Page 50 of River

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GIDEON

I hada whole week to fish. I stopped at the bait store in the little village of Starbury, which was also the name of the small grocery store, and everything else you needed to buy. There were only two stores in town: an old movie theater, a hamburger stand, and a gas station. Grandpa left me the cabin, where I lived with him my entire life. I loved fishing with Grandpa; he could sit and fish all day and only say two words.

I heard a child scream and turned around. A little girl ran across the street while a man further down the street chased after her. I turned and looked at the woman at the counter, and then Bear jumped out the window of my truck. “Wilma, I’m going to leave these here.” I set my stuff on the counter and went outside.

“Bear, sit,” I said; he didn’t want to, but he sat.

When the girl ran past me, I caught her. She kicked and screamed.

“Shhh, I want you to be quiet. I’m going to help you.” I took her inside, and Bear followed. Wilma hid her behind the counter. I could hear her sniffing. I looked around and saw Bear with the girl. I stepped outside.

When the man ran up to me, he stopped. “I lost my daughter; have you seen her? She has blonde hair and green eyes.”

“No, but I’ll call the police,” I said, pretending to call nine-one-one.

“No, don’t bother with the cops. I’ll find her myself.”

“I already called, and they’ll be here any minute.”

I saw him looking around, and then he ran across the street. “They’ll be here any minute now. Where should I send them?” I shouted at him. He didn’t answer; he just kept running.

I walked back into the store and bent to speak to the girl. She looked to be about seven. “What’s going on?”

“That man took me from my mom, and I have to call her. She’s going to be scared to death. She’s always scared to death ever since my Daddy died.”

“Here, we’ll use my phone. What is your Mom’s number?”

“Let me see your phone,” she said, crying, and wiping her sleeve across her face. She took my phone out of my hand, she was looking through my contacts, and I felt she was hunting for the name Mom in them. “I can’t find her name anywhere,” she said, becoming upset. He’ll come back here and get me.”

“Do you know where you live? If you tell me where you live and give me your Mom’s name, maybe we can find her phone number,” I said.

“He’s coming back,” Wilma said, glancing out thewindow. Bear growled. That’s when we heard the sirens. Someone must have called the police about something. “Now he’s running away. Are you going to find her mommy? If so, I would get the heck out of here.”

I looked at the girl, who was shaking in her shoes. “Do you know where your Mom is?”

“She was at the motel, and that man hit her in the face and grabbed me. Maybe he killed her,” she said, her eyes huge in her face. She was crying so hard she started hiccupping.

“I wouldn’t worry about your Mom being dead. I’m sure if he hit her once in the face, it didn’t kill her. It might have knocked her out. What’s her name?”

“Her real name or her fake name?” I looked at the girl. Her mother had a fake name, and I wondered why. This sounded like it was more than just someone kidnapping a young girl. I had a feeling I wouldn’t get much fishing done this week.

I looked at Wilma. “We can’t tell anyone about this girl. Something fishy is going on,” I’ve known Wilma since I was a baby. I’ve lived here with Grandpa my entire life, and she knew everything there was to know about me. She knew I’d take care of this girl.

Everyone in town has known me since my mother dropped me off with my Pop; my grandma died years before that. Pop died last year at the age of ninety-two. I would give anything to see him again.

“Gideon, take her where that man can’t find her,” Wilma said, looking at the girl. Do you have a fake name too?”

“Yes, my fake name is Tina Turner. My Mom laughed when she named me. She said I was a famous singer.”

I chuckled. “What’s your real name?”

My name is Haley Reeves. My Mama is Riley Reeves. Her fake name is Ava Turner. We’ve been hiding from my Grandfather. We lived with him when my Dad died. My Grandpa won’t let us leave; he’s everyone’s big boss.”

“If my Mom were a man, she would beat him up; he always slaps her when she argues with him. He’s very, very mean. You don’t want to make him mad, or he will kill you.”

I shook my head when Wilma was going to ask her a question. “How about we get out of here before he comes back? Wilma, this doesn’t go any further than the three of us. If her Mom happens to come here, have her call me. We’ll be looking for her.”

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