Saucy and Bubba Read online

  The phone rang again.

  Ring! Ring! Ring! Ring!

  The answering machine said, “Please leave a message.”

  “Vivian! Are you there? Pick up!” Krissy’s voice was loud. And mad.

  “Vivian! The kids are gone. Did I just hear Bubba,, or was that your silly dog yapping? Jonathan called today and said he’s coming in early. I’ve got to find the kids before he gets back.”

  The answering machine beeped, then went off.

  “Now what?” Bubba asked.

  “Be quiet. I don’t know what and I don’t want to talk about it. I’m tired of talk. It never fixes anything.” Saucy glared in frustration. “That shirt is dirty, now give it to me.”

  Silently, Bubba unbuttoned it and handed it to her. “What will we do?”

  “I told you, I don’t know,” Saucy said. “But I’m not wearing dirty clothes and neither are you. First, we’ll wash our clothes; we’ll figure out something later.”

  “Daddy will be home in 60 hours.”

  “Less. Didn’t you hear Krissy?”

  “But when?”

  “Who knows?” she said. “I don’t know anything.”

  It was a glum day. They both knew they should do something. But what?

  Saucy found some laundry detergent and washed their shirts in the sink. They’d brought a change of clothes each, so when these dried, they would change and she would wash the other set. They tried to watch TV, but at home they usually played outside or in the barn, and after a while, the TV was boring. Both of them kept going to the window and peeking out the shades.

  About noon, the Federal Express man came by and left a small package beside the door.

  “I wonder what it is,” Saucy said.

  “Doesn’t matter,” Bubba said.

  “It might tell us something about where Aunt Vivian went.”

  “It’s not our mail,” Bubba insisted.

  Saucy put her hands on her hip and glared. “We need information. Where is everyone? I’m gonna look at it.”

  Bubba shrugged.

  When she was sure the FedEx guy was gone, Saucy cracked opened the door and snatched up the box.

  It was addressed to Vivian and Dave Poldnar. Aunt Vivian’s last name was Dillard, like Saucy’s and Bubba’s. Who was Vivian Poldnar? The return address said, “Wedding Movies, Las Vegas, Nevada.” There was no question of opening the package, now. They had to know what was going on.

  Not surprisingly, it was a DVD.

  Bubba sighed. “We’ve opened it. We might as well watch it.”

  They popped the DVD into the machine and watched Aunt Vivian marry the boyfriend she had brought to see them. Daddy was in the picture!

  “They’re on a honeymoon,” Saucy told Bubba. “That’s why they aren’t here.”

  “Who is he?”

  “Your new uncle. Uncle Dave, I guess.”

  She hadn’t thought much about Dave Poldnar. That weekend at their ranch, he had been quiet, just listening. That’s what she remembered the most. He listened. Krissy chattered about her gingerbread houses, and Dave Poldnar listened. In fact, he asked questions, then listened more. Daddy walked out to the barn with him, and Saucy followed. They didn’t pay any attention to her. But Dave Poldnar listened to Daddy and asked questions and listened some more. Thinking about it now, Saucy wondered about his ears. She couldn’t remember them being big or sticking out or anything. But they had to be strange because he did so much listening.

  “Why didn’t they invite us to the wedding? Daddy went,” Bubba said.

  “They eloped. People go to Las Vegas to get married when they elope.” Well, some people, she thought. Daddy and Krissy didn’t do that. They just went to town and came home married. Eloping to Las Vegas sounded more romantic.

  “Why didn’t they tell us?”

  “When you elope, you don’t go around telling people what you’re going to do, silly. That’s the point. You just want to get married without a lot of fuss.”

  Bubba asked, “Does he like boxers? Will he live here with Aunt Vivian? Will they have kids?”

  Wrong questions, Saucy thought. Will Aunt Vivian live happily ever after? Some people thought marriages were great. But to her, getting married was a scary thing to do.

  “Look, Saucy. Cake. I wish we had some wedding cake.”

  Saucy punched the rewind button on the remote controller and watched Uncle Dave put the ring on Aunt Vivian’s finger. Again, she rewound it and watched the ring slip on the finger. Ring on the finger. The control buttons seemed to work by themselves. Ring on the finger. Ring on the finger.

  “Stop!” Bubba said. “I don’t want to see that any more.”

  Saucy sighed and tried to think what all this might mean. “OK. Look. I gotta figure out something. Aunt Vivian might not want us here since she has a new husband.” Aunt Vivian getting married changed everything, and Saucy was confused. It had seemed so clear before: Aunt Vivian would let them stay with her until Daddy came home, and he would fix everything. But now, Saucy didn’t know what to think. She needed advice from someone who understood why a kid might want to run away. Other people would just give her straight advice. Her teachers at school would say she had to call Krissy to come and get her. No, it had to be someone who had run away from home, too. “You stay here, Bubba. I’ll go back to the bus station and see if Kevin has any advice. I’ll stop by the grocery store on the way home and bring you some cake.”

  “You aren’t leaving me alone.”

  “What else can I do? You don’t want to walk all the way to the bus station and back, do you? It’ll be faster if I go alone.”

  “Don’t go.”

  Saucy sighed. “I’ll bring you some chocolate chip cookies.”

  Bubba pulled out his calculator and punched in numbers. “Chocolate chip cookies and cake. The accountant says we have enough money for both.”

  “You’ll get sick,” Saucy said flatly. But she put on her socks and tied her tennis shoes. She picked up the key.

  Bubba knocked her hand, and the key clattered to the floor. He grabbed it. “You can’t lock me in. I hate it when you do that.”

  “Give it back.”

  “No.”

  “It’s for your own protection. Don’t you see?” Saucy pleaded. “You can’t go wandering around the neighborhood. That mustache man from the grocery store might see you.”

  “No. I’ll stay inside. And I’ll keep the key.”

  Saucy let him keep it. She wanted to reach out and smooth Bubba’s cowlick, but that would make him mad. Would he be safe by himself?

  Ring! The phone!

  Ring! Saucy and Bubba whirled around to stare at the answering machine.

  Ring! Ring!

  “Please leave a message.”

  “Vivian, this is Krissy. I’m coming to Albuquerque in the morning. Please call me tonight.”

  The machine beeped, then turned off.

  Bubba crept closer to Saucy. His hand slipped into hers. It was hot and sticky.

  Saucy squeezed his hand. “We have a day before she comes.”

  “Twenty-four hours,” Bubba whispered.

  Saucy nodded. Twenty-four hours to find a safe place to stay.

  15

  Advice

  Saucy tried to stay in the cool shadow of an adobe building. The bus station looked different by day. The sunlight–directly overhead–beat down on the outside, and the inside was dark. Saucy’s stomach growled. She wasn’t sure she wanted to talk to Kevin now. Maybe this was a bad idea. But where else could she get help?

  A bus pulled into the parking lot, bringing black smoke and a thick diesel smell which reminded Saucy of Dad’s rig. Where was he? Still in Vegas or California? Or did Krissy tell him they were missing? Was he coming home to find them?

  Passengers started climbing off the bus. It was another watching party. Everyone was eyeing everyone else–except for a thin woman. When she stepped down from the bus, she turned back to help a blond girl and little
boy get off, probably her kids. The boy wore a striped T-shirt and rumpled pants. He yawned and stretched. His mother laughed and hugged him while the sister laughed at both of them. They didn’t have to watch anyone else. They had each other.

  Saucy followed them inside the cool bus station and stopped to let her eyes adjust to the dark. She climbed onto a red stool at the lunch counter.

  “Hot chocolate, please.”

  “Hey, you’re back,” Kevin said.

  Saucy nodded.

  “Anything wrong?”

  Suddenly, Saucy felt tears well up. She pressed her lips together tightly to keep from crying.

  “You, OK?

  Saucy nodded. But the question made tears spill over.

  “Rough day, huh? Been there, done that.” Kevin leaned toward her. “No one cares what you want, right? No one asks you how your day has been.”

  “No one cares,” whispered Saucy.

  Kevin’s face crumpled like he was going to cry, too. He turned away. He came back a moment later with a cup of hot chocolate. It was full to the brim, and it had three marshmallows.

  Saucy tasted it. She smiled. “You found the marshmallows.”

  Kevin grinned back, showing a dimple in his left cheek. “I’m glad you like it.” He turned businesslike. “But what did you really come here for?”

  “Advice.”

  “What’s happening?”

  Saucy took a deep breath, and spoke rapidly, afraid that if she stopped, she wouldn’t be able to start again. “My dad drives a truck, and he’s never home. We ran away from my stepmother because she drinks too much. My aunt wasn’t home, but we got in her house anyway. She eloped, and when she gets home, I don’t know if her new husband will like us. And my stepmother left a phone message for my aunt that she is coming to town tomorrow. How can I protect my brother?”

  Kevin whistled. “That’s trouble.”

  “Sir, may I have some water for my son?”

  The thin woman stood beside Saucy and stared at her. How much had the woman heard? Saucy stared at the melting marshmallow. Her hands trembled as she raised the cup to her lips.

  Kevin handed the mother two paper cups of ice water. “One for your daughter, too.”

  “Thanks.” The woman turned away. Then she turned back. “Ask your aunt for help. I know I’m butting in. But a kid like you has to trust some adult. Sounds like she’s the best bet.” She turned away and hurried back to her family.

  Kevin rolled his eyes at Saucy. “What does she know?”

  “So what do I do?”

  “Take care of number one.” The dimple showed again.

  Saucy pushed the hot chocolate away from her. “I have to take care of Bubba.”

  Kevin’s face grew serious. “No. First, you have to take care of yourself. Let’s say that you can’t swim. If you see somebody drowning, you can’t jump in and rescue them until you get a life jacket for yourself. When you’re just a kid, sometimes all you can do it take care of yourself. Bubba might have to take care of himself.”

  Saucy closed her eyes. “He’s only seven.”

  Kevin shrugged. “The hot chocolate is on me. Free advice and one free cup of hot chocolate. I charge for both next time.”

  Saucy went back outside. The fall day was brisk and windy. She hugged her jacket closer and trudged back towards Aunt Vivian’s house. Passing a park, she stopped and watched kids laughing and swinging. The unfairness of it all struck her: they must all have safe home-sweet-homes. A gust blew a leaf high into the air, and she stopped to watch it. Bubba was only seven. How could she ask him to be in charge of his own safety? The leaf fluttered slowly to the ground, where she lost sight of it amongst the other leaves.

  Turning away, she walked slowly, trying to think things through and to decide what to do next. But she couldn’t decide anything. She passed a bank and on its sign was a huge public clock. It was already four o’clock in the afternoon. She’d been gone almost four hours. Bubba would be mad. And she was still thirty minutes away from the house. She stopped at a pay telephone and looked up Vivian Dillard in the phone book. She called Bubba. The phone rang four times before the answering machine picked up. “Please leave–“

  ”Bubba, pick up the phone. It’s me. Saucy. I’m coming. I’ll be there in thirty minutes. Pick up.”

  “–a message at the tone. Beep!”

  “Bubba, pick up.”

  Nothing. She had left him the key. He wouldn’t go out by himself, would he? Her heart drummed. He was just stubborn enough to go out by himself.

  “Bubba?” Where was he? Her voice was tight with fear. “Bubba!”

  Saucy slammed down the receiver and started running toward her aunt’s house.

  16

  Rescue

  Saucy hung onto the stop sign and panted. She had a stitch in her side from running so hard, but she had to find Bubba. Maybe he was playing outside. Maybe he was asleep. Why didn’t he answer the phone?

  Saucy took the corner at Baxter Street at a dead run.

  She skidded to a halt.

  Sitting in the driveway at Aunt Vivian’s house was Krissy’s white van. Saucy had been gone for four hours, and it only took three hours to drive from their ranch to Aunt Vivian’s house. She had come to town early. Saucy started shivering. The last time she had talked to Krissy was when Krissy locked her out of the house. Would Krissy remember, or had she been too drunk? Saucy wasn’t going to stick around to find out.

  Carefully, she reached into her jacket pocket and took out a white rock. She bent to the asphalt and set it in the middle of the road. “Daddy, come find me,” she whispered. She turned away.

  “Saucy!”

  Krissy had seen her!

  Saucy started to run, but she was already tired. Footsteps thumped behind her, and a hand slapped her back. “Stop!”

  Saucy shook off the hand, “No!” But she had to bend double, clutching the stitch in her side. She gulped in air while inwardly she wanted to scream.

  “I’ve been so worried.” Krissy’s voice was husky. She smelled like the flowery perfume that Krissy used to try to cover up the alcohol smell. It never worked. It didn’t work now. “Why did you run away?”

  “You don’t remember what happened?” While catching her breath, Saucy studied Krissy’s nose. It looked normal. It wasn’t swollen or anything where Saucy had kicked it.

  “I bought spaghetti for supper.” Krissy shrugged.

  Saucy drew herself up tall. “That’s not all. You bought some liquor.”

  “Just a couple beers.”

  “And rum.” At least Krissy would never know Saucy had given her a bloody nose.

  “No.” Krissy shook her head.

  “Did you drink the rum from under the cabinet, or the one from under the seat of the van?” Saucy demanded.

  Krissy rocked from heel to toe.

  Saucy watched Krissy’s shoes moving forward and back.

  “You don’t remember, do you?”

  Krissy didn’t look up. She whispered, “I made spaghetti for supper.”

  “Yeah, right.” Saucy’s breath was easier now. “Where’s Bubba?”

  “Isn’t he with you? He’s not at the house.”

  Saucy’s eyes got big. As much as she wanted to get away from Krissy, there was something more important right now. “Hurry. He went to the store. By himself. Yesterday, there was a strange man trying to give him chocolate chip cookies.”

  Krissy straightened up. Her glossy blond hair swung gracefully below her chin. Her eyes narrowed. “Where?”

  “Get the van.”

  Krissy sprinted back to the van, peeled out of the driveway, stopped briefly for Saucy to get in the back seat, and roared away. Saucy pointed out the turns to the grocery store. The late afternoon sun gave all the adobe buildings a rosy glow and reflected off the glass windows of the metal buildings.

  “There.” Saucy pointed to the gas station and store.

  The door opened and the man-in-a-suit came out. The mu
stache reigned over a broad, evil smile. Behind him was Bubba. Saucy’s hand went to her mouth. She had left Bubba alone, and now he was being kidnaped. Kevin was right. She couldn’t protect Bubba.

  Krissy whipped the van into the driveway, snapped it into park, flung open the door and was away, racing for Bubba. Before Bubba or the man-in-the-suit even knew what was happening, Krissy scooped Bubba up, dropped him behind her, and glared at the man. She looked just like one of her bantam roosters: tiny, but vicious.

  “What are you doing with my son?”

  Krissy grabbed a bag of chocolate chip cookies away from Bubba, pitched them in the man’s face, spun on heel, picked up Bubba and walked back to the van. Bubba hid his face in her neck. Krissy opened the back door and gently set Bubba in the seat like he was a basket of eggs that would break.

  Breathe, Saucy told herself. He’s OK, so you can breathe.

  Krissy buckled Bubba in.

  They drove back to Aunt Vivian’s house without saying a word. Saucy closed her eyes, trying to shut out the passing houses so she could think. But she was numb. Too much was happening too fast.

  “Look, Saucy! It’s Daddy.”

  “He’s still in California,” Saucy said without opening her eyes.

  “Look!”

  Saucy opened her eyes and stared. Even bobtailed, without a trailer, the red rig made Baxter Street look small and crowded. Another blue car sat in the driveway of Aunt Vivian’s house.

  Krissy glared at Saucy. “Aunt Vivian called me about four or five hours ago and told me she and your Daddy were coming home today before five. She said to drive to town and meet them. Let’s get this straight. We just came to town to meet everyone. Got it?”

  “Why?”

  “Your Daddy doesn’t know you ran away. You better keep it that way.”

  Saucy nodded. She had left Bubba alone, and he’d almost gotten kidnaped. Without Krissy, Bubba would be in big trouble. Krissy had saved Bubba, so Saucy owed her. “I won’t tell Daddy anything.”

  Krissy nodded. “Good.” Opening the van door, she climbed out.

  Daddy was standing in the yard talking to Aunt Vivian and the dark-haired man who was her new Uncle Dave.

  “Krissy!” Daddy hugged and kissed her. “Meet your new brother-in-law, Dave Poldnar. On my way to California, I stopped to visit with Viv. She and Dave had just decided to elope to Vegas. I managed to time my runs so on the flip side I could surprise them and be there to witness the wedding.”