Twelve year old Gilly Morris is about to journey through a summer of loss, bullies, guilt and terror. Told from her point of view, 2003 is the summer when the horrible, terrible thing happened to her and her mother. Journey's Child is the story of u...
"I ran outside. No, I heard footsteps! He's coming after me!" I screamed.
Thad reached out and took my hand. He looked upset and I thought he might cry. "It's okay, Gilly."
"What did you do next?" Dr. Lansing asked.
"I ran up the path to Thad's house." I looked over at him and confessed, "I knew you weren't home, but it's the only place I thought to go.
"You did the right thing. Captain was there," he assured me.
"I didn't make it," I said as I started to cry.
"Why didn't you make it Gilly?" Dr. Lansing asked.
"I'm tired. I want to go to sleep."
"Gilly, you're almost done," Dr. Lansing said. "Just a little bit more."
I closed my eyes and tried again. "I fell and it was dark. That's all I remember."
"Did you trip?" she asked.
"Tom was coming. I could hear him breathing. He knocked me down, then the night swallowed me!" I sobbed.
"That's enough," Thad said.
"Did the night hurt you?" Dr. Lansing continued.
"Yes! It tore my clothes and hit me and stabbed at me!" I cried.
"Gilly," Dr. Lansing urged, "was it the night that hurt you?"
Suddenly Tom's face was staring down at me. He was sneering and he slapped me. "Tom! Tom hurt me!"
Thad stood up and hugged me. The room grew silent except for my sobs. Then I remembered something else.
"I heard Aslan roaring," I told them. "He got Tom off of me so I could go to the house."
"That's right," Thad said. "I found you when I came home the next morning. You were hiding under the blue boat."
"Did Aslan kill Tom?" I asked.
"It wasn't Aslan, Gilly. It was Captain, and Tom will never hurt you or anyone else again."
"Is he gone?"
"Yes. He's gone for good."
Dr. Lansing gave me a pill to help me relax. She said if I continued not to have a fever, I would be able to go home with Thad the next day.
"How long will my mom have to stay here?"
"Until she heals more. It will take a good month or so. She may have to have another surgery on her face," Dr. Lansing said, adding "you can visit her whenever you want."
I fell asleep holding Thad's hand. Soon I was drifting on the ocean, cradled inside the aqua blue boat. The gentle sway from the waves made me feel safe and peaceful.
"See, I told you it would be alright," I heard Linda whisper to me.
I smiled as I drifted deeper into a darkness that no longer made me feel afraid.
