Retribution Read Online Free

to her fingertips. She gasped as horror filled her. Her fingers, they were charred and black. Just like Craig. Just like Susan. Gasping, she threw the candy and it stuck to the passenger window, looking like an appendage severed from its burnt body. Gagging, she bolted from the car.
    Hanging over the bathroom sink, the terror faded into the vortex of the swirling water. What in the world had happened? She had never reacted like that before. Suddenly she felt as heavy as the boulder sitting outside the door, as though gravity itself tugged at her, trying to pull her into the bowels of the earth. Could her dad be right? Fingers of doubt tickled along the edges of her mind. Maybe leaving home wasn’t the answer. She stood and patted cool water on her face as red-rimmed eyes stared back at her from the mirror. The room spun and she grabbed the sink. In a blur, she heard a voice.
    “Can I help you? Are you sick?”
    She slumped forward and felt hands grab her before she lost consciousness.
    ~*~
    “Try to breathe slowly. I’m a registered nurse.”
    Lillian felt a hand at her wrist. Coldness seeped through the back of her jeans and shirt, but she lacked the energy to do anything about it. She opened her eyes and a middle-aged woman smiled; soft wrinkles formed around her mouth.
    “Who’s with you? I can get them.”
    Lillian felt numb. Where was she? The ceiling was made of exposed wood. The skylights were dirty. She would have to clean them. Someone had spray painted “Missy loves David.” The rest area. That’s why the skylight hadn’t been cleaned. Who cared in a rest area? She tried to focus on the face peering over her.
    “What car are you driving? I can get your companion.”
    “I’m alone.” She licked her dry lips, the words tasting bitter, as she struggled to sit up.
    “Do you need me to call an ambulance?”
    Her head spun and she placed a hand on the floor. “I’ll be all right. I think I drove too long without a break.”
    “Did you have lunch?”
    “A salad.”
    “Maybe your blood sugar dropped. Let me get you a candy bar.”
    “No, please…” She shifted to her knees and then stood. The room swayed, but soon steadied. “I feel better.” She forced a smile.
    The woman continued to stare at her with concern. “Let me help you to your car, at least.”
    “I think I’ll get a can of pop and sit outside on the bench for awhile. Really, I’m fine.”
    The woman took her arm. “Do you want to get your soda before you sit down?”
    Parked cars lined the lower sidewalk, hers among them. Her heart lurched as she saw a man opening her car door. No, she had parked further down, but in her fright, she had not locked her car. How long had she been gone? Most likely, someone had helped himself to her purse by now. “I…uh…”
    “What kind of pop do you like?”
    “Anything. I don’t really care, but you don’t have to do this. I have money…”
    “And it’s in the car. I can see it on your face. Not a problem.”
    After purchasing a can of lemon-lime soda, the two women settled on a bench. Lillian lifted her face to the sun, the warmth penetrating her skin and giving renewed energy.
    A middle-aged couple passed, holding hands and smiling as though life were the best.
    An ache crept into her heart. It should have been like that for her.
    The air smelled clean in spite of the traffic in the parking area. A large lady, her flowered caftan fluttering around her, tugged on the leash of a small white dog, trying to pull him up the sidewalk. The dog won, and the lady retreated down the sidewalk.
    After a few sips of pop, Lillian’s stomach relaxed and strength flowed back into her muscles. Even so, she felt reluctant to leave the relative security of her spot on the bench.
    “So tell me about yourself,” the woman said.
    How could she summarize her life to include all the good, all the drama, all the unknown? Since childhood, she had been told not to talk to strangers. As an attorney, she had