Read Online Bittersweet Hope by Ryann Jansen - Free Book Online Page B

of ability to speak when giving the news about Mama. But if Officer Cane couldn’t come to the phone, he would have to do. I prayed they were there. It wasn’t like Rocky Creek had a high crime rate—except the murder of my mother, of course.
    “Sure, honey, hold on just a minute.” Crackling noises popped in my ear, and I knew she had covered the phone with her hand. A few muffled words and the sound of the receiver passing hands later, the voice of an older man came on the line.
    “This is Officer Cane. Can I help ya?” He had a friendly, genuine voice, and instantly made me feel slightly better. Only slightly, though.
    My voice failed me for a second. I opened my mouth, but no words would come out. I just stood, there with my face stuffed into my locker hoping nobody would see me or wonder who I was talking to. In my mind, invisibility cloaked me.
    “Hello?” Officer Cane asked again.
    “Hi. This is. I mean, I’m—this is Audrey Emerson. I wanted to check and see how things were going about…about my mama.”
    I hadn’t really thought about trying to find out anything before Caleb had asked about Mama’s murder. I’d wondered if I would eventually know, but after he said something Friday night, it had been in the forefront of my mind.
    Officer Cane cleared his throat on the other end of the line. I pictured him holding the phone to his ear in his burly, wrinkled hands, rocking back on his heel the way he had when he’d come to the apartment just a few days ago.
    “I remember you, Miss Emerson. How are you?”
    How was I? Okay I guessed, but I didn’t want him to ask me how I was. I wanted him to give me some answers.
    “Good. Have you found out what happened yet? I mean, have you found out who killed her?”
    Saying the words left a sickening feeling in my mouth. The taste of acid burned my throat, but I scrunched my eyes closed, willing it away. One deep breath, two deep breaths…finally it felt like I could open my eyes and the world wouldn’t be spinning.
    There was a pause on the other end. “I’m afraid we don’t have any answers for you right now. I wish I could tell you different.”
    Needing air, I pulled my head from my locker and looked at the floor, ignoring the sounds of the people walking and talking behind me. They would never find him. I didn’t know why I thought Officer Cane would be able to tell me anything. It could be so many different people, and they could be so many different places by now. The proverbial needle in the haystack.
    “Miss Emerson?” Officer Cane spoke up, his voice deeper.
    “Yes?” Hopefully he wouldn’t pick up on the strained sound of my voice. I cleared my throat, then rolled my eyes at myself. Way to get him not to notice, Audrey.
    “How are you holding up? I spoke with Mrs. Anderson and she told me she placed you with a foster family.”
    “I’m fine.” I managed to say.
    “Are they nice?”
    Yes. They were nice. Even though I hadn’t wanted them to be at first, I was glad they were. They’d accepted me without question, especially Anna, and made me feel like part of them in only a couple of days. That had to count for something.
    “Yes.” I said, my voice barely a whisper.
    “That’s good. You know…you’ve been through quite a lot, I imagine, you and your sisters. Maybe it will be good for you to have someone accountable in your life. I’d think you might need a friend right about now. Maybe somebody in your foster family could be that kind of person for you. It could help a great deal.”
    I thought about Caleb. He had been really nice to me. But friends? I didn’t know if we would be close, or if I would even feel comfortable talking to him. I could talk to Anna, I supposed, but it would be so much harder with an adult. She would be more likely to just feel sorry for me, and that was the last thing I wanted, or needed for that matter. I knew she wouldn’t ever mean for it to come across that way, but adults can’t help