WHAT HURTS THE MOST
Chapter Nine
Sarah woke up the next morning.
She wasn’t sure at first where she was, but when she opened her eyes, she saw
Molly sleeping in the seat next to her.
She was sure she had slept late
after her breakdown last night. She felt like she was two years old again when
Molly had to ask her why she was crying. Then she proceeded to feel like a
one-year-old when Molly was holding her and Sarah was clinging to her.
She’s a good lady, Sarah thought. I owe her something.
Sarah rubbed her eyes and pulled
out the folder of Rose again. She still wasn’t sure how she was going to find
her mother. She thought of just asking people where Drew Lane was, but she
factored in the possibility that it wasn’t near the train station.
"Whatcha lookin’ at
there?" Molly asked.
Sarah closed the folder and put
it under her seat again. "Nothing." She brushed a strand of dark
brown hair out of her eyes. "Thank you for helping me last night, Mrs.
Brown. I’m very grateful for what you did."
Molly smiled sadly. "Not a
problem, little lady. How are you doin’ today?"
"Considering the
circumstances, I’m all right, I think," Sarah said. "I’m still sad,
of course, but I might be a little better than a couple of days ago."
Molly nodded. "What are you
goin’ to Boston for?"
"Oh…um…family. No one else
in Philadelphia. What are you going to Boston for?"
"Just a short trip away from
the family. Been stressin’ me out a little."
At least you have family, Sarah thought. Right now, I would give
anything to have family stressing me out.
Sarah looked out the window. The
cloudy skies above her threatened rain at any moment. She hoped she wasn’t
going to be wet the first time that she had seen her mother in fourteen and a
half years.
In the far distance, she could
see the buildings of Boston. Sarah’s heart started beating faster with
anticipation and nerves.
Molly must have seen her looking
sort of nervous, because she said, "Don’t worry, darlin’. Everything’ll be
all right."
Yes. Maybe everything will be
all right, Sarah thought.
*****
Sarah had her suitcase in one
hand and the folder containing her mother’s files in the other hand. She made
her way through the train station. Before her lay the bustling city of Boston.
On a Tuesday evening, everyone was just getting home from a long day at work.
It dawned on Sarah that maybe
this wasn’t the best time to see her mother. She was bound to be tired. She
thought that maybe she should have waited until the weekend. But she knew it
was now or never if she wanted to do this.
Sarah walked up to a man just
passing by the train station. "Excuse me, sir--" she said. But he
walked right past her.
She tried another man.
"Excuse me, but--"
Yet another one who ignored her.
She sighed and walked up to a
young woman with blonde hair pinned back and wearing a blue dress. "Excuse
me, miss, but you wouldn’t happen to know where Drew Lane is, would you?"
The woman’s light blue eyes met
Sarah’s gaze. "Drew Lane? In Boston?"
Sarah nodded. "627 Drew
Lane, to be exact."
"Oh, I know where that is.
Here. Let me walk you there. It’s not too far from here."
Sarah let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank you so much."
The woman guided Sarah through
the passing people. She looked at the new atmosphere now known as Boston.
"My name’s Sarah," she
said loudly enough so she could be heard over the engines of passing cars and
trains. "I’m here for family."
"Oh," the woman said.
"Just a visit?"
"Yes," Sarah lied.
"A quick one." But not painless, she thought.
On their walk to Rose’s house,
Sarah and the woman she met, who later identified herself as Amy, talked the
whole time. Amy told Sarah that she had been a girl of only five when she was
on the Titanic when it sank. She was rescued by a man who lied about being her
father only to save himself.
The two of them stopped in front
of a small white house with a picket fence and a clothesline in the front.
Sarah’s heart pounded as she realized that this was it. No turning back now.
"Thank you, Amy. It was
fascinating talking to you," Sarah said.
"Oh, not a problem. I hope
you have a good time with your family," Amy replied.
We’ll see about fun, Sarah thought. Instead, she said, "I
will. Thank you again."
She unlatched the white fence and
walked up the short walkway to the door. She climbed the stairs and took a deep
breath of rain-scented air. She could hear thunder rumbling above her.
Sarah knocked on the front door.
She felt she didn’t need to do that, since she was positive that Rose could
hear her heartbeat from the inside of the house.
A woman with fiery red hair and
porcelain skin answered the door, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. "Can I
help you?"
She felt the rain start to come
down on her. For one of the only times in her life, Sarah was speechless. All
she could do was stand on the front porch, getting wet with the April rain
shower. She was absolutely positive she looked ridiculous.
"Hello. My name's
Sarah," she said when she found her voice. "Can I talk to you?"