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Chapter Two
Vanessa
Vanessa took Opal’s hand. She paused in the front of the school and looked around before walking on down the road. She was always checking, always looking, terrified that one of these days, she’d turn and see Jeremy coming after them.
“Mommy, what are you always looking for?” Opal asked.
“Oh, just to make sure I know what’s around us.”
Opal was quiet for a moment, then asked, “Are you looking for Daddy?”
“Sometimes.”
“What would happen if he found us?”
Vanessa squeezed her hand. “I’m going to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
“But what if it does? What if I mess up and use the wrong name?” Fear shook her little voice.
“It’ll be okay. You can just say you were playing pretend. Or that you have an imaginary friend named Opal.”
“I want to see my old friends, though. When will I be able to play with Eva again?”
“I don’t know, honey. Are there nice kids in your new school?” She hated that she had to take Opal out of her old school. But what choice did she have? They couldn’t stay where they were.
Opal shrugged. “I guess. I don’t know them.”
“You’ll get to know them.” Vanessa stopped on the corner, waited for the light to change, and continued on. “You’ll make lots of new friends.”
“But I can’t tell them about where we used to live?”
“No. Remember what I said. We came from Georgia where we lived with your grandma until she died.”
Opal nodded. “Grandma Hill.”
“Right. And we came here because we wanted to make a new life in a place that didn’t have sad memories.”
“Maybe I could say that I had a doggy!”
“Okay… What kind of dog?”
“Mmm.” Opal tapped her finger to her lips. “A golden lab. Named Goldie.”
“That sounds nice. Where is he now?”
“Well, maybe he ran away.”
“So, a golden lab named Goldie.”
“Or maybe Sadie. I like the name Sadie, too.”
“Well, pick one. When you make things up like that, you don’t want to change it too many times, or you might mix up your lie.”
Opal swung their hands back and forth between them. “Mommy?”
“Yes, sweetie?”
“How come it’s not wrong when we lie like this? Because you said lying is always bad, and I should never do it.”
