Saucy and Bubba Read online

  9

  The Bus Ride

  “All alone?” the bus driver said.

  Saucy handed him their tickets, and pointed to the papers pinned to each of their chests. Was her cursive good enough to work on him? They had to get on this bus.

  The bus driver pushed back his hat and scratched his bald head. He picked up a corner of the paper on Bubba’s chest. After a moment, he dropped it. “Momma sending you to see an aunt, eh?”

  Saucy nodded.

  “How old are you?”

  “I’m twelve,” she lied. “Bubba’s seven.”

  The bus driver hung out the door and looked at the ticket window. When Mrs. Johnston waved an OK to him, he sat back in his seat. Shaking his head, he said, “Well, your ma should’ve waited with you.”

  Saucy nodded. “Chores. Chickens gotta get fed. She raises bantams.”

  The bus driver agreed. “Animals don’t wait. OK, take a seat.” He closed the door.

  The bus was less than half full. The other adult passengers were scattered throughout the seats.

  “Back seat is best,” Bubba said.

  “Too cold. Front seat is close to the heater,” Saucy said.

  Bubba counted the number of rows, divided it in half, then pointed to the middle seat. “There.”

  Again, Saucy wished she could do numbers like Bubba, but they jumbled in her head, like letters jumbled in his. She slid across the brown plastic to the window. They stuffed their backpacks under the seat.

  “How long will we have to ride this bus?” Bubba asked.

  Saucy looked at the orange tickets. “We’ll be at Aunt Vivian’s by midnight.”

  Bubba brightened up a bit. “I like her boxer. He licks my face.”

  “I like the way Aunt Vivian laughs at Daddy’s jokes.” Saucy turned back to the window. At the sight of her reflection, she closed her eyes and leaned on the cool panes. Her face was too pale, her eyes too wide. Strands of dark hair were escaping her ponytail. When Momma was alive, she neatly braided Saucy’s hair, but it was too hard for Saucy to do alone.

  Saucy kept her eyes closed, shutting out her reflection, trying to shut out the longing for Momma. The car wreck had happened on a rainy night. But the day they buried Momma had been brilliant with sunlight. Saucy and Bubba sat on either side of Daddy in straight metal chairs while the preacher talked and talked. Saucy leaned against Daddy. She tried to catch his eye to ask if the flowers were roses. Momma would have wanted roses. But he didn’t see her hand waving. The preacher stopped talking. It was time to go.

  When Daddy pushed up from the chair, she reached up for his hand. He didn’t take it.

  She tugged at him. “Daddy.”

  He put a finger under his sunglasses and rubbed away a tear. She couldn’t remember what she had wanted to ask. She’d never seen Daddy cry before, and suddenly she was crying, too, and so was Bubba. Daddy had knelt down and they all cried together.

  But after the funeral, Daddy had been gone so much at night. Before he left this time, he had said he was sorry for being so sad after Momma died. He said Krissy made things better. But she didn’t. When Daddy got back, Saucy had to make him listen.

  The bus crawled over the Jemez Mountains like a turtle, swaying from side to side. Saucy’s cheek bumped against the cool window, over and over, until her eyes grew heavy.

  They were going up a steep grade that had two lanes going up, one going down. An eighteen-wheeler pulled even with Saucy’s window and her heart thumped. Saucy pressed her nose against the bus window. Was it Daddy’s rig? Did he find out they were running away? Was he going to save them?

  The rig pulled ahead until the cab was even with the front of the bus. The bus and truck toiled side by side through the night, up the steep mountain.

  No. The open trailer carried a load of logs. Daddy’s rig was the closed-up kind. He must still be out in California, hauling fruits. He wasn’t due for five days, anyway. Or 120-something hours like Bubba said.

  After Momma died in the car wreck, Daddy stayed home for a few months and just did the ranching. But the funeral bills had been too much. Saucy remembered the day a truck and trailer drove up, and men loaded up Momma’s black filly. That same day, Daddy had taken the last load of Momma’s clothes to Goodwill.

  The next day, he left on a long haul, leaving the kids with neighbors that first time.

  “Trucking still pays well,” he said when he got back. But he couldn’t leave the kids with babysitters all the time.

  Before he went on another trip, he went out one night and didn’t come home until morning. Saucy had waited for him in the living room for a long time. She fell asleep after the late, late movie. When Daddy woke her the next morning, Krissy was with him. She stayed as a babysitter when Daddy took the big truck out for his second run. Krissy liked the ranch. She liked Daddy. She liked Bubba. Saucy was the one thing she didn’t like.

  When Daddy came home from the fifth trip, he and Krissy went to town. When they came home, Krissy wore a thin gold ring. They were married. Daddy got the gas station job and hadn’t gone out on the road until now.

  Now, Bubba yawned and rubbed his eyes. “How long do we have to be on this bus? I’m hungry. Did we bring any food?”

  “No. I didn’t think about it.”

  Bubba’s stomach growled loudly.

  She promised, “But Aunt Vivian will have some food. It won’t take very long to get there.”

  “Here, try this.” A bald man seated across from them held out a brown paper bag. “Fresh chocolate chip cookies,” he said. A crutch leaned against his window. His right foot wore in a normal shoe, while the left had a sole as thick as Saucy’s arm.

  Bubba’s face lit up with a huge grin. “Thanks.” He reached into the bag.

  “No!” Saucy drew in a sharp breath of panic. “Put it back, Bubba. Put it back.”

  Bubba dropped the cookies like they were hot.

  “We don’t take food from strangers,” Saucy said. She stared defiantly at the ugly man.

  “Your choice,” the man said. But he kept the bag outstretched toward Bubba.

  “But I’m hungry,” Bubba cried.

  It was late afternoon, and they hadn’t eaten any lunch. Bubba did need to eat, but “when?” was the question. They had stopped at several places to take on new passengers, but there was never enough time to get off and buy food. Saucy realized she hadn’t planned this running away very well.

  The bus driver called back. “Smart girl. Don’t take things from people you don’t know. But in this case, Mr. Peters is safe. He rides the bus once a month to visit his daughter in Albuquerque. He brings me cookies all the time.” He held up an identical paper bag.

  “Can I?” Bubba’s hand hovered over the bag, waiting for her answer.

  Saucy bit her bottom lip, then nodded. “The driver says it’s OK.”

  Bubba stuck out his tongue at Saucy, and he took three cookies. Mr. Peters offered the bag to Saucy, too but she leaned against the window again and closed her eyes. How could she keep Bubba safe? She took a deep, shaky breath. Her heart was galloping like a racehorse.

  Bubba touched her arm.

  Saucy screamed, startled. Realizing what she’d done, she clapped her hand over her mouth. She half rose from her seat and checked the bus driver. The less he thought about them, the better.

  In his rearview mirror, he was looking at her. “You, OK?”

  Saucy nodded. “Fine.” She sat back down. She wasn’t fine. Since Momma died, it felt like everything was trying to crush her.

  Bubba reached out again, but stopped short of touching her. “Sorry.” From the cookies, he had chocolate breath.

  “It’s OK,” she whispered. “I just don’t want the bus driver to keep wondering about us. What did you want?”

  “Tell me a story.”

  She always told him stories while Krissy was noisy. It kept him quiet. She was glad he realized that he needed to be quiet now, too.

  “Which story do you want?
” Saucy asked. She knew lots of stories from school.

  “The one about Hansel and Gretel.”

  “You know that one already. Don’t you want a new one?” Saucy loved the story because it came from her precious blue story book, the one Momma had given her for her eighth birthday. But the book was gone. Krissy had lost it at the preschool.

  “I like Hansel and Gretel,” Bubba insisted.

  Saucy let Bubba lean against her. She had to keep him distracted so they wouldn’t attract any more attention. She kept her eyes away from the window and the big truck that reminded her of Daddy. She focused instead on the pointy toes of Bubba’s cowboy boots.

  “Once upon a time–“

  Bubba sighed. “I like that part.”

  “Shh. Let me tell.”

  The bus drove steadily over the mountains. Night was falling. Sagebrush rushed past. Sagebrush smelled better than gingerbread, Saucy thought.

  Bubba closed his eyes and his wrinkled forehead relaxed. He slumped against her.

  “Once upon a time,” Saucy said, “there lived a brother and sister named Hansel and Gretel. When their mother died, their father remarried. . . .”

  10

  Capture

  Inside the bus station at Albuquerque, it was bright. Outside, it was black.

  Saucy and Bubba pulled on their backpacks. They held hands as they pushed down the aisle to the front of the bus. Mr. Peters limped behind them.

  “Just a minute.” The bus driver pushed back his cap and peered closely at them. “Your aunt picking you up?”

  Saucy nodded and pulled Bubba down the bus steps. She walked rapidly, without looking back. Gripping Bubba’s hand, she wouldn’t let him look back, either. She pushed open the door, marched outside, turned right and walked a block. She pulled Bubba into the deep doorway of an adobe building.

  Saucy slumped against the building and laughed a little to herself. Running away was too easy. They had fooled the bus driver and gotten clean away.

  From the station, tantalizing light streamed out just like it did from the beer joint back home. She hated waiting in the dark, hated being locked in the van for hours. If they made it to Aunt Vivian’s house, they wouldn’t have any more waiting in the dark.

  Mr. Peters limped out the door, leaning heavily on his crutch. A car pulled up. A young woman got out and ran to give him a hug.

  Soon, Saucy thought, Aunt Vivian will be giving us a hug. And everything would be all right.

  The woman helped Mr. Peters into the car and they sped off. Would Aunt Vivian come get them if she called? No, it was better to just show up. Then, she couldn’t send them back to Krissy.

  “We gotta walk a ways now, Bubba,” Saucy said. “You gotta be brave.”

  Bubba yawned. “I’ve been brave.”

  “Yes, so far. And we’re safe, just like I promised.”

  Bubba said, “Oh. You forgot to leave a white rock at the bus station.”

  “I’ll leave it right here.”

  Bubba shook his head. “No. At the station.”

  “It’s dangerous to go back. I can’t.” Didn’t Bubba understand? They’d gotten away so easily, but if she went back, something might happen.

  Bubba crossed his arms over his chest. “Then I won’t go any more. Daddy can’t find us if you don’t leave the rock.”

  Saucy rubbed her hot dry eyes. “What if they catch me?”

  Bubba held out his hand, palm up. “I’ll do it.”

  “No.” Saucy’s heart beat a hard rhythm. “Wait. Right here. I’ll run and leave it and be right back.” It was her job to keep Bubba happy and safe, and she was going to do just that.

  Bubba nodded. He took his baseball cap from his back pocket and put it on. He stuck his hands in his armpits and shivered. “Hurry.”

  Saucy’s head turned from side to side in disbelief. Was she really going to do this? It was foolish to take this risk, but what choice did she have? Saucy crouched and said to herself, “Go.”

  With rocket speed, she raced down the sidewalk, up to the door, tossed a white rock beside the door, executed a perfect U-turn just like Daddy always did when he came home and parked the rig in the shed, downshifted, and–

  Someone clapped a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, I thought your aunt was coming.”

  “Let me go!”

  But the bus driver steered Saucy into the station. He crooked a hairy finger and beckoned a policeman over. The policeman was leaning on a lunch counter, playing a video game. He put it into his back pocket and sauntered over.

  “This little girl and her brother got on my bus all alone, and now there’s no one here to meet them. Any reports of runaway kids from Sandoval County?”

  “I’ll check.” On his belt, the policeman carried a pager, a cell phone, and a two-way radio. A holster and gun had its own belt. He used the two-way radio to call the police dispatcher.

  Saucy stood still, watching both men, who both watched her. Two old ladies in faded dresses and fat shoes watched her from their window seat. A watching party, but no one was smiling. Saucy barely dared to breathe while they waited for the policeman to finish his conversation.

  After a few minutes, the policeman clipped the radio to his belt. “Nothing.”

  The bus driver scratched his head. “Where’s your brother?”

  “Bathroom.”

  “Don’t you leave now, without having your aunt talk to me. I don’t like this. I let you on my bus, but something is fishy here. What chores did you say your momma had to do?”

  Saucy was relieved she could tell the truth about something. “She raises Old Dutch bantam hens and roosters.” If she hung around too long, though, they’d start asking lots more questions, like her phone number or Aunt Vivian’s phone number. “Can I get something to eat?”

  The bus driver and the policeman looked at each other. They shrugged.

  Saucy strolled over to the counter and studied the menu. She refused the urge to look at the policeman. Instead, she sat on a red stool, propped her elbows on the counter, and leaned her face into her hands.

  “What do you need?” The waiter was just a teenager with a faint mustache and three small silver earrings in his left ear.

  Bubba wouldn’t like her spending money, but Saucy didn’t see any way around it. “Hot chocolate.”

  “That’s $1.50.”

  “That much?”

  “This is a bus station. You never get anything cheap at a bus station. Didn’t you know that?”

  Reaching under the white rocks into the bottom of her pocket, Saucy pulled out her billfold. She half-turned to make sure the waiter didn’t see how much cash she had. She pulled out two dollar bills, laid them onto the counter, and stuffed the billfold back under the rocks.

  “Here.” The teenager put a small Styrofoam cup in front of her and took away her bills.

  “Hey, this is half empty and where’s my marshmallow?”

  “No marshmallow and I spilled some of it.”

  “Then get me some more.”

  The teenager plopped two quarters in front of her. “You’re supposed to tip me at least one of those, you know?”

  “For half a cup of hot chocolate?”

  “For telling you the cop just went into the bathroom to see if your brother is in there, and the bus driver is outside doing something on the bus.”

  Saucy spun around. Now was her chance to escape!

  11

  Home, Sweet Home

  Saucy looked around the bus station. The waiter was right: the cop and bus driver were out of sight.

  With a grin, the waiter gave her two cups with lids. “I ran away once. I’m Kevin. You and your brother need a friend, you come see me.”

  “Thanks. And keep the change.”

  The watching party was still going on: the two old ladies turned their heads to follow her path across the waiting room. With her hands full, Saucy had to turn around at the station doors to shove them open with her back. As soon as she hit the sidewalk, she
was racing for cover. The hot chocolate jiggled wildly in the cups as she ran, but the lids held it all in. She ducked into the doorway, and called, “Bubba?”

  “Here. What happened?” His teeth were chattering.

  “Anybody coming?”

  “Nope.”

  Saucy bent double at the stitch in her side and breathed deeply. But they had to get away. “Come on.”

  She led the way, turning and zigzagging several blocks until she finally let them stop in the deep shadow of a doorway.

  She handed a cup to Bubba. “$2.00. Sorry, but I had to do something while I waited to get away. The bus driver called a cop over.”

  She took a sip and let the chocolate warm her. Bubba sipped his, and his chattering stopped, too. While her heartbeat calmed, she told Bubba about the guy at the counter.

  Bubba nodded. “Good chocolate. It’s OK that you spent the money.”

  Saucy hesitated but didn’t see any reason not to tell Bubba this: “She hasn’t reported us missing. Yet.”

  “Good. Aunt Vivian will keep us safe.”

  “Yes.” Already, a weight seemed to lift from Saucy. She’d been so scared on the bus and just now in the bus station. But they had made it, and just being in the same town with Aunt Vivian meant they were much safer. When Saucy explained everything, Aunt Vivian would listen. She would know what to do. Wouldn’t she?

  Saucy walked to the street corner, read the signs, and scampered back to the shadows. She pulled out a city map and the compass. Bubba turned on the flashlight and shone it on the map while Saucy studied it. Bubba licked out the last of his hot chocolate and Saucy let him have the last of hers. There wasn’t a trash can nearby, so Saucy stacked the empty cups neatly and set them on a window sill.

  Unzipping their backpacks, they both pulled out extra sweaters and put them on. Saucy held out her hand to Bubba. “Time to go.”

  Bubba counted the blocks. Ten blocks north, twenty blocks east, five north, one west, one south.

  The sliver of a moon came up, and the stars wheeled across the sky. They’d been traveling almost twelve hours, and Saucy’s feet ached.