Read Online When Joy Came to Stay by Karen Kingsbury - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Karen Kingsbury
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1:45 when Maggie shut the door of her home behind her and set out on the five-minute walk to the bus stop.
The walk involved crossing a very busy street, one that gave mothers nightmares about children getting knocked under the wheels of a speeding car or being struck by a menacing tractor-trailer. The twins—like other foster children Maggie and Ben had cared for—were absolutely forbidden to cross it alone.
Maggie moved quickly doing her best to ignore the haunting feeling that something was chasing her, closing in on her. When she arrived at the stop she checked her watch again: 1:50. Her shoulders eased downward, and she allowed herself to exhale. She didn’t mind the wait; her feet could take it. They would have to. She could never be like those foster parents she’d written about earlier, the type who gave a child more trouble, more pain and heartbreak. More insecurity No, Maggie would never do that again. Even if she had to stand in place for an hour or more, she would be there when the boys got off the bus.
The temperature was dropping, and a cloud layer had taken its position in the sky above her. Maggie couldn’t help herself. She kept looking over her shoulder, sure someone was there, waiting with a hunting knife poised above her head.
Help me, God. Clear my mind so I can think again. Please.
She rocked back and forth…back and forth, licking her lips nervously as the minutes trickled by…3:05, 3:05, 3:05. It became a rhythm that surrounded her, kept her company.
At one point she thought she saw the bus and she straightened. Yes, it was the bus all right. But…
Maggie inhaled sharply. Every face beyond the bus driver’s was that of the little girl! Ten or twenty girls with curly blond hair filled the bus, and Maggie didn’t know whether to run away or flag the vehicle down before it could get away. She moved further into the road, her eyes locked onto the busload of little blond—
The sound of a blaring car horn jarred her from her thoughts, and she reeled backwards, tripping over the curb and falling onto the sidewalk behind her. Her head smacked the concrete, and for a moment she lay there unmoving. She heard a car slow down and someone shout, “Hey, lady, you all right?”
Instantly she sat up and was assaulted by the urge to vomit. She waved weakly at the man in the car and smiled. “I’m fine.”
He looked doubtful but drove off anyway. When he was out of sight, Maggie ran her hand over the bump that was forming on the back of her head; something warm and wet met her probing fingers.
Dear God, help me! I’m bleeding…
How far out in the road had she been when the car honked at her? She had thought it was a bus full of little girls, blond girls…all with the same face…
Where had the speeding car come from, anyway? There ought to be a law against driving so fast on a residential street! It was downright dangerous. Maggie fixed her hair over the wound so that the blood wouldn’t drip onto her white jacket. Did she need stitches, or would her hair be enough to stop the bleeding?
While she was trying to decide if her headache was from the fall or the anxiety that consumed her, the bus pulled up. Immediately Maggie saw the shocked look on the face of the bus driver and she realized she was still sprawled on the sidewalk. The driver opened the door and shouted above the sound of the engine. “Mrs. Stovall? You okay?”
She was on her feet, brushing off her jeans and fixing her hair again so that the driver couldn’t see any signs of blood. “Fine. I tripped.”
His expression grew slightly less concerned. “I was afraid you’d been hit by a car.”
The children were making their way out of the bus, and Maggie choked out a laugh. “No…nothing like that. Weak ankles. Happens all the time.”
How long have I been rambling? Five minutes? Ten? Where are the little girls who were on the bus a few minutes ago? Or was that a different bus?
The bus driver was still staring at
The walk involved crossing a very busy street, one that gave mothers nightmares about children getting knocked under the wheels of a speeding car or being struck by a menacing tractor-trailer. The twins—like other foster children Maggie and Ben had cared for—were absolutely forbidden to cross it alone.
Maggie moved quickly doing her best to ignore the haunting feeling that something was chasing her, closing in on her. When she arrived at the stop she checked her watch again: 1:50. Her shoulders eased downward, and she allowed herself to exhale. She didn’t mind the wait; her feet could take it. They would have to. She could never be like those foster parents she’d written about earlier, the type who gave a child more trouble, more pain and heartbreak. More insecurity No, Maggie would never do that again. Even if she had to stand in place for an hour or more, she would be there when the boys got off the bus.
The temperature was dropping, and a cloud layer had taken its position in the sky above her. Maggie couldn’t help herself. She kept looking over her shoulder, sure someone was there, waiting with a hunting knife poised above her head.
Help me, God. Clear my mind so I can think again. Please.
She rocked back and forth…back and forth, licking her lips nervously as the minutes trickled by…3:05, 3:05, 3:05. It became a rhythm that surrounded her, kept her company.
At one point she thought she saw the bus and she straightened. Yes, it was the bus all right. But…
Maggie inhaled sharply. Every face beyond the bus driver’s was that of the little girl! Ten or twenty girls with curly blond hair filled the bus, and Maggie didn’t know whether to run away or flag the vehicle down before it could get away. She moved further into the road, her eyes locked onto the busload of little blond—
The sound of a blaring car horn jarred her from her thoughts, and she reeled backwards, tripping over the curb and falling onto the sidewalk behind her. Her head smacked the concrete, and for a moment she lay there unmoving. She heard a car slow down and someone shout, “Hey, lady, you all right?”
Instantly she sat up and was assaulted by the urge to vomit. She waved weakly at the man in the car and smiled. “I’m fine.”
He looked doubtful but drove off anyway. When he was out of sight, Maggie ran her hand over the bump that was forming on the back of her head; something warm and wet met her probing fingers.
Dear God, help me! I’m bleeding…
How far out in the road had she been when the car honked at her? She had thought it was a bus full of little girls, blond girls…all with the same face…
Where had the speeding car come from, anyway? There ought to be a law against driving so fast on a residential street! It was downright dangerous. Maggie fixed her hair over the wound so that the blood wouldn’t drip onto her white jacket. Did she need stitches, or would her hair be enough to stop the bleeding?
While she was trying to decide if her headache was from the fall or the anxiety that consumed her, the bus pulled up. Immediately Maggie saw the shocked look on the face of the bus driver and she realized she was still sprawled on the sidewalk. The driver opened the door and shouted above the sound of the engine. “Mrs. Stovall? You okay?”
She was on her feet, brushing off her jeans and fixing her hair again so that the driver couldn’t see any signs of blood. “Fine. I tripped.”
His expression grew slightly less concerned. “I was afraid you’d been hit by a car.”
The children were making their way out of the bus, and Maggie choked out a laugh. “No…nothing like that. Weak ankles. Happens all the time.”
How long have I been rambling? Five minutes? Ten? Where are the little girls who were on the bus a few minutes ago? Or was that a different bus?
The bus driver was still staring at
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