Law and Order

Chapter 14

Nat set up the final booth and looked around the park. The trees were vivid green and the sweet sounds of birds chirping filled the air. The sun was at an all time high, but not blistering hot, just enough to give the two women a light sheen of sweat. There were about 15 other volunteers that had been working the past two hours setting up for the tech drive. The event was located across the street from Nat's foundation which made it easy for everyone to find.

"Is that everything?" Maria asked.

"Yea, we're good.  People should be arriving soon, so we're right on time." Nat said with a smile.

"Ok, I'm going to check on the food, so the volunteers can eat now before it gets too hectic."

Maria walked off leaving Nat to tend to the phone call that had just came in. A smile danced across her face as she saw Steve's face pop up.

"Hey stranger." She said answering the phone, mindlessly walking.

"Hey Nat. How's everything?" Steve asked knowing she had been busy working hard these last couple days.

"Things are great. We set everything up and the volunteers are eating now. I'm going to do a few things. People should be arriving in about 20 minutes."

"Ok. Sounds good. Sam and I are gonna get there in about an hour, so I'll see you. I just wanted to call and check on you." Nat's heart warmed at the gesture. He really was out of this world.

"Thank you. Can't wait to see you...and Sam." She quickly added, which didn't go unnoticed by Steve. He chuckled and agreed with her. "Neither can we."

"Alright, bye." She said sweetly.

"Bye."

Nat hung up and looked around to make sure everything was in place. There were a few pieces of garbage laying around. Moving the garbage bag over, she walked around picking up the few pieces. The park authority had been gracious about letting her use the park and she wanted to make sure they didn't regret it later on. They had garbage cans by almost every station there. They had a concession stand, with burgers, hotdogs, funnel cake and fries, a dunk tank, apple bobbing, mostly for the adults, Balloon pop, Face painting, Soda toss and more. She was proud of her team and what they could pull off. By the time Nat fixed a few more things, the fundraiser was in full swing. Kids and parents poured in. Some carrying bags of wires, old phones and computers. The DJ was playing Billie Ellish "Therefore I am" and mixing newer and older songs in. It was a hit. Nat went to the main check point to see if any of the girls needed help with the check in. It was 10 dollars for admission per person, unless the child was 3 and under. That included all the games, but food was separate.

"You guys alright here?" She asked the college students. They had volunteered for community service hours for their university nearby.

"Yes, we're good. I think we have enough bands." The younger blonde one spoke.

"Ok, call me if you need anymore bands or change. I'll run over and get some."

The girls nodded and Nat continued to make her rounds.

"MS. NATASHA." She heard a high pitch voice scream. Nat turned around to see the small, brown eyed girl running to her.

"SOPHIEE." She screamed back matching her energy. "How are you pumpkin?" Sophie was her former mentee, who had left two months ago because she no longer needed her. It was a bittersweet moment, but she was glad she could help the young child get better.

"Good." The girl smiled showing her missing front tooth.

"I see you lost your tooth."

"Yea I put it under my pillow for the tooth fairy." She said as if she knew without a doubt, it was the right thing to do.