Saving Sailor: A Novel by Riva Renee

Author:Riva, Renee [Riva, Renee]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Forgiveness, Summer Vacation, 10-Year-Old, tragedy, Dog
Publisher: David C. Cook
Published: 2010-01-01T06:00:00+00:00

12

Betrayal

It feels so good to sleep in my own bed again. The only thing that feels different is the weather. It seems to have dropped about thirty degrees overnight. It’s so cold, not even Sailor wants to get up this morning. I have to push him off my blankets so I can climb out of bed. Hard to believe this is August. I half expect to look outside and see a freak snowstorm.

The weather isn’t the only thing that seems weird. Danny didn’t show up to go fishin’ with J. R. this mornin’. He knew we were comin’ home last night. I would think he would’ve been here first thing this mornin’, but when I got up for breakfast, J. R. was still sittin’ here waitin’ for him. The fish will be all done with breakfast by now. That grabs my curiosity enough to take Sailor and head to the other side of the island to find out what’s up.

When we reach Mr. Mueller’s property, I stand outside the cabins watchin’ for some kind of action, but no one is stirring. Even the little kids who are usually wild and noisy aren’t makin’ a peep. I’m thinkin’ maybe they’ve all gone to shore, but the boat’s still at the dock. Where is everybody? This feels too eerie, like something out of the Twilight Zone: Family Disappears without a Trace.

I can’t just stand around all day waitin’ for somethin’ to happen, so I start back toward home.

When I reach the trailhead to the beach, I see someone standin’ at the water’s edge lookin’ out at the lake. As soon as Sailor runs off wagging his tail, I realize it’s Danny. I follow Sailor, hoping we aren’t intruding.

“Danny?” I say, in a quiet voice.

He turns and looks at me. His face looks sad, like I’ve never seen it before, and his eyes have a world of hurt in them.

“Danny,” I whisper, “what’s wrong?”

Sailor licks Danny’s hand, and he lays it gently on Sailor’s head. “It’s … my dad,” he answers.

“Something’s wrong with your dad?”

“Oh, something’s wrong with him all right, but it’s not what you would think.” He takes a deep breath. “My mama got a call this mornin’ from her friend who lives next door to us in Oklahoma. She told my mama that some other lady’s car has been in our driveway every night since we left.”

I have to think this through for a minute. “Are you sayin’ that your daddy has been havin’ a sleepover with another lady?”

“That’s what I’m sayin’.”

I can’t imagine someone with a wife as pretty as Danny’s mama havin’ a girlfriend.

“Are you sure it isn’t just a friend stayin’ to keep your daddy comp’ny?”

“No, A. J., this woman’s been trouble before, but my daddy swore …”

Danny turns his head away. He picks up a rock and throws it as hard as he can into the water.

I don’t know what to say. I try and think of how I would feel if my daddy ever had a sleepover like that with someone besides my mama.

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