Page 1 of Peach Tree Family

Chapter 1

Shifting his duffel bag from shoulder to shoulder, Seth walked on the side of the road and watched his shadow get longer. At every step the damp and the chill reached deeper inside him. He was tired, cold, hungry and thirsty, but there was no place for him to stop, just bare trees and underbrush on one side and empty fields on the other. He had seen a sign for a town called Peach Tree, but he couldn't see anything except a hill up ahead.

Even if he reached the town before night fell, he had no hope of sleeping indoors. Not with the little money he had on him. The nagging of his empty stomach told him to save what little money he had for food.

While he was trying to figure out what to do, he noticed that some people in passing cars were eying him and not in a friendly way. The next car might be a sheriff looking to hassle him. Seth moved off the side of the road and started making his way through the wooded area and tried his best not to get lost.

As tired as he was, it wasn't easy keeping his mind clear. After days of walking, he had run out of food, his feet hurt and his head was pounding. He was almost desperate enough to hitchhike but never stuck his thumb out. People still offered him rides a few times, but every time someone stopped for him, he got a bad vibe and just kept walking.

He wouldn't be much better off dragging himself through these woods once it got dark. Going around a thick tangle of bushes had taken him away from the road. That was a good way to get lost and it was likely to rain too.

Looking up at the gray sky and listening for the noise of cars, Seth hit a deep puddle on his next step. As both his feet sank in, cold water flooded his shoes and he cursed. Dead leaves covered the puddle so he couldn't tell it was there. Now he had two sopping wet sneakers and his jeans had soaked up water too.

Like he needed to be sloshing around in wet shoes in this cold weather. Looking for someplace to sit and take his shoes off, maybe get some of the rainwater out, Seth glimpsed a little bit of a roofline and a chimney. A few steps later he could see a porch and a boarded up window. By the look of it, the house wasn't a wreck but no one was living there. The front door had a padlock on it. A No Trespassing sign was posted on the door.

He might be able to get inside, and if not, he could at least huddle up on the porch, that way if it rained tonight he wouldn't be out there with no shelter.

Maybe his luck wasn't so bad after all.

***

"Are we hobos, Theo?" Ace asked as they left the roadside and started making their way through the woods.

"No. And we aren't homeless. We have a house. We just have to get there," Theo told his little brother as he picked the safest path for them to follow. As they set out on this trip, one of Theo's friends had joked that they were going to be hobos, now Ace was fixated on the idea.

"I don't see a house," Ace said. He hadn't been doubting Theo this much when they were on the bus, but he had only just turned seven. After being on one bus or another for most of the day, they were hiking through dry brush among bare trees in the bitter cold and the little guy's spirits were flagging.

"The house is out here. We just can't see it yet." Theo scanned the ground to make sure they didn't fall in or get tripped up. At the same time, he peered ahead of them, telling himself they couldn't see the house because of the trees and brush. But most of the branches were bare. They should have seen the house already.

It was late in the afternoon, and it had been cloudy all day making for cold and clammy weather. If they didn't find the old place before they lost the light, Theo didn't know what they would do.

Camping out in the brush in this weather would be miserable even if he was alone, but it was out of the question for his little brother to spend a cold, winter night outdoors. Ace was twelve years his junior, and Theo was now finally taking full responsibility for him, taking over from their aunt. But Ace had been scared about where they would live ever since their aunt said she never wanted to see them again and they could go live on the streets for all she cared.

That was the first time Ace had asked, "Are we homeless?"

The truth was that they were. Since he turned eighteen, Theo had been staying with different friends. He wasn't ready to take care of Ace yet, but he couldn't tell him that. He clutched at the only straw they had, and he put some steel in his voice as he told Ace. "We're not homeless. You know our dad left us that house in Peach Tree. Our own house. Doesn't that sound good?"

Theo felt like that was a lie he was trying to turn into the truth, but he had a tiny hope that maybe it wasn't. Maybe the house wasn't in bad shape and they could live there. At least it would take them far away from their aunt's boyfriend and his threats.

While Theo was considering what to do if they didn't find the house soon, Ace pointed up ahead. "Theo, Theo, Theo! I see a house!"

In his excitement, he was ready to run closer, but Theo grabbed the backpack Ace was carrying and stopped him. "You know I have to check it out first," Theo reminded him. Ace already knew the plan but he wasn't so good at following directions when curiosity got the better of him.

They made a slow approach and saw a one-story house with a porch and its windows boarded up. Everything was silent and still except for the two of them and their footsteps. There was no sign that anyone else was around.

As they circled the house, Theo saw the most likely place to get them inside. They didn't have a key, but they did have every right to be there even if Theo had to break in.

Next he picked a hiding spot for Ace. That's where he would wait with all their stuff.

Setting down the huge rucksack he carried, Theo went over the plan one more time. "Here's the phone. You stay here, and I go in and check the place out. If I'm not out every five minutes to wave at you from the side door, you call 911."

"I know, but..." Ace had already made the argument that he should go in to back him up, and Theo didn't need to hear it again.

"No, you can't go with me. I need backup out here, not in there. Now let's do this." He put out his hand for a fist bump.

Ace nodded and bumped his fist. "I'm ready." He was also scared, but this was the best plan Theo had.

He rubbed the baseball cap on top of his little brother's head and moved off as quietly and as cautiously as he could. In his hand, he had a heavy flashlight. If he had to, he could use it as a weapon.

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