My Foster Mom Wanted A Daughter - Book 2 Of A Series

Chapter 10: Arrival

Angelo stepped off the bus at the station in downtown Denver and headed inside to look for a phone. He didn't know if he would find one or not, but luckily the bus station is one of the few places that still have pay phones, so he did.

He reached into his pocket, retrieved the piece of paper with Debra Jean's number on it, and after inserting coins, he carefully dialed. It rang twelve times, and he still hadn't got an answer. She apparently had no answering machine, because the phone just continued to ring. He decided he'd wait a little bit and try again.

Finding a row of plastic seats in a fairly empty section of the waiting area, Angelo put his school bag on the seat next to him and sat down. He began looking around for something he could do to pass the time while he waited to call Debra Jean again.

There was an outdated old, bulky analog television set mounted on a column, but it was tuned to a show that had three rugged, middle age men with long beards, sitting in a blind, hunting ducks. That didn't interest him in the least, and he looked down. His fingernails caught his eye and he studied for a moment, the rush paint job Tanya had done on him just before he left for the bus station.

When he dropped his hands back in his lap he realized he was sitting with his legs spread wide, like a guy, and so he straightened up and crossed them. He then looked around to see if anyone had noticed.

Off to his right, Angelo saw a young guy with an Army duffle bag on his shoulder, hugging a lady that looked like she could be his mom. They embraced for a few moments and when they pulled away, he could see that they were both crying.

Angelo decided that the guy must be military and was getting ready to return to his unit and possibly head to a war zone soon. He kept watching these two until the guy finally turned and headed towards the bus loading area.

Angelo looked the other way and noticed a man holding a newspaper up in front of himself. On first glance, he appeared to be reading the paper, but after Angelo looked away and back again, he realized the man was staring past the paper and directly at him.

Angelo kept looking at the guy and the guy smiled at him, making Angelo feel uneasy because the guy's smile wasn't an innocent, friendly smile at all. It was more of a creepy, lustful smile mixed with an evil gleam in his eyes that made Angelo's skin crawl.

The guy continued to smile that creepy smile, as Angelo watched him drop his gaze to the floor. The guy began to slowly bring his gaze up from Angelo's feet, taking in every inch of his body until he was finally staring into Angelo's eyes once again. He then winked, pursed his lips, and blew a kiss towards Angelo.

This creeped Angelo out so much he quickly stood up and moved to find somewhere else to sit. He scanned the area and decided that the only spot in the station where the guy wouldn't be able to see him was around the other side of the vending machines, a little further down and out of sight of where that guy was seated.

Angelo got up an headed in that direction. Just as he sat down he looked up to find that creepy guy had gotten up and followed him to a new seat, this time even closer.

Angelo thought maybe he should just go back to the pay phone and try to call Debra Jean again, so he stood up and began to walk.

When he got to the phone he looked around to see if the guy had followed him this time. He was startled when he turned to his right and the guy was right there, standing no further than six feet from him.

Leaning against the wall, the guy was turned towards Angelo and eyeing him with an even bigger, toothy grin on his face. Angelo wanted to cry as the guy slowly slipped his tongue out from a small gap between his teeth, and licked his upper front gold-capped tooth.

"Hello, sweet thing," the guy began in deep, slow, disturbing tone of voice that dripped with creepiness. "You're a real pretty little girl. And ya gotta delicious, sexy set of lips."

He leaned in even closer. Close enough for Angelo to smell the stench radiating from his body and feel the heat of his breath.

"How about you go with me to that bathroom over there. You show me what you can do with those lips and that soft, sweet tongue of yours. If you can satisfy me, I'll pay you fifty bucks."

At that moment Angelo knew he had to get out of there and away from this guy. Thinking quickly, he pulled his right leg rearward and kicked, planting the toe of his shoe squarely in the guy's crotch. The guy doubled over in pain and yelled several four-letter words, as Angelo took off running towards the door.

Once outside, Angelo stopped, trying to decide what to do next. He bent over, placed his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath. He looked back to make sure the guy wasn't behind him.

Angelo glanced down the street, and on the sidewalk a little further down, he saw Gigi standing there. She was meeting up with a sharply dressed middle-aged man, who looked to Angelo like one of those crime bosses you'd see on a television show.

Just as Angelo looked their way, they spotted him, probably because of the loud noise he had made when he rushed out the door.

As soon as Gigi saw him, she pointed in his direction and nodded. She and the guy turned and headed toward him, smiling. Both had that same sweet, but insincere smile he'd seen on Gigi earlier.

"So your friend's not home, huh?" Gigi asked as they approached.

"No, but she will be," Angelo replied, turning away from them.

"Sweetheart, I think you may not have a friend here," the man said firmly. "You look to me like someone who's got nowhere to go."

"I do," Angelo told them firmly as he opened the door and stepped back inside, hoping they wouldn't follow. "Now leave me alone."

"We can help you," Gigi said more gently, following Angelo inside.

Angelo persisted first in trying to ignore the two and then responding with vehement denials to all their observations that Angelo was alone with no place to go.

"Uh, we'd better go," the man suddenly told Gigi as he looked down the corridor. "You're on your own now, honey."