Page 28 of Charlie and Her Sweet Escape
I stopped and placed a hand on the wall. This story wasn’t going to end with Molly getting the most amazing treat in the world, if Rosie came all the way down here to tell me in person.
“Serene was crying in dance class today and said they have to put Molly down.”
“Why? What happened?”
Rosie’s jaw clenched. “She said Molly bit someone last week, and that person is insisting they put Molly down. He’s threatened to sue if they don’t.”
“Molly bit another per?—?”
Rosie shook her head.
“Greg?” I whispered.
“It’s happening at three.” She glanced at her phone again. “We have two hours.”
I moved one direction and then another, my brain too scattered to figure out what my next step needed to be. Call the vet’s office. No. Call Greg. No, forget calling. Rush over there and stop this from happening! Molly shouldn’t be put down for something Greg had caused. She’d been scared, and if he’d just listened to me, none of this would have happened.
Rosie grabbed my arms and made me look at her. “Charlie, we have time. Not a lot, but there’s time.”
I blinked, and she came into focus.
“Bennett’s parked out front in my truck. We’re going to stop this.”
I let her confidence seep into me. She was right. We could do this. I tried to channel the confidence I’d felt while I was lecturing. I straightened my back and pulled up Greg’s phone number. I could do this. I had to.
We decided to divide and conquer. Bennett headed toward the shelter to attempt to convince the family to change their mind. And Rosie and I drove to Greg’s work when he didn’t answer any of my panicked calls or texts.
Greg worked in a small office with only a handful of staff, all of whom I’d grown up with. On an island like this, it was rare not to know someone at least by sight. I hadn’t been over here, though, in about a year. Greg liked to keep his work and the rest of his life separate. I tried to imagine us having a little girl just like me following him around at work, sitting on his lap as he answered phone calls, pretending to quietly read her book inthe back corner while taking in how amazing her dad was and deciding to be just like him.
It was an image I’d never conjured before… and I was having a hard time now picturing it. Instead, I imagined Greg insisting he couldn’t concentrate with an extra person watching him. Which was fair. Not everyone could be like my dad. I was just understanding that a dream I’d never realized I had wasn’t going to come true.
Rosie stopped me before we entered the office and took slow, steady box breaths. When I found myself mirroring her, I realized I hadn’t breathed fully since she’d shown up at my lecture hall. I also hadn’t taken off my computer glasses, and water ran down the lenses in small rivulets, distorting my vision.
Why was I thinking about my glasses right now? Why was I still leaving them on? Something in my brain was misfiring.
Rosie frowned. “What are you going to say?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head to clear it. “I just can’t believe he’d do something like this.”
Rosie clamped her mouth shut, but her expressions could never lie.
“Just say it,” I pressed.
She cringed. “I know you always see the best in everyone, but this is totally on brand for Greg. And you always let him have what he wants.”
It was easier to allow Greg to have his way, and over time, I’d stopped fighting for anything I wanted. But Molly’s life? I would fight for this. Adrenaline raced through my veins, and I flung the door open. “I finally have something worth fighting about.”
“You’ve been worth fighting for this entire time,” Rosie said.
I paused. When had I stopped believing that was true?
The receptionist, Mrs. Berry, looked up from her computer with a surprised smile as we wiped our feet off on the mat. “It’s been a while, dear! Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials!”
“Thank you,” I said, trying to calm my racing heart enough to think straight.
“We are so excited. Even Rog and June are coming, and you know they hate leaving their homestead.” I usually asked her about her son and daughter-in-law who were living off the grid, but time was of the essence. She continued, “It’s good for them to get out every now and then?—”
“I need to speak to Greg. Now,” I said, cutting her off with an apologetic wince. “Is he available?”
