“He wore me down. Not in a bad way. I think we were meant to be together.”
“Were you happy?”
“Most times. I think our baggage from our freaky days got in the way a few times. Plus, I kept changing. It must have been hard not knowing who I was when I came home.”
“Mia, I’m tired.”
“Close your eyes.”
“Don’t leave,” Cid said as his eyes shut.
Mia looked down at the sleeping dormouse. His face was streaked from the tears he continued to shed even in his sleep. A maternal feeling came over her. She missed her boys. She tried not to think that she may not see them again and, instead, focused on the Garrett’s little boy. His intelligence would always make him seem older, but his insecurities kept him immature for his age. Maybe this was why the adult Cid moved so slowly when he was in a relationship and why he clung to his friendship with Ted like a life raft. She continued to lightly stroke his face, feeling the ache of his loneliness.
Mia yawned. She was going to spend the night on the family room couch. Cid had left her a pillow and some blankets for her to use. Mia didn’t want to wake Cid, but she was exhausted. She lifted his head off her lap and slid a pillow under it. Mia carefully moved off the bed. Cid still slept. Next, she pulled the covers out from under Cid carefully, to not wake him. She had started to cover him up when he whimpered in his sleep. Mia slid in beside him and pulled up the covers over both of them. It didn’t take long for sleep to find her.
Cid smiled in his sleep. For the first time in a very long time, he felt safe.
Murphy walked in to see the young people sleeping together. He knew there hadn’t been any hanky-panky. However, he was rather concerned when he found Mia’s pajamas abandoned in the bathroom. He moved to the bed and gently lifted the covers and sighed. Mia had on a big T-shirt and looked comfortable. He took the pajamas away and shut the door, leaving it open a crack. He decided that he’d spend the evening watching television and guarding the kids.
~
Mia woke in the early hours. She looked over and saw Cid sleeping there. His face looked so peaceful. She slipped out of bed and quietly walked into the family room where she had left her pack. Murphy turned around from watching a morning show. “The weather is going to warm up today, no clouds.”
“Is anyone else here?” she whispered.
“No. Cid’s sister never came home.”
“I’m going to go shower and get dressed. We’re going to have to find our way to the bus station.”
Murphy nodded.
Mia pulled out her jeans and decided that she’d use the top half of the Catholic school girl’s uniform. She brushed the wrinkles out of the blouse while she thought about all they had accomplished so far and how far they had yet to go. The Duprees were a formidable twosome, and Burt was a very stubborn man. She could only image what a pain in the ass he could be as a teen. “Please, don’t make me find out,” she said.
Murphy looked over at Mia. She wasn’t speaking to him. Mia talked to herself a lot. He’d been around for plenty of one-sided conversations. He watched her gather up her clothes and head for the bathroom Cid’s sister used. There she could find lots of lady things to use. He remembered Chastity’s lady things, jars of this and that, curling wires and ribbons.
Cid woke up and rolled over. He smelled Mia’s fragrance on his pillow. He blushed in embarrassment when he remembered bawling like a baby. She had been so kind to him. He looked at the clock, and it was still early. He didn’t have to get up for school for another hour. He lay back and thought about all the wonderful things Mia spoke about that he would experience in the future.
But what about Mia’s future? If she didn’t accomplish her quest to find the wisher and break the candle, her future would be drastically altered. She may not even marry Ted. She had confided in Cid that she wasn’t the only one in love with Ted when they got married. “The set of circumstances were that he wasn’t interested in the other woman. She didn’t take the rejection well. Mia said, “She actually sent an elemental dragon to the Dupree farm after Brian’s christening to kill us.”
“You fought a dragon for Ted?” Cid asked.
“For all of you. For myself too. I had help. Murphy stayed and protected the household while I led it away from the farm.”
“How?”
“Why don’t we let that one go for now,” Mia said and changed the subject.
Cid got out of bed. He had made up his mind. He picked up his walkie-talkie and opened a channel. “Ted, are you up, over?” He waited and repeated, “Ted, wake up, over?”
“Waking up, over.”
“I think we need to help them, over.”
“I agree, over.”
“We could get grounded for life for what I have planned, over.”
“I haven’t been grounded for life yet. I consider it my rite of passage, over.”
“Come over, packed for the weekend, asap, over.”
“Over and out.”
~
Mia stared at the light blue Saab 900 convertible in the Garretts’ garage and back at Cid. “You have to be kidding. This is your mother’s baby. You told me she saved for it for years. Can you drive?”
“No, but I read a book about driving.”
“I can drive, but physically, I’m not sure a passing cop is going to believe I’m old enough to drive,” Mia said. “I can’t
