Maybelle

Maybelle turned onto her driveway on her bike, a smile playing on her lips. Her practicing went well and she couldn’t wait to tell her grandmother that she had levitated a frog. She’d been working on the levitating spell for a month and a half, and she finally nailed it levitating the frog at least three feet from the ground.

She propped her bike against the side of the house and made her way to the front porch, freezing at the bottom step. The front door was wide open. “That’s strange,” she said skipping up the steps. Her mother hated leaving the front door open. “Mom! Grams!” Maybelle called stepping over the threshold and kicking the door shut behind her, leaving a muddy footprint on the white paint. “I’m home!” she called out kicking her shoes off.

Maybelle made her way to the kitchen. It was after a little after five which meant her mother should be in the kitchen making dinner. Stepping into the kitchen, Maybelle froze. Ingredients to make pasta were scattered out over the counter and a pot of water was boiling on the stove top. Maybe she had to run to the store for more ingredients, Maybelle thought to herself, but the feeling in her gut told her that wasn’t the case. It was something else.

She jogged into the living room where her grandmother liked to reside in the afternoon. “Grams, where’s mom...” she trailed off noticing the knitting needles and yarn laying carelessly on the floor, like her grandmother had taken off in a hurry.

The feeling in her stomach grew as she searched every room in the house, even the room she wasn’t supposed to go into alone. She didn’t find either one of them. She went back to the kitchen to check the fridge for a note her mother might have left.  No note.  “Okay, don’t panic Maybelle,” she told herself.  “Maybe there was an emergency. They left in a hurry and forgot to leave a note. That’s all.” That’s what she kept telling herself for next three hours.

When the sun had finally set behind the horizon Maybelle called Sheriff Jones. She sat on the porch steps with her arms wrapped around her body until he pulled into her driveway. For the last three hours she imagined the worse; kidnapped, murdered, or they just abandoned her. She was worried out of her mind and her nails bitten to the bed was proof.

“Maybelle,” She looked up and saw the pain look on the Sheriffs face. “I don’t know how to tell you this… but Dewy down at the gas station saw your momma’s car leave town. He also said he saw two women in it,” Maybelle’s heart fell from her chest down into her stomach. “So, they abandoned me?” that was the worst of the three. Kidnapping or being murdered wasn't their choice, but to just leave?

He sat down next to her and wrapped one arm around her shoulder. “Now, now, don’t look at it that way. Your momma loved you very much. I don’t know why she’d leave but she must have had a good reason to leave you here in Kingston. People will look out for you here,”

“But I’m only thirteen. I still need my mom,” she said leaning into him. That was the last thing she said before more tears came and she began to sob. Sheriff Jones just held her in his arms until she was finished then told her to pack a quick bag. “You’ll be staying with me and my family tonight. You hungry? It’s homemade pizza night,” he offered her a hand up, she took it. That brought a small smile to her lips. She loved pizza.

That night Maybelle slept on the Sheriffs couch. She didn’t cry anymore for her mother or her grandmother, but she hoped wherever they were they were safe and warm. Even if they had abandoned her in this small town she still loved them both very much and hoped they had a good reason for leaving her behind.