OH MY GOSH I AM SO SORRY :(
School is winding down, and the work load is simply piling up! Still, I am not excusing my absence, simply apologizing. This chapter is pretty short, but I decided something was better than nothing. I'm going to try to put up another chapter tomorrow to compensate for that really long wait.
To those who inquired, I actually am both a dog lover and a cat lover. I find that cats and dogs have different strengths, which I appreciate. My dog and my cat both have a special place in my heart, for different reasons :) My dog is my best friend and my cat is kind of like a sister if that makes any sense :D
You all are so awesome! Thanks to all readers! A special shout out to my reviewers, Max2013, Smithy, VerityD, NF, Guest, Future Animator, bhar, Cupcake, Guest, and Wolfgirl1221! Thanks for your patience! (and welcome back Wolfgirl, I was about to put out a missing reviewer alert)
Disclaimer: I still do not own Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, and never did.
"Are you almost done?" Penny leaned against the shopping cart, nervously keeping an eye on the people walking by, her cast positioned in a sling.
"Getting there. Could you find Ben for me? He's in the candy aisle, I think. You can pick something out if you want," Helen suggested, examining a box of pasta.
"I'll stay here," Penny bit her lip.
"Why don't you pick out a cat toy for Skittles then?"
"They have those here?" Penny's eyes lit up.
"Sure. I'll show you where they are," Helen smiled.
"She's going to love it," Penny grinned, following Helen. "Isn't she the bestest cat ever?"
"She is pretty amazing. But we still need to check if she has owners," Helen reminded her.
"Uh huh. Whoa! I wonder which one she'll like best," Penny's eyes widened at the selection of pet toys.
"I'm going to be in the other aisle, okay?"
"Okay."
Helen headed back to her shopping cart when suddenly someone blocked her path.
"Hey Helen."
Helen's chest constricted as she gazed at her ex husband. He was supposed to be in jail. What was he doing here?
"You should be in jail."
"It's called parole, sweetie," Charley chuckled. His shaggy light brown hair looked like it could use a haircut.
Helen was still struggling to process what was going on. They should have contacted me. But then again, would they have? Technically, the abuse accusation had never been proved, and put to the side since it was clear Charley would end up in jail for involvement in the illegal drug ring. And now that they were divorced, she didn't really have a right to any of his information or a way to see it.
How could he be on parole after only a couple months?
"Stay away from me, we're over. The divorce is official." Helen turned, but Charley grabbed her arm.
"Hold on babe. I want to talk to you," he said, his dark eyes fixed on her face.
"Don't touch me," Helen warned, panic beginning to rise. She attempted to yank her arm out of his grip, but he had an iron grip.
Penny searched for Helen, a fuzzy feather toy clutched in her hand. She stopped dead when she spotted Helen.
A large man was holding onto her arm, and they seemed to be arguing.
Fear rose in Penny's chest, and her breathing hitched. That man was no good. She needed to do something!
But what could she do? She wasn't strong enough to help Helen.
Penny choked back a sob. Then she clenched her hands into fists and went to find Ben.
"Let go of her or I'm calling the cops."
Helen twirled to see Ben standing a little ways away from then, his cell phone held out meaningfully. His green eyes were hard as steel.
"Easy bud, we're old friends…" Charley started, loosening his grip.
"Don't even try that. I'm her boyfriend," Ben said, his voice low. "Now let go of her, or I swear to God, I will call the police right now."
"Her boyfriend…" Helen could see Charley's eyes narrowing. "Okay, okay," Charley let go of Helen's arm, and she quickly moved beside Ben, who wrapped a strong arm around her. "I don't know why you want her though. She's worthless. I'm telling you, she's just an ugly useless whiner. If you knew the things she's done, you wouldn't even want to touch her."
"Shut up," Ben growled.
"I'm just saying, man. Take it from somebody who knows," Charley pushed his hands into his pocket and strolled off.
Ben didn't say anything, but started after Charley, his eyes burning with intense anger.
"Ben, don't," Helen grabbed his hand. Her voice seemed to get through to him, and he turned.
"Are you okay?" he asked, gently touching her cheek.
"I'm fine." But Helen felt her throat closing with emotion. Even though she knew Charley's words were lies, they still stung, bringing back her old insecurity. She turned from Ben to hide the tears that were threatening to spill.
Ben swore softly.
"Helen, are you hurt?" he turned her to face him, his face creased in concern.
"Nothing physical. It's fine. I was just startled," Helen attempted a smile.
"It's not fine. He had no right to say those lies about you. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if I wasn't here. What's he doing out of jail?"
"He said he was on parole." Helen took a deep breath. "Ben, really, I'm okay. Let's just find Penny and leave."
"You should find her, I'm sure she's hiding around here somewhere. I'm calling the court up as we get home. We'll see about that parole," Ben said grimly. He paused. "At least something good has come out of this."
"What?" Helen asked.
"Penny talked to me," Ben said quietly, a hopeful smile spreading across his face.
Again, thanks for your patience! So sorry for the long wait!
Please review! :) :D
