Page 111 of Finish Line

I slam open the front door. “Mom! Dad!”

Mom comes out of the kitchen. “Luke, what’s wrong? Why are you screaming?”

I jog over to her, barely able to contain the good news. “Where’s Dad?”

“He’s not home yet. Is Shelby all right?” She pats her chest with her hand.

“She’s fine.” I grab her by the shoulders. “Mom, we found Lea.”

She gasps. “Where?”

“Danville, Virginia,” I say.

“Oh.” Tears fill her eyes, then spill down her cheeks. “She’s so close.”

I hug her. “I’ll bring her home, I promise.”

Dad walks in through the back door and sees me holding Mom. “Oh dear, what’s happened now?”

Mom wipes the tears from her face and turns to look at Dad. “They found her, Henry. They found our Lea.”

Dad gasps and stares at me like he needs confirmation that he heard her right.

I nod. “Nick found her. She’s in Danville, Virginia. I’m leaving right after school to bring her home.”

Both crying now, Dad pulls Mom into a hug and opens his arms for me to step in.

I remember watching the clock at school, wishing it would go faster, but nothing about my classes.

When three o’clock arrives, I run out to the parking lot. Shelby waits by my car.

“Isn’t everyone coming?” I grow impatient.

“No. We thought you and Shelby going alone would be better, but if you want us to come with you, we will,” Cam says.

“No, you’re right. Everyone showing up might be too much for her.” I scratch my head as the rest of the guys exit the school and jog over to us.

Nick hands me a piece of paper. “Here is her address, so you can put it in your GPS.”

“Thanks. Ready to go, angel?” I look at Shelby.

“Yeah,” she says a quick goodbye to everyone, Dom growling at her to be safe before he glares at me.

She hops into the car, and I maneuver out of the parking lot. The farther we drive, the darker the clouds become.

I lean forward, glancing at the sky, hoping the rain will hold off. “How did your test go today? How many people were also taking it?”

“About fifteen people.” She shrugs. “It wasn’t as hard as I expected. Today, I had language arts and science. Science isn’t my thing, but I think I did enough to pass. I have two more tests tomorrow, math and social studies. Tonight, I plan on studying some more.”

“You’ll do well.” I squeeze her shoulder. “Nothing to worry about.”

“How are you?” Shelby runs her hand up and down my leg.

“What has she been doing for the last four years? Is she stealing shit for drugs, or did she turn her life around?” I ask.

“So, what are you going to do? You keep saying you’ll bring her home, but what if she doesn’t want to go?”

I scowl, not sure why she keeps asking these questions. Then, it clicks.

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