I slept in the apartment above the store. It was going to be my new home while I took the reins. It was the best place to be. It was a furnished two bedrooms, full bath, med-size kitchen, with a full living area that overlooked Main Street.
Cherise never rented the place out. I couldn’t make her do it. She claimed the business didn’t need the money and being a landlord was too much of a hassle. My parent’s Dutch Colonial-style house was paid off. It was so convenient. The upstairs apartment was vacant just for me. I can stay upstairs alone and still get some work done. There was no way I could stay at my parent’s house with my brother there. I would kill him for sure. We were like oil and water ever since he turned into a teenager. Now that he was thirty-five nothing had changed at all.
Being here wasn’t ideal. I knew I was going to miss my kids. Kennedy decided she’s not coming home for the summer. I guess being twenty-one means you can do whatever you like. She decided to work through summer and just stay at her apartment near the University of Chicago. She hardly came home anymore. We used to be so close and now she was out living her young adult life.
There was no way I would subject my son Aaron to an entire summer in Galena. His sixteen-year-old brain would be bored to death. There weren’t enough video games in the world to keep him entertained in this small town. The point seven percent population of Black people would irritate him. I know this because every time we visited together he made a point of mentioning that the lack of brothers and sisters in this town. Hopefully, my ex-husband, Erik will take good care of our son while he stays with him for the summer. He’d better take care of my baby.
Bright Monday morning I got up, showered and dressed. I played some old Motown hits on my cell phone and started vigorous cleaning. My sister was clean but not as clean as me. I was a proud neat freak.
The first thing I cleaned was the upstairs apartment. That happened early in the morning. Around nine I ventured downstairs to clean the shop. The shelves were first on my list. I found an old ladder in the basement and I almost broke my neck lugging it up the steep stairs. I needed help whipping this place into shape. There was a lot of traffic in the summer months. Galena had at least a million tourists traipse through town yearly. People loved the old rustic nostalgic feel of the place. This town made sure they kept the influx of technology to a minimum. The fresh country air was void of pollution. Maybe being here would be a good thing for me.
When it was getting close to 10 AM I unlocked the front doors of the store. I climbed back on the ladder and started scrubbing the top shelves behind the cash register. I probably wouldn't get a customer this early. I didn't know how the flow of customers was early on a Monday morning.
Chapter 1
JASON
Galena, this town was Deadsville USA. The name sucked. The clean air sucked. The situation sucked. Why was even here? I knew why, but I didn’t want to face it. Running away from my emotions had been a welcome milestone in my life. I was in a small town somewhere alone, and incredibly lonely. I was here just trudging around in a huge house with my willing caretakers.
I was counting down the days before I could escape. It had only been a week and I had a lot of days to go. The first thing they did was piss test me. Did they really believe I would show up with drugs on my body, in my system, well recent drugs in my system? I was currently in a drug-free status. I got a lecture from my manager before I arrived. I had to shape up. There was no ship out. Shaping up was the only option. He told me my actions were childish and pathetic. He was right of course but I had been just considered a child a few years ago. Society really pushes you to grow up to fast. Being reckless and childish seemed like such fun. Fun I aspired to from time to time.
My manager ambushed me with his tough-love technique. That was all new to me. I had never been seriously confronted about my bullshit. My crew did a total intervention on me. It was like I was in a dramatic family movie. There were accusations, tears, yelling, and hugs. Any normal bloke would’ve complained. I’m not a normal anything but I had to get a grip on reality and conform. Now I was here in Deadlena Illinois, a place where the streets were lined with green grass and gigantic trees. This place was a literal fairytale. I saw an actual horse and carriage and there’s even a lazy river. Maybe I should make the most of it.
I talked about my feelings with Dr. David Glass for an hour after breakfast every day. I had no real contact with the outside world. I only had my warden and therapist David, and his wife Fiona. I needed a break from my custodian and my nurse. I decided I would flee the prison. I climbed on my bike. Not really my bike but a bike I claimed as soon as I arrived at the cuckoos nest.
I had a lot of free time to be with my thoughts, feelings and all that sullen bullshit. I hopped on my bike and rode down the dusty road to nowhere in particular. I let the world take me wherever it wanted. The bike's wheels took me
