A Starling's Redemption

Confessions

When I finally woke up, it was a few minutes after ten. I walked into the kitchen, where Helen greeted me.

"Good morning, Amanda. Sleep well?" I yawned. I wasn't fully awake yet.

"What smells so good?" I asked.

"Breakfast. Sit down at the table, I'll get some for you. Would you like some cocoa?"

"Yes, please. What time did Joshua leave?"

Josh had set the alarm on his phone for 5:30 a.m. That way he could sneak in a shower, get dressed, and be on his way before anyone else woke up. He needed to arrive at work by seven, so he had wanted to leave by 6:30.

I stayed in all day. It was still foggy and raining outside, and still just above freezing. I had been wondering all day why Josh had stopped to help me, when I'd been downright nasty to him for as long as we'd known each other.

I asked Helen, "Joshua and I never really got along all that well. We've basically tried to avoid each other. So... why did he stop to help me yesterday?"

"I don't know. You'll need to ask him."

When Josh arrived home that evening, I was in the kitchen with his mother. Helen and I had been discussing food, and the fact that I was totally clueless in the kitchen.

As Josh walked in, he said, "Hello, you two. Hope I'm not interrupting."

Helen said, "Hi, Honey."

I just turned and looked at Josh.

He said, "Amanda, got a little surprise for ya." He held up my backpack. I walked over to take it from him, but he held it just out of reach.

"What's it worth to you?"

"Thank you," I said, and I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

That was good enough for him, and he gave me my backpack. I opened it, pulled out my purse, and removed my keys, and ID.

I asked, "How did you get it?"

"I called Ryndon. He told me he was going to throw it in the trash, and he just let me take it."

"Really?" I asked sarcastically. "Joshua, you and I both know that Dick Ryndon never gave anything to anyone for free."

Helen said, "Josh, it's better to get the truth out now."

He was silent for a few seconds. His expression suggested he was weighing his options. Josh took a deep breath.

"Okay, here goes. I had a thought this morning during my shower. I was thinking about how to get you out of our home. Anyway, I decided to play a hunch. During my mid-morning break, I called Ryndon. The conversation went something like this –

I asked him, 'By chance do you still have Amanda Talmage's backpack?'

'Yes, I have it.'

'Could I get it from you? I'll give you fifty bucks for it.'

Ryndon agreed, but he sounded a bit confused. He told me to meet him at the Midlyn Sidewalk Cafe."

I asked Josh, "The one on Main Street, between First and Second?"

"That's the one."

"He used to take me there often."

Josh continued, "I met Ryndon at the cafe, where he had one of the other starlings hanging on his arm. That caused my stomach to turn, but I'm not sure why. Then again, he has always made my skin crawl, so maybe that was part of it."

"Who was she?" Josh shrugged, and continued.

"He handed me your backpack, and I gave him a fifty dollar bill.

Ryndon asked, 'So, why do you want it? I Doubt there's anything in there you could use.'

'No, but I'll bet there's something in there worth at least a hundred dollars to her.'

'You know, for a grubber you're quite devious.'

I took that as a compliment. Once out of his sight, I looked inside to make sure your ID and keys were still in your purse. I didn't see your phone."

My backpack also contained the clothes I'd changed out of at school the day before – Dark blue jeans, a blouse, even my socks, panties, and bra. At least I had one change of clothes that didn't come from Josh's wardrobe.

Not that I wasn't grateful for warm, dry, clothes to wear and, even though they were not mine, I was enjoying how roomy and comfy they were.

After looking through the stuff from my backpack, I swallowed my pride, and asked Josh why he'd helped me. I was feeling embarrassed, almost to the point of being shy.

"So, um, Josh? Why did you help me yesterday?"

"Because it was the right thing to do."

"But I've never been nice to you. And yet you helped me?"

"Amanda, if I hadn't helped you, your corpse would be lying in a ditch halfway between here and town. I would've had to have lived with that on my conscience, knowing I could have done something. So I took the risk."

I felt tears starting to form. I didn't know what to say, so I just stood there, silent. He turned to walk away.

"Thank you," I said weakly.

After dinner, I was ready to talk. We were all in the family room, enjoying the heat from the woodstove. I was sitting in the comfy chair where I'd been sitting the evening before.

I asked, "May I say something?"

Helen answered, "Please do."

After taking a deep breath, I began.

"Dick demanded I change into those pajamas at school. He said we were going to a pajama party, and he wanted me dressed accordingly." I began to cry as I spoke. "When we drove out here, he parked on the other side of the hill, and started demanding..."

I sobbed for nearly a minute. Helen put her arm around my shoulders, and gave me a squeeze.

Sniffling, I continued, "When I refused, he tried to force me. I fought my way free, so he went around to my door, and dragged me out of his car. He threw me into that muddy ditch, got back in his car, and drove off. The ditch was full of water, and the sides were muddy and slippery, so it took me a few minutes to climb out."

I sniffled again. Helen handed me a box of tissues.

I whispered, "Thank you." After blowing my nose, I continued.

"I have never been so cold. I was shivering so hard, I couldn't see clearly. That's the last thing I remember before finding myself in this chair."

I went on to tell them what the other starlings had told me when I called.

"They ridiculed me for being here in your home. One of the starlings even told me to enjoy becoming a grubber."

Laying in bed that night, I was wondering why Josh's parents were being so nice to me. Did they have some ulterior motive?