Canyon Road Read Online Free Page A

door, running head long into Michael's supervisor.
    "Oh, my! You've been working out, haven't you, Mr. Allerton?" Michael heard her say to his boss. He grinned at how guilelessly cute Millie was, and turned his attention back to his work.
     
     
     
     
    Chapter 4
    T ina roared her little black convertible VW up Sage's driveway.
    Sage happened to be standing at the window watching what appeared to be an exotic bug, black with long wild dark hair and a blood-red scarf flailing about in the wind, tearing up the winding ribbon of the drive.
    She grabbed a bottle-green scarf and ran downstairs, opening the front door just as Tina shut off the ignition.
    "Ready?" Tina shouted as if the engine were still running.
    "Sure, let's go!" Sage hopped in, tying her scarf and slipping on her sunglasses.
    "We look like Christmas coming!" Tina started up the engine again, pointing to their red and green scarves.
    Sage laughed. "Christmas in May! Why not?"
    They wound down through the Canyon Road, then took a back road among a frenzy of construction on all sides.
    "No more natural hills," Sage said sadly.
    "Yeah, I know what you mean. I know I'll miss looking up at the hills and the stars from my little apartment. That was the number one reason I moved into my place, the view of the hills. They call this progress."
    "That's what makes me really unhappy about losing Aunt Vicky's place, they'll do this to her acres, those lovely mountains. It's only fifteen minutes from here. You know they'll do it."
    "You haven't lost the place yet! Don't count little deformed chicks before they're hatched."
    You have such a way with words," Sage said as They pulled up at Rutabegorz , their favorite health-food-but-not-like-health-food restaurant.
    Inside, seated in a cool private booth, they hunkered down over the menu.
    "I'm really going to sin," Tina stage-whispered. I'm going to have a tofu peach shake."
    "You deserve it," Sage reassured her. "You've been good."
    "I know! I've lost five pounds in the last month."
    "From where?" Sage asked. "You don't have five pounds to lose."
    "I got a hair cut."
    "Don't say it," Sage shook her head. "Your hair is wonderful!"
    "This from the Hair Goddess."
    "I'm serious!"
    "Do you know what I'd give to have your hair?" Tina asked.
    "Nothing much I hope because I'm pretty attached to it... ha, ha!"
    "Funny."
    The waitress took their order and when she stepped away, there was a quiet, cozy lull between the two friends.
    Finally Tina said, "you forgot to pack luggage."
    "Huh?"
    "You went far away, but didn't pack any luggage."
    "Sorry," Sage turned her attention to Tina. "I did go pretty far away. But the good news is how quickly I can come back now."
    "Yes," Tina reached over and patted Sage's hand. "There was no love between your Aunt Victoria and me, but I never wish anyone any harm, and I'm really sorry that her tragedy causes you so much pain."
    Sage stared at her hands wrapped around the glass of water. "I've lost the last person in my life who is family. I feel... unmoored. There's my father's mother. I've met her twice, and don't know her at all. There's my mother's people at the reservation. Maybe that's where I'll go. But now I'm so betwixt and between. I know I can go there, but I don't know if I would stay there – b ecause of how I've changed. It wouldn't be the same. I'm not the same.
    "I haven't been to the reservation since I was fourteen when I ran away from Aunt Vicky. I remember it felt like I wasn't a part of the people like I had been only two short years before, when I was twelve. My coloring separates me from my people."
    "Don't think about it, Sage. I'm your friend, I'll be your family. We can get a place together, you can get a job – horrible thought that that is."
    "I don't mind," Sage protested, "I like the idea of being occupied. But I'm not qualified to do anything but be spoiled."
    "Well," Tina nodded over the plates of food being set in front of them, "we both know that's not true."
    "What,