Blood Moon (Paul Lahote)

Two: The Test

Someone shook my shoulders. I quickly reached for my gun as I sat up. Charlie looked at me startled. He backed up a little.

"What are you reaching for Cailyn?" He asked. I stared at my hand that was under the pillow. I slowly let go of the gun and swallowed. "What's under the pillow Cailyn?" I still said nothing. "I made some calls about you this morning. You've had a couple run-ins with the law while you were in Cali. You're supposed to be at a shelter right now Cailyn."

"I can't go back." I say. "I'm sorry Charlie. I can't trust people easily. A gun is under the pillow. And it's loaded." I lifted the pillow to reveal my small pistol.

"I understand." He says. "You gotta open you to me if you're going to stay here." I almost wanted to cry when he said that. But I've taught myself that I can't show emotion to people. I just nodded my head. "I know it's going to be hard. But I like you. We have an appointment in Port Angeles at 8. Let's get some breakfast and head over there." I nodded my head. "I'm gonna let you keep your gun. Because I trust you and I understand why you need it."

"Thank you." I say. Then I grab my gun and put it in my bag. I headed upstairs to the bathroom and changed. When I walked out a girl was waiting for the bathroom. She looked at me startled. God she looked horrible. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. Her hair was a mess. She looked terrible.

Even though she looked unhealthy, I still saw a resemblance of myself in her. We had the same hair. The same nose. Her skin was a lot paler. My skin was a light russet color. I figure my mother is much darker than my father. She didn't even acknowledge me.

I didn't know her but I know this is not normal behavior. If there was a strange girl in my home I would want to know why she was there and who she was. Something bad must've happened in those woods.

I walked down the stairs and Charlie was ready to go. He nodded me outside and we hopped into the cruiser.

"What's wrong with Bella?" I ask as we take off.

"Her boyfriend left her in the woods." He sighs. "Then he left town." Damn. I've had my version of heartbreaks but to be left alone in the woods is harsh.

As we ate our breakfast that Charlie got from a diner, he talked about his hobbies. Charlie likes to fish, eat at the diner, and watch any type of sport.

"I play basketball." I say. He nods his head.

"Oh really?" He says. "I tried to get Bella into sports when she was little but she never liked it."

"Yeah when I was little basketball was the only thing I had." I explain. "Even though I didn't have any shoes to play most of the time. It was going to get me scholarships to college. Then shit went down and I'm homeless."

"Cailyn." He looks at me. "You can stay. Stay with me and play basketball at Forks. Even if the test comes back negative. I like you and I'll be happy if you stayed."

"I've always kept a bag packed." I say. "When I move into a new home or shelter. I've never stayed long enough to unpack." I look over to Charlie, his eyes watering.

"The system is broken." He says and shakes his head. I was about to ask about my mother. But I figured I'll let him bring it up. I don't want to push if he doesn't want to talk about it.