Behind the Ties (Home in Carson 5)

Chapter Two

Savannah woke with a start when the sound of a rooster crowing. It forced her from the delicious dream that she’d been having. There had been large, rough hands and silk sheets.

As she became more awake, Savannah looked around the small bedroom she had occupied as a child when she visited her grandfather. The walls were painted ivory with small pink hearts placed randomly throughout. The breeze blew in through the open window, shuffling the heavy pink curtains against the hardwood floors.

With a heavy sigh, she rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. After two days, she still hadn’t grasped the fact that she was back in this small town. When she had alerted her parents of the threats she had been receiving in their hometown of Baltimore, they had simply brushed them aside. They were too worried about their reputation with her father’s law and golf buddies than to care that someone had been threatening her life.

She closed her eyes and tried to calm her racing heart as she remembered the blood-stained paper and eerie words depicting her end.

How had her life turned into such a mess?

Savannah had wanted to become a veterinarian since she could say the word dog. But now it seemed that her dream was slipping through her fingers because of the mandatory reporting required in the state of Maryland. If she suspected an animal was being abused, she was required to report it. Unfortunately, she hadn’t realized that said pet was part of an even larger scandal. And that the practice she worked with had zero desire to back her up. Every practicing physician cowered away. The office manager requested that Savannah take a leave of absence from the large animal hospital that she had been working at since she graduated from vet school. But she knew that the underlying words were that she wasn’t welcome back with the trouble she had caused.

From everything Savannah had gathered from her old roommate, Hilary, who was also practicing as her lawyer, the family she had reported had their hands in all kinds of government and police back pockets. She likened them to the mafia and that scared Savannah the most. Savannah later learned after some digging with Hilary that the owner of the vet clinic she worked at was related to the family she reported. Small world, after all.

She went from doing her job as was expected and what she was trained to do to running for her life back to the small town where everyone knew everything. That was what she had been counting on. Carson was a small idyllic town you’d see in the movies. It kind of surprised her that no one had stopped by offering her a casserole or welcoming her back to town.

Though, when she did drive through town two nights ago, she noticed that Main Street had expanded by five blocks and there were a dozen new shops. There was a bakery in town called Wake and Bake that she remembered having the best cupcakes when she was little. The name of the shop made her giggle now that she was older. Savannah was curious if the owners understood the other meaning behind that name.

But now that she was thinking about cupcakes, her stomach let out a growl that vibrated off the walls of the small bedroom. Savannah couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten anything. Food had been the farthest thing from her mind when she drove down the interstate at breakneck speed from her condo in Baltimore toward Carson. And then, when she arrived, there hadn’t been more than a jar of pickles in her grandfather’s fridge. The man had never cooked a day in his life, so she hadn’t been expecting to find anything. From what Savannah remembered, after her grandmother had died, Grandpa Jim had eaten at the diner in town every night. He had a reserved booth and everything.

Savannah wondered if the diner was still around as she tugged on a pair of jeans she’d shoved into her duffle bag along with a silk tank top the same color of pink as the curtains in the bedroom. Maybe her tastes hadn’t changed that much after all.

It was Monday, a closed day for the clinic, so Savannah headed for the front door. She would start officially working tomorrow, but under the table to keep any trails of her being in town non-existent. She was doing whatever she could to keep hidden until her lawyer told her otherwise. Before leaving Baltimore, she cashed out her checking and savings accounts and cut her credit cards.

Opening the door, a crisp spring breeze swept across Savannah’s body, leaving tiny goosebumps on her skin. The smell of honeysuckle filled the air and she felt herself relax in a way she hadn’t in a long time. She closed her eyes and took in the feel of the warming air and the smells floating around. Maybe this would all work out and she could get back to her life eventually, but the slight reprieve may be a nice change of pace. She could think of it like the summer vacations she used to take to the same town.

Closing the door behind her and locking up, Savannah jumped when a horn sounded as a vehicle passed.

“Shit,” she yelped as the keys in her hand dropped to the brick landing. Savannah quickly snatched them up and made her way down to the sidewalk. No cracks or weeds were growing in the large slabs; Savannah could tell that the town took pride in its appearance.

Following the sidewalk down the winding road, Savannah waved at a few runners and a mom pushing her stroller toward a large glass building. The sign beside the entrance marked it as a pediatric clinic, early education learning center, and a security company. She had thought the old and creepy elementary school she was terrified of as a kid had been torn down and converted into a glass and stone multi-unit space. She far preferred this building over the old one.

The clinic was in a perfect spot beside the pharmacy; a glass walkway connected the two. It was a perfect segue from the new building to the original downtown. The pharmacy had been in its location as long as Savannah could remember. Her grandfather’s practice often worked closely with the drug store; he didn’t always carry the medications in his facility.

Savannah made a mental note to stop by the pharmacy and introduce herself.

She had been so lost in thought that Savannah almost missed Angie’s Diner across the street. As she walked past the large public parking lot before reaching the old elementary school lot, she had been too focused on seeing everything new.

Looking both ways for oncoming traffic, Savannah jogged across the street toward the flashy metal building with the bright red awning and roof. A neon sign showcased the diner’s name and it immediately brought a smile to her face. The 50’s style diner was a vision of the past, but Savannah knew from previous conversations with her grandfather that the building had been expanded in the back, tripling the dining space.

As she tugged the front door to the restaurant, Savannah was thrown back to her childhood. Everything looked exactly the same but freshened up. Red vinyl seats for the booths lined the front window. A bar-height counter sat across in the middle of the room with the twenty or so stools completely occupied. Harried servers moved at efficient paces, all with a smile on their faces and plates stacked perfectly on their trays.

“Wow,” Savannah mumbled as she took it all in, that smile from earlier widening until her cheeks hurt.

“Have a seat anywhere, sugar,” a raspy voice called out from somewhere in the space.

At first, she wasn’t sure if a seat was available, but an older couple sat up from their booth and made their way toward the exit. She took the opportunity to snag their spot even before the table could be cleaned.

Just as she situated herself in the seat so she could face the door, the same voice from earlier said, “Let me get this cleaned up for you and then I’ll grab you a menu.”

“Thank you, ma’am,” Savannah said, turning her attention toward the waitress that seemed far too familiar.

“Little Savannah Monroe? Is that really you?” the woman asked as she planted a hand on her hip.

Savannah was shocked that someone recognized her, especially since she hadn’t been back to the town in about ten years. She thought that her appearance had changed over the years.

“Yes, ma’am, it is.”