Burn District 1 Read Online Free Page A

me,’ she said.
    ‘Now you have to be good,’ she told me. ‘Jenna is staying with the Martin’s, but I want you to come with me.’ Later, she told me Jenna was old enough to leave if Mr. Martin started to drink, but since I was only six, she didn’t trust them with me. When we got to the hospital, she dressed me in the smallest scrubs they had, but they were still gigantic. I loved it! She put a hair cap and shoe covers on me. I felt like a real operating room nurse. I sat at the control desk all night while she worked; peeking out the door at me from time to time to make sure I was okay. I think it’s why I decided never to practice nursing.” We started laughing.
    “It was hard on your mother when I had to leave,” Steve said.
    “Well, that’s not why she got sick, Dad. You know that, right? I mean, don’t take on guilt because she was mentally ill.” I noticed traffic had slowed down, not a car in sight for a long while.
    “I didn’t see it coming.”
    “She did fine when you were gone. We never felt unsafe. I asked Jenna once and she said she had no idea there was a problem until Mom ran away.”
    “You know I had to tell Jenna, in case Stephanie showed up at her door.” My poor dad. My mother took off while he was deployed. Ned was a baby, so I couldn’t go. Poor Jenna was in the midst of a bitter divorce. My dad had to go to his commanding officer, the general and tell him his crazy wife ran away from home and he needed time off to look for her. It was a difficult time for him.
    “Dad, I’m really sorry.”
    He cracked a laugh. “If it was the worst thing I ever have to do I would’ve been the luckiest guy in the world. Look what you and Mike had to go through.” I honestly didn’t know what he was talking about and the realization hit me.
    “You mean Junior? Oh lord, Dad, he’s a treasure! I can’t imagine how dull my life would be without all my kids and Junior was a good one to have first. He is so happy! He just makes me want to smile.” Steve nodded his head.
    “I know. He makes me smile, too. But it’s still a worry.” I grabbed his hand.
    “Dad, don’t, okay? As soon as we’re settled, my goal is to find something for Junior to do. He needs some direction but not a dotting mother and father breathing down his back. Independent living would be the best thing for Junior, but that isn’t happening now.” If the nation’s situation didn’t resolve soon, my kids would have a very different life than we imagined for them. There wouldn’t be college or careers or group homes for Junior unless something drastic happened.
    Could we go on trying to have a normal life while our government was murdering people around us? I didn’t know. It wouldn’t be moral. Didn’t we have to find a way to fight? We avoided answering the question because it would make us responsible. What was the right thing to do?
    “It was so cold at home, we had to wear our winter coats and boots,” I said, hoping to change the subject.
    “You won’t need anything like that here. As a matter of fact, that reminds me; I got a solar panel. It’s just one, but it’ll be a place to start. If we really want to be off the grid, we need to do solar. The sun shines three hundred and fifty days a year.”
    “Well that’s a benefit, I think.” I didn’t reply if we stay here in Tulip. “Better go find out what the boys are up to and scrounge up something for lunch. Come with me, Dad. Kelly made fried chicken.”
    “Okay, I’m hungry now you mention it. So tell me about Kelly. How old is she?” I turned to look at him to see if he was pulling my leg.
    “You want to know how old Kelly is? Maybe having her sleep in your rig wasn’t the best idea.” It actually made me sick, the thought of my dad with Kelly.
    “I might be old but I’m not dead,” he said. “Okay if you don’t want to tell me. I’ll ask her myself.”
    “She’s over forty,” I answered quickly. “But a lady doesn’t divulge the