to ask questions.

The pounding of her heart sped up as she recalled the one time she had voiced the concerns that kept her awake at night. Three weeks of having to feed her daughter from the left over boxes at the back of the pantry, and then, to her disgust, fruit stolen from her neighbour's yard, had cured her curiosity. She had apologised, and her weekly allowance from the Committee had been reinstated the following day.

She would never put herself in that position again.

Glancing down at her daughter, her spirits lifted. The little hand squirmed and jiggled, attempting to free herself from her mother's unusually tight grip.

Realising they were alone in the vast asphalt parking lot, Cassidy let go of the soft, small hand that had once barely been able to wrap around her thumb. She was over reacting, as usual. Letting her ghosts emerge and find dangers where they didnt exist.

Lexie skipped ahead as they walked out to the back parking lot. The crisp late summer air felt good as it tickled across her bare face, promising the end to the repressigly hot summer the east coast had experienced. Time to focus on the good things in her life. That was Lexie - the one and only thing in this world she could be entirely proud of.

Whenever there were dark days, when she questioned how her life had become such a mess, she would just take in every amazing aspect of that beautiful child. Now that her father wasn't around to protect her, she was solely responsible for ensuring Lexie had the life she deserved.

She missed Drew, even more when she felt edgy like today. She imagined him with them, walking down that driveway as they had done each Sunday. Scooping his daughter up in his arms, in a flurry of silent kisses, he would carry Lexie to the car. He would scold his wife for getting herself so stressed over running a little late. He would tell her that he had already sorted out all the paperwork with the accountant.