Chapter 1: Madison's POV I sat in the hospital room, next to my mom's bed. She was asleep, but I hoped she'd wake up soon. The doctor said her chances of living weren't very good. My mom was dying of cancer. She'd smoked most of her life and wound up with lung cancer. When Mom got sick a few months ago, I figured she was getting a cold or something. I was wrong. When Mom came in to see the doctor, he'd put her in the hospital. She was getting sicker every day. My thoughts were interrupted when I heard a weak voice calling my name. "Madison." It was my mom. "Yeah, Mom?" I replied. "I gotta tell you something," she said hoarsely. I leaned in close so I could hear her. "Maddy, I want you to go to our apartment and look in the shoebox under my bed. There should be money in there. After I die-" She stopped when I interrupted. "Mom, you won't die. You can't die," I told her. She continued, "After I die, take the money, and find one of your brothers or sisters to live with. I've been saving the money so maybe you could do something with your life. Don't be in jail all the time like the other Winstons. You're better than than-you're smart." Obviously tired, she stopped. I couldn't stand the sight of her gasping for air. "Okay. I'll go home right now and get the shoebox," I promised. She nodded and managed a smile. Soon she fell asleep again. I hitched a ride to our apartment and rushed for my mom and my stepfather's bedroom after making sure no one was there. Just as Mom had said, there was a shoebox with a lot of money in it. I stuffed the shoebox in my duffel bag and headed back to the hospital. Mom was awake again, and she smiled when I told her I had the money. She did have a warning for me. "Don't tell Rodney or his kids, or even your father about the money. They'd probably be angry and might try to hurt you." "Okay," I agreed. I talked to her a while longer, until she fell asleep. Then I curled up in a chair and did some thinking. All my life, I'd wished my mom would show that she loved me. I knew she did, but she was more concerned with herself than anyone else. Now she'd shown me that she loved me. Too bad it wasn't sooner. My eyelids grew heavy, and I drifted off to sleep.

The next afternoon, the doctor told me he needed to check my mom, so I waited outside the room. He was in there a long time, and I got worried that something was wrong. Finally, after more than an hour, he came out, his face grim. "What is it?" I asked anxiously. "I'm sorry, Madison. She died a few minutes ago," he informed me, then walked away. It took several minutes for the news to sink in. I just felt empty; I didn't feel much emotion. I couldn't believe my mom was dead. But I couldn't cry; Winstons just don't cry. Now I had nowhere to go. My stepfather, Rodney, hated me. He only put up with me for Mom's sake. I couldn't go to Dad's house. Not that you could really call him a dad. My dad didn't care if any of his kids were alive or dead. None of my brothers or sisters could take me because several were in jail or lived way to far away. Except for my seventeen-year-old brother, Dally. He was in Oklahoma, but I hadn't heard from him in more than six months. I figured he'd let me stay with him. I reflected on the last time I'd seen my brother. He'd been fifteen, and I'd been thirteen. He'd come back to New York for a while, and had taken me to Oklahoma to meet his friends. I'd really liked all his friends, especially Ponyboy and Johnny. I really wanted to see them again. I made up my mind to live with Dally. I probably should've written to him to tell him I was coming, but I needed to get out of there right away. I went to the apartment and packed up my few possessions, along with the shoebox of money. I wrote a letter to my brother, Brandon, to let him know where I was going so he wouldn't be concerned. I also wrote to Kayleigh, my best friend. Next, I bought a train ticket for the next morning. Now I had to figure out where I'd spend the night. Rodney wouldn't want to put up with me. I finally decided to stay in a hotel. I paid with the money from Mom. That night, I couldn't sleep. I actually missed my mom. That felt weird because Mom had never really paid much attention to me. I tried to get those thoughts out of my mind. I finally fell asleep around four o'clock in the morning.

I got up at seven so I could shower before I left. I visited all my favorite places because I knew I wouldn't be back here anytime soon. By the time I was done, it was time to get on the train. Soon I was on the train, staring out the window. I had a seat next to the window, so I spent the first several minutes watching the scenery. As I watched the fields go by, I thought of what I would do when I got to Oklahoma. The problem was that I didn't know where Dally was staying. I could probably go to the Curtis house and ask where he was. Another option I had was to go to the gas station where I knew Steve Randle and Soda Curtis worked. I guess Soda started working at the DX more after his parents died. Dally had written to me about that. Though Dally's all tough and everything, once in a while, he'd write notes to me. He didn't write long notes, though-maybe a third of a page. I pulled out the last few notes I'd received from my older brother. After I read through them, my eyes started to drift shut.

I woke up an hour later, sore from leaning against the window. My stomach growled, and I realized I hadn't eaten in probably two days. The problem was that I was too nervous about arriving in Tulsa to eat anything. I was worried the guys wouldn't accept me. After all, I hadn't been there for probably over two years. I pushed my fears to the back of my mind and opened a book I'd brought along. Several hours later, the train was nearing Tulsa. I pulled out my mirror to make sure I looked all right. I gasped as I saw my reflection. I had circles under my eyes, and I looked younger than my almost-sixteen years. A voice interrupted my inspection of myself. "Next stop, Tulsa, Oklahoma." I shoved my mirror back into my bag and prepared to see my brother. After I got off the train, I headed for Buck Merrill's place, where Dally often hung out.