Chapter 2:

Seeing What I Left Behind

Charlie

Seeing the streets I used to own again feels a little eerie, the streets I owned in 1939. How many dogs do you know that can say that? But the reason I'm back in New Orleans with Sasha is a very personal reason, I want to check on Anne Marie. I know she's probably about 100 now, but, I think she'll remember me and I'll be able to see her kids and grandkids. I asked David to look her up, and informing him where I was going; he said that she was still in New Orleans, adopted Anne Marie Sullivan, married Anne Marie Sullivan Valli and had only one son who had a daughter. I bolted out of the room excitedly to plan my trip out before he could say anything else. I decided to take Sasha with me because I didn't have Itchy to accompany me.

We hitched on semi-trucks after David and the others left for their month long trip to Germany and once in Louisiana, I was on edge. Sasha tried to calm me down when we entered the New Orleans city limits, "Charlie, you're going to give us away-just settle down."

"Alright, alright – you're right, I just need to relax."

When we got off, we began our search. It was near the junkyard where I used to live with Itchy in the 30's that I saw her…..she was wearing all black, a black hoodie, black pants and white-ish sneakers and was the spitting image of Anne Marie and I thought it was her. The ultimate test would be to talk to her and see if she responds, but before I could do that she got on the school bus and left. I decided to wait there until she came back, Sasha wanted to be my voice of reason, "How are you sure it's her?"

"I just know it."

Then she came skating in and I could not stop myself, "Anne Marie?"

She didn't hear me at first, because a car went by, so I called again, "Anne Marie!"

Her head whipped up, eyes widened and she ran away.

"No! Wait! Squeaker!"

"Charlie, it's not her!"

I didn't feel like arguing with her, but I ran after this girl that looked like the charming little girl that I once knew.

I chased her down an alleyway and she was trying to get away from me on skateboard so she was going faster.

"Wait! Stop! I just wanna talk to you!" I called after her.

"Charlie, will you just forget it?"

"No, I told Anne Marie that she'd see me again"

I saw her flip up her board and bend through a hole in the chain link fence and dart towards the center of the junkyard. New model cars and cars that I recognized from when I lived there scattered the yard. I went through the hole, Sasha followed and we went after her. We tracked her down to a grey van that stood on 4 cinder blocks; we hid behind a car nearby to observe. She slid the door open, crawled in and opened a book. She lives here? The thought disturbed me…how long was she living like this? Why is she living like this? Does anyone else know about this?

I approached and cleared my throat, she looked up and went to shut the door but I stopped her, "Wait, just hear me out okay?"

"What do you want from me? It's enough that I have to live with this…this…curse!"

"What is your name?" I asked, ignoring what she said.

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because if you're not Anne Marie Sullivan….who are you?"

She sat relaxed on the edge of the van and responded, "Pippa Susan Valli. Anne Marie Sullivan was my grandmother."

"Was? What do you mean by was?"

Then it struck me like a lightning bolt, No….she can't be…..

"She passed away 2 years ago," Pippa answered grimly.

Sasha came up to ask the obvious because I couldn't think with the thought of Anne Marie dead.

"Where are your parents?"

"They died two months after my grandmother."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay."

I finally got my thoughts together, "You're living like this and you're how old?"

"16."

"Why?"

"I refuse to go to a foster home."

"Again, why?"

"Because they don't want to adopt teenagers, they get paid to take me in by the government. And originally I was going to a family in Kentucky, but I didn't want to leave New Orleans. So, I took matters into my own hands and cut myself off; so far it's working."

It unsettled me that she was living like this.

"Now it's my turn, who are you and how do you know my grandmother?"

"She never mentioned me?"

She paused to think, then realized who I was…yes, Anne Marie mentioned me.