She scanned the crowds of people looking for a familiar face. At least, as
familiar as you could call knowing someone from photographs for the past
nine years. She saw people hugging each other; some were crying, others
laughing. Everyone looked happy. She was probably the only one in the
entire airport who was not looking forward to finding the people picking
her up. As it turned out, she was the findee, not the finder.
"Riley? Riley Drake? Is that you?"
She turned on her heel to face the person whose cheerful voice was calling to her. She smiled slightly, recognizing the girl from the pictures. "Yea. Lizzie, right?"
The other girl nodded, her blonde hair bouncing in its ponytail and her hazel eyes shining. She smiled, and came forward to give Riley a quick hug. "Oh my gosh! We haven't seen each other in, like, five years!"
Riley quickly stepped backwards out of Lizzie's embrace, warranting a small frown from the girl. "Nine, actually. I was six and you were five last time your family was up in Massachusetts." Riley looked around behind Lizzie. "Now I know that I have an aunt and an uncle and another cousin running around this place. Where are they?"
Lizzie growled, "Well, Matt, being the weasel he is, decided it would be fun to run off right when your plane landed. So my mom and dad are around somewhere looking for him and I was left here to find you. Mom said that once I got you we should go down to baggage claim and she'd meet us there."
Riley nodded and picked up her backpack from where she had dropped it on the floor earlier. She walked alongside Lizzie, smiling and nodding her head as Lizzie chattered away about everything she could think of. She was not really paying attention, as her mind was wandering back to how she ended up in California with her new family.
~~~
Riley laughed as her father joked about his secretary from work as he drove through Hyannis. Her mother reached over and grasped his hand in hers. "Don't worry Sean. I'm sure she'll get better with time."
Sean rolled his eyes and laughed again, "Somehow I doubt that, Rebecca. She is a very stupid woman. I don't even know why I hired her."
Rebecca laughed and patted her husband's arm. She looked out the window at all the cars driving through the small Cape Cod town. "I hate summers on the Cape. So many people."
Riley smiled at her mother's comments and murmured her agreement. She, too, was staring out the window at the surrounding cars. There was a sudden large gap in the vehicles in the opposite lane that was being quickly closed down by a large black pickup truck with a boat on the attached trailer. iThat truck is going way too fast on this road/i, Riley thought to herself. Just when the truck was about one hundred yards from Sean's small Mazda, it skidded on the remnants of the previous night's thunder storm and swerved out of control. Riley had just enough time to scream before the truck slammed into their small car, throwing it off the road, and crushing it underneath the weight of the large boat and trailer. Her world went black.
~~~
"Riley? Hey Riley?" Lizzie waved her hand in front of the other girls' face. "Which bags are yours?"
Riley jerked back into the present just in time to see her three suitcases slide past them on the conveyor belt. "Those three. The green ones." She pointed them out, but they had already swung back around the track. Lizzie and Riley waited for them to come back around and managed to grab two of the three heavy cases. A long arm reached out and pulled the third one from the track, setting it easily down on the floor of the baggage claim area. Riley spun quickly to see who had helped her with her luggage, only to find herself looking at a very familiar, goofy grin. She had memorized that grin from the Christmas card in her backpack. It looked so much like her father's smile. "Hey Matt. Thanks for the help."
Matt smiled at her, "Not a problem. Anything for a cousin I haven't seen since I was three." He stepped forward to give her a hug, only for her to recoil much like she had at Lizzie's attempt for a hug. He smiled uncertainly and picked up the suitcase he had lifted off the conveyor belt. "C'mon. Mom and Dad are waiting outside in the car."
Riley and Lizzie each grabbed a suitcase and Riley shouldered her backpack once again. She took a deep breath and followed her two younger cousins through the California airport.
**A/N: Next chapter: Riley meets up with Jo and Sam and moves into her new home. We also learn more about how she ended up in California with the McGuires.**
"Riley? Riley Drake? Is that you?"
She turned on her heel to face the person whose cheerful voice was calling to her. She smiled slightly, recognizing the girl from the pictures. "Yea. Lizzie, right?"
The other girl nodded, her blonde hair bouncing in its ponytail and her hazel eyes shining. She smiled, and came forward to give Riley a quick hug. "Oh my gosh! We haven't seen each other in, like, five years!"
Riley quickly stepped backwards out of Lizzie's embrace, warranting a small frown from the girl. "Nine, actually. I was six and you were five last time your family was up in Massachusetts." Riley looked around behind Lizzie. "Now I know that I have an aunt and an uncle and another cousin running around this place. Where are they?"
Lizzie growled, "Well, Matt, being the weasel he is, decided it would be fun to run off right when your plane landed. So my mom and dad are around somewhere looking for him and I was left here to find you. Mom said that once I got you we should go down to baggage claim and she'd meet us there."
Riley nodded and picked up her backpack from where she had dropped it on the floor earlier. She walked alongside Lizzie, smiling and nodding her head as Lizzie chattered away about everything she could think of. She was not really paying attention, as her mind was wandering back to how she ended up in California with her new family.
~~~
Riley laughed as her father joked about his secretary from work as he drove through Hyannis. Her mother reached over and grasped his hand in hers. "Don't worry Sean. I'm sure she'll get better with time."
Sean rolled his eyes and laughed again, "Somehow I doubt that, Rebecca. She is a very stupid woman. I don't even know why I hired her."
Rebecca laughed and patted her husband's arm. She looked out the window at all the cars driving through the small Cape Cod town. "I hate summers on the Cape. So many people."
Riley smiled at her mother's comments and murmured her agreement. She, too, was staring out the window at the surrounding cars. There was a sudden large gap in the vehicles in the opposite lane that was being quickly closed down by a large black pickup truck with a boat on the attached trailer. iThat truck is going way too fast on this road/i, Riley thought to herself. Just when the truck was about one hundred yards from Sean's small Mazda, it skidded on the remnants of the previous night's thunder storm and swerved out of control. Riley had just enough time to scream before the truck slammed into their small car, throwing it off the road, and crushing it underneath the weight of the large boat and trailer. Her world went black.
~~~
"Riley? Hey Riley?" Lizzie waved her hand in front of the other girls' face. "Which bags are yours?"
Riley jerked back into the present just in time to see her three suitcases slide past them on the conveyor belt. "Those three. The green ones." She pointed them out, but they had already swung back around the track. Lizzie and Riley waited for them to come back around and managed to grab two of the three heavy cases. A long arm reached out and pulled the third one from the track, setting it easily down on the floor of the baggage claim area. Riley spun quickly to see who had helped her with her luggage, only to find herself looking at a very familiar, goofy grin. She had memorized that grin from the Christmas card in her backpack. It looked so much like her father's smile. "Hey Matt. Thanks for the help."
Matt smiled at her, "Not a problem. Anything for a cousin I haven't seen since I was three." He stepped forward to give her a hug, only for her to recoil much like she had at Lizzie's attempt for a hug. He smiled uncertainly and picked up the suitcase he had lifted off the conveyor belt. "C'mon. Mom and Dad are waiting outside in the car."
Riley and Lizzie each grabbed a suitcase and Riley shouldered her backpack once again. She took a deep breath and followed her two younger cousins through the California airport.
**A/N: Next chapter: Riley meets up with Jo and Sam and moves into her new home. We also learn more about how she ended up in California with the McGuires.**