Kentucky Home

Chapter 1

Emma

The best part of this trip is the open road and summer air. The worst part is that it's not anywhere close to the beach. Dirt roads and fields and farms are not exactly my forte.

When my dad called to tell me Aunt Karen had passed away, of course I was heartbroken. I hadn't seen her in years. I had been too busy focusing on my schooling. It didn't exactly help that we lived five hours away from each other while I grew up in Cleveland.

Aunt Karen was my dad's older sister. She never married nor had children. My father and her grew up in Olive Hill, Kentucky. Their parents, my grandparents, passed away when I was really little. My dad moved off to college in Columbus, Ohio where he met my mom. They relocated to Cleveland for jobs where they had me, their only child.

I've never known anything but city lights and honking horns, except for the few visits to Kentucky we made over Christmas or Thanksgiving. My Aunt Karen never left Olive Hill other than traveling to Morehead for college. She was a teacher her whole life. She felt she could make a big impact in a small town, and she did. Her students were all she ever talked about. They were her children.

Her death was unexpected. She had a headache for days, dad said. She finally decided to go to the doctor where they found an aneurysm. She didn't even make it twenty-four hours.

The weather is beautiful, thank goodness. What's a long trip without the top down? Certainly not one to travel. Pop music is playing through my speakers as I sing along. I'm not much of a singer, so it's a good thing only a random cow or two hears me.

I'm an optimist. You know? Glass half full kinda girl. Even though I'm not thrilled about this trip, I'm going to make the most of it. It's just for a weekend. Plus, I get to see my parents who I haven't seen in months, since my graduation.

I'm getting closer. I just crossed into Kentucky from Ohio. It was nice to be "home" even if it was only for half an hour driving through.

I just settled into my new apartment in Milwaukee where I accepted a position for an insurance company. It's not the dream job, but I'll go places. I'll be CEO of my own company one day. I'm not sure what type of company, but I'll figure it out. I tend to not know what I want until I see it. Let's just say, I have a very open mind, and I live for opportunity.

That's what I never understood about my Aunt Karen. I guess we're just different. I'm more like my dad. He couldn't live one more minute in that small town. He had to see what was out there, and when he did he went after it. I just can't phantom only seeing fields of grass, dirt roads, homegrown stores, and two thousand people for the rest of my life. I need more than that.

No wonder she never married. There was nobody to marry. That's why dad shot the hell outta there. He was afraid he'd end up having to marry his sister. I literally burst out laughing at that thought. I slap my hand repeatedly on the steering wheel. "Oh my god." I say, laughing hysterically. "Now, that's a knee slapper right there, y'all." I say in a fake southern accent, still trying to control this ridiculous laugh.

I begin to sober up when I notice the sign that says I'm thirty miles outside of Olive Hill. The sun is beginning to set, and I have to admit that it is quiet gorgeous while driving on this narrow asphalt road in between two wide open fields of yellow grain with only the setting sun in the distance.

Silence surrounds me besides hearing the crickets and the hum of the engine as I drive. My phone startles me from my thoughts as the loud ring comes from the passenger seat. It's my mom.

"Hey, mom!" I answer.

"Hi, baby. Where are you? I'm getting worried. I figured you'd be here by now." She says, concerned.