Symbio

Prelude

     "We were running. Mommy was scared." Eight year old Halley Plummer was sitting on the floor of a small room, surrounded by toys. It was a typical kid's playroom; Mediocre art work on every wall, shelves stuffed with Dr. Seuss books, and giant stuffed animals strewn about. Halley's dark hair was disheveled, covering her left eye. She wore a bright yellow princess dress that was ripped in several places and covered in dirt. They hadn't found her other shoe, but the one she was wearing was just as yellow as the dress. On her other foot, a sock that was once white, now brown from the mud. Her pinky toe visible through a small hole. She donned three hot pink Hello Kitty bandaids. One on her arm, the other two on her legs. "The trees scratched me." She had mentioned to the nurse who patched her up. Sitting across from her was a social worker who had introduced herself as Penny Carson. 

     Penny was holding a small notepad, "Did your mommy tell you why you were running?" She brushed Halley's hair from her face and smiled.

     "No." Halley didn't look up from the coloring page she was working on. "She told me to be very quiet and she said don't let go of her hand." She stopped coloring for a moment and glanced at her sockless foot. "But then I accidentally tripped. My shoe fell off. I was trying to find it when I heard mommy scream." Tears welled in her big, green eyes. "I looked for her for a long time. That's when Mr. Green found me." Her eyes darted toward the door, where officer Mike Green was standing. He flashed a grin at Halley, who quickly turned away and began to cry. "It's my fault. She told me not to let go. I didn't listen. That's why she's gone." She buried her head between her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

     Penny leaned in and wrapped her arms around Halley. "Oh no sweet girl. This is not your fault. We have everyone out in the woods looking for your mom right now. We're going to find her."

     "Promise?" Halley stared up at Penny. "I promise."

     Three days later, the search for Savannah Plummer came to an end when rescue divers pulled her body out of Lake Whitney. The murder case became an FBI manhunt that made national news headlines, but Savannah's murderer was never found, and the case went cold after five years of empty leads and fleeting hope. During all this, Penny was named Halley's temporary guardian. They grew to be inseparable. When Halley was ten, adoption papers were signed, and she became Halley Plummer-Carson.

      Halley went back to school, made new friends, and lived her life as normally as she could. She visited the lake every day, hoping to find something, anything to catch the person responsible for her mother's death. She found herself constantly looking over her shoulder. Worried that someone might come after her, she started studying martial arts, as well as attending marksmanship and hunting classes.

     At her 18th birthday party, Halley announced that she would be leaving the small town of Williams Bay to attend college in California. "I need to get away from this town, and while I will miss you all terribly, I feel like this step is necessary in moving on with my life." Tears were shed and hugs were given. She went to bed smiling, knowing that she would soon be free of her hometown and the baggage that came with it. Then her phone rang.