Finding Home in Redemption

Bonus Chapter #1

Brennan

May - My name is Aaron

In the years I'd spent away from this place, it hadn't changed a bit. I put my first postcard in the box at the post office and walked through the most vacant town I had ever seen. I was headed to a diner called Bucking Bandits to set up where I would be staying for however long it took.

I needed to be far enough away from the heart of Hillview's residents to remain under the radar but close enough to get involved.

Bucking Bandits looked like almost every other building in sight, well past their years, the only difference was that this one was still in business. I walked into the diner and asked the older man if he'd call the police on me if I slept in his parking lot and I was shocked when the waitress told me to stay as long as I needed. Little did she know I would be there a while.

I walked back outside and laid the scraps of cardboard on the ground. My backpack was filled with newspapers and enough food to give me about two days to find work.

My hair was beginning to fall into my eyes so I scraped my fingers through it, pushing it back. It had been almost a week since I showered and it had already begun to take its toll on my mood.

I sat on the makeshift bed and looked at Charlie. He was already fast asleep, and I got the idea to make us a couple of signs. I pulled two pieces of cardboard out from under us and wrote, "will work for food" and placed it beside my bag and wrote, "I'm friendly" for him. Might as well let people know we weren't going to hurt them.

As I sat, thinking about my next move, I heard a commotion coming from where I knew the town line was. I looked up to see a young girl walking, talking and laughing with a rather large man. She ran up the stairs, leaving only the sound of her laugh behind.

"Bentley!" he yelled. He was smiling, so I figured he wouldn't hurt her. "Get back down here, you little brat."

The girl, Bentley, came back down and bent over giggling. She finally stood and handed him a wad of towels, and when he turned around, I saw the mess on the front of his shirt.

A few trips and a couple hours later, I assumed she was all moved in. I was lying on the ground when the man walked back to his truck. He stopped and looked over to where I was and stood, staring for what felt like forever. I prayed he didn't come over and start some trouble for me and I breathed a sigh of relief when he finally got into his truck and left.

The next day I made my way back to where I knew I could find some work. I had a few small bags of marijuana with me and started trying to sell it to anyone who would look in my direction.

In no time at all, as I knew would happen, a man approached me, and I had a gun pointed at my head.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked. I raised my hands up and tried to look like the desperate man I needed to be. Hunger made that easy.

"Just trying to make a few bucks, man. I need some money, that's all."

He contemplated something and pulled the gun away.

"You want work?" he looked down at Charles and narrowed his eyes.

"Yes, sir," I answered.

"Meet me back here tomorrow night. Seven o'clock. Don't be late."

He walked away, and I made my way back to the diner. There was a good chance I had the right group but only tomorrow would tell. I prepared myself for what I knew was coming my way.

The next day, after getting the crap kicked out of me I was sent back "home" with instructions to come back the next night.

Thankful no one hurt Charlie; I took the beatings for an entire week before I was finally taken to the guy I'd first met.

"I'm Eric," he said.

"Aaron," I supplied my name through a fat lip. I had blood running down my chin, but I stood with all the strength I had. I was weak, tired and sore. I hadn't eaten in three days, and I knew if I didn't get this, I'd be in trouble.

"You keep forty percent," he added.

"Agreed."

In the following months, a little gas station became my best friend, and I bought whatever forty percent of almost nothing could buy for Charlie and myself to eat.

I lost weight pretty rapidly, but soon I was selling more than I was being given. Eric told me it was time to move up and I took the first step of many in a ladder that seemed to have no end.

One year and ten months later

I was approaching two years on this job.

Laying on the cold cement with a headache that I thought would kill me, I thought about what I was doing. In the entire time I had been there I'd never felt like leaving more.

For months the only human contact I'd had was drug dealers and junkies, and I couldn't take it anymore. Outside of the woman that worked in the diner, not one person had asked me anything other than what I had on me.

I was going to get up and walk away from this. My head was pounding so hard I pulled my too long hair into my face to get rid of as much sunlight as possible. I hadn't eaten in two days because the little money I made that week went to feeding Charles. I couldn't let the dog starve.

I heard footsteps and tried to disappear into the cement.

Just leave me alone, I thought.

I didn't have any such luck.

"Good morning!" The voice said. It was a woman, and it was way too happy for me right now. "Hello?"

I heard her moving around and felt two fingers touch my neck. Despite my headache, I wanted to laugh but forced it down.

"Sir?" she asked. And then she took me by the shoulder and shook me. I felt bile rise in my throat from the movement and I reached my hand out, waving her away.

"Hey! I have some food for you!" I caught a whiff of the food and felt my stomach clench. I was starving but didn't know if I could sit up quite yet.

I heard her moving things around, and before long, she sighed.

"Breakfast is ready, sleepyhead." I tried to move my body what little I could, and I heard her footsteps again. When I sat up enough to look at her, she was walking in the opposite direction.

I looked beside me to see Charles licking an empty to-go box and saw my food. Within minutes I was thanking the angel that brought me breakfast because my headache was diminishing.

I eventually recognized her as the girl who had been moving in on my first day out here and for weeks I tried to think of a way to thank her. Every morning she would drop off two meals and walk away without saying a word, and I had no way to pay her back. I tried to convince myself she would stop eventually but as the days went by, she continued.

One day, months later, she stood to leave, and something landed beside me. I waited until she was out of sight to sit up and see what it was.

She'd dropped her debit card.

I had my in.

I was going to talk to her.

Tonight.