The Black Cadillac Read Online Free

hair color did the man have?
    These answers came flowing onto the page. Soon, the whole page was filled with thoughts and answers to every question he could conjure. He had turned his sketch pad into one big page of notes about the car and the man. Cody didn’t realize it, but almost two hours went by as he was thinking and writing.
    Finishing one last thought, he heard the squeak of the front door opening. His mom was home, and a sudden sense of security overtook him. He dropped his pencil on the sketch pad and marched downstairs.
    It was a little past six thirty in the evening, and his mother looked exhausted more than usual. Olive rushed up to her and hugged her.
    “I missed you, Mommy!” the little girl said.
    “I missed both of you!” Georgiana said back.
    Seeing how tired his mom looked, Cody offered to help make dinner. It was rare that Cody offered to help her out, but he could see that his mother was wiped out.
    “I’ll help make Olive and I some fish sticks. I’ll make you a nice salad if you want, Mama?” he said.
    “Oh, sweetie, that’s very thoughtful of you, but I’m just going to make a pot of tea, relax, and put my feet up,” his mother explained.
    “No problem, Mom. I’ll start the hot water for you,” said Cody.
    His mother reached in the jar on the kitchen counter for a tea bag and took a mug out of the cupboard. She set both down and headed upstairs to her bedroom. She looked completely beat, and it was easy to tell that she had a long day at work. Her company really made her work and relied on her for all the bookkeeping. Cody filled the teakettle with water and turned on the stove.
    Cody took the box of fish sticks out of the freezer and set them on the counter.
    “I’ll get our dinner, Olive, you grab a couple of plates for us,” Cody exclaimed.
    “Okay,” Olive replied.
    When their mother came down from changing out of her work clothes, Cody and Olive were just starting their dinner. The cup of tea Cody had made for his mom was still steaming.
    “How were both of your days?” she asked.
    “Good,” both of her children simultaneously said, even though Cody was lying through his teeth.
    The boy thought about telling his mom about what happened to him that morning, but he couldn’t do it. He also didn’t want his sister to know.
    “You know it’s bath night, Olive,” she said.
    Cody looked at his mom’s exhausted face. There were bags and lines under her eyes. Before Olive could reply, Cody quickly blurted out, “Mom, I’ll help take care of Olive tonight. You can go to bed early and get some rest.”
    Surprised, she said, “Wow, Cody, has something taken over you? I will take you up on that, thank you.”
    After dinner, they all cleaned up and headed upstairs.
    Cody ran back down and made sure the front door was dead bolted, like he had always done. He had started doing this a few years ago. One time, a drunken man had actually come into their home. He was so drunk, he forgot where he lived and ended up in their home on the living room floor completely passed out. Cody’s mother had found him and called the police. Though it was unintentional, it was very scary for all three of them. Every once in a while, Cody would have a dream about the night that it happened.
    While his mom went into her room, Cody went to the bathroom to start the water for Olive’s bath. He added bubble bath to the lukewarm water. Olive went into her mother’s room to say good-night. She was lying on her bed with a novel in her hand. Their mother loved reading books.
    “Good night, Mommy! I love you!” said Olive.
    “Good night, sweetheart! I love you too, bug! Tell your brother good-night and I love him too,” she said, putting down her book.
    “I will, Mommy,” said Olive.
    Cody called his sister, “Olive, your bathwater is ready!”
    Olive jetted into the bathroom, threw off her pajamas, and jumped into the tub. Cody turned away as a huge splash full of bubbles scattered across the