Read Online The Way Home by Becky Citra - Free Book Online Page A

would forget all about her by tomorrow. She stared straight ahead as she and Linda drove out the driveway. She was positive that by now Daphne would have told Linda about her stealing Black Beauty . She braced herself.
    But Linda just said, “Did I tell you I’m taking you out for a hamburger and a milkshake and anything else you want?” Then she put some music on the radio and didn’t say anything else.
    Tory leaned back against the seat. This was weird. Usually Linda chatted nonstop, trying to get her to talk about her feelings.

    â€œI have to talk to you about something,” said Linda.
    When someone said that, it always meant something bad was coming. Was it about stealing the book? Was it about the way she got mad at people? Tory scraped up the last scoop of ice-cream sundae and let it slide down her throat. She stared at Linda.
    â€œLast week, I arranged for a girl called Hilary to live with the family at Rainbow Ranch.” Linda glanced at the café door and then away again.
    â€œI know,” said Tory. “I’ve been to Rainbow Ranch. That’s where Lucky is.”
    â€œYes, Cathy told me.” Linda leaned across the table. “It hasn’t worked out for Hilary.”
    â€œIt hasn’t?”
    Those were the words Cathy used when she talked about Tory. It hasn’t worked out. We want our little family back.
    â€œDidn’t they like her?” said Tory.
    â€œOh yes, they did,” said Linda. “But it turns out that Hilary’s terribly allergic to cats and dogs. She’s never been around them much before, so no one knew. By yesterday, she couldn’t stop sneezing and she could hardly breathe. So I brought Daphne out to the ranch last night to meet her.”
    â€œHilary is going to live with Daphne too?” said Tory slowly. She tried to imagine sharing that yucky pink bedroom with another girl.
    â€œShe’s there now. Hilary is a real bookworm, just like Daphne. I think they’ll get on fine.”
    Linda sighed, but it didn’t sound like a real sigh. It sounded like a pretend sigh. “Now we have a great big problem. Daphne has room for only one foster child.”
    â€œAnd she’d rather have Hilary,” whispered Tory. “She hates me. She thinks I’m stupid.” To her surprise, she felt a little bit jealous of Hilary. The apartment was awful, but Daphne was sort of nice and she had kept Tory’s secret about the book.
    â€œShe doesn’t hate you at all,” said Linda, looking surprised. “Why on earth would you think that? She told me you had spunk. And she wants you to come back to the bookstore and visit. But I told Daphne that I’d had second thoughts that an apartment might not be the best place for you. I think that you would be much happier if you could have a pet.”
    Tory went still inside. “Summer said Hilary was an emergency. Am I an emergency now?”
    â€œNot an emergency.” Linda grinned. “But you are the girl that Jonah and Summer really want. Right away.” Linda looked up at the door again, and this time she waved.
    Tory spun around. Summer walked into the café, wearing a long patchwork skirt and something around her ankle that looked like love beads. Behind her came Jonah, and then Patrick. Sum-mer and Jonah smiled at Tory. Patrick’s face was red and he stared at the floor in front of his feet.
    Summer said, “Patrick?”
    Patrick raised his eyes. He took a step toward Tory. “I’m sorry I shouted at you,” he said.
“I was just so…upset. But I didn’t mean the things
I said.”
    â€œThat’s okay,” whispered Tory. She shouted at people too, when she got upset. She knew what it felt like.
    â€œI wanted to keep Lucky so much. He helped me.” Patrick looked right at her. “It’s really hard to talk about. Some day I’ll explain.”
    â€œYou don’t have to,” said