Chapter 3
CHAPTER THREE
The man had gone completely overboard, and Penny had no idea what to think about his generous gifts.
No, that was a lie. She was thinking all sorts of things…
about the gifts and about the man himself.
She felt overwhelmed and so very thankful for all the things he’d gotten for her and Bowie.
She’d never felt as comfortable or safe around a man in her life.
Which was crazy. She didn’t know Pyro. And she wasn’t naive enough to assume that just because he was military, he was a good person.
She’d come across her fair share of assholes in uniforms in her life for sure.
But there was something about the man that made her shields, usually so thick and high, fall as if they were made out of matchsticks. Most of it was the way he treated Bowie. The way he watched her in awe. As if she was something precious that he needed to guard with his life.
It was more than that though. It was also something in his eyes. A sense of coming home. She’d never felt this way before with anyone else, especially a stranger.
Penny couldn’t believe she’d asked him if she could give him a hug. But she was big on consent, and he seemed as if he was kind of prickly. Though he’d accepted Bowie’s affections easily enough, and seeing him hold her hand so gently made her want to cry.
Her daughter was sweet and kind, despite facing a lot of discrimination in her short life.
She’d been overlooked by children and adults alike, because they assumed she wouldn’t be able to participate in various events.
Picnics, games, simple get-togethers. She’d even been denied a place in the local school because the teachers thought educating her, making accommodations for her lack of sight, would take away too much time and attention from the other children.
So Penny had spent all of her time outside of work teaching Bowie what she could.
When she wasn’t at the clinic teaching classes on women’s health, and educating people on the importance of birth control and what to anticipate when they were expecting a child, she was with her daughter.
Bowie was her world, and she’d do whatever it took to keep her safe.
Every time she’d left Bowie with their neighbor, who’d offered to watch over her during the day—for a price, of course—Penny was a nervous wreck until she could get home and see for herself that Bowie was all right.
It wasn’t as if their elderly neighbor was mean or a bad person, she was just more interested in the little she could get for babysitting than she was actually entertaining or teaching Bowie anything.
Bowie, bless her heart, never complained about the long hours while Mommy was working, but the way she was so happy to see her every afternoon spoke volumes about how bored she was during the day.
So Pyro being kind to Bowie meant the world to Penny. He saw the same amazingness in the little girl that her mother did, which warmed her heart. And he’d said all the right things when Bowie had tried to give him the bag of free clothes, and the precious piece of chocolate.
It was safe to say Penny had way more interest in the pilot than she should.
Than was smart. She had literally no idea what life held in store for them when they got back to the US.
She had about twenty bucks to her name, the clothes on their backs, and the two shirts, pairs of socks, and sweatpants provided to them.
She supposed she’d try to find a women’s shelter with room for them until she could find a job and start earning money, then move them into a motel or something.
The uncertainty was starting to stress her out a little.
But Penny was used to making lemonade out of lemons. She’d been on her own her entire life, including when she was married, much to her disappointment, and would figure things out. She always did.
So when a sailor entered the hangar moments ago, she didn’t pay him any attention.
The lights in the large space had been dimmed but not turned out all the way.
Bowie was sound asleep in her cot, wearing her new T-shirt as a nightgown and snoring softly.
But when the man got closer, Penny sat up, prepared for just about anything.
Then she noticed he had a large duffel bag in one hand, a smaller plastic bag in the other.
“Ms. Burns?” he asked softly, so as not to wake up any of the sleeping women and children around him. He stopped a respectful distance away from where she was sitting.
“Yes?” Penny said, confused about what he might want.
“I was asked to bring these to you,” he said, as he placed the bags on the floor. Then he nodded at her and turned and walked away.
Penny wanted to call him back, ask what was in the bags and if she was expected to pay for them. Because if so, she’d have him take whatever it was right back. She couldn’t afford to pay for anything.
But he was already too far away, and Penny didn’t want to call any attention to herself or wake up Bowie.
So she walked over to the bags and picked them up.
The duffel was heavy, but not too heavy for her to carry.
She placed it on the floor beside her cot before peeking into the smaller plastic bag.
Her eyes widened at the number and variety of snacks inside. There was chocolate, sugary candy, chips, protein bars, pretzels, and jerky. There was also a folded-up piece of paper. Penny put the bag next to her on the cot and unfolded the note.
Penny–
Don’t be mad. Once I started, I couldn’t stop.
I remembered how excited Bowie was about that little piece of chocolate and wanted to keep that smile on her face.
I guessed at sizes. If something is too big or small, you can exchange it.
Just keep the tags on the clothes until you know they fit and the commissary will trade them for the sizes you need without hassle.
They didn’t have any Elsa footie pjs, but I did my best.
–Pyro
The handwriting was messy, but the words made Penny’s eyes tear up. She hadn’t even looked inside the duffel, but from the weight alone she already knew he’d bought way too much.
She put the note aside, unzipped the bag, and began taking out the items, one at a time.
Yup, he’d gone completely overboard. But Penny hadn’t ever had a nicer or more welcome gift. He’d not only bought Bowie several shirts and pairs of pants, he’d purchased things for Penny too. Underwear, socks, cargo pants, T-shirts—both long and short sleeve—a sweatshirt…
It was a treasure trove for both Penny and her daughter.
When was the last time either of them had clothes with the tags still on them? Brand-new things that no one else had worn and discarded? She couldn’t remember.
She sat on her cot for several minutes, doing her best to control her emotions.
Pyro didn’t have to get them anything. Hell, he hadn’t even needed to come to the hangar to check on them.
It wasn’t part of his job. It hadn’t escaped her notice that he hadn’t checked in on any of the other women and children he’d transported off that roof. Just her and Bowie.
Normally, Penny didn’t like being singled out, it usually didn’t bode well for her. But in this case, she felt giddy inside. Tingly. Special.
Being noticed by men was usually something she dreaded. Feared. But Pyro and his friends had made her feel comfortable and relaxed. And the fact that Bowie had voluntarily hugged Pyro was another clue that there was something different about him, in a good way.
Penny sighed, then repacked the duffel and pushed both bags under her cot to keep them out of the way—and to try to protect them from getting stolen—and lay down on her side so she could see Bowie.
Her baby girl was growing up so fast, and it was both awesome and scary at the same time.
Her dark hair, so much like her own, was messy and tangled on the pillow, and they’d both need to see about showering tomorrow.
But for now, it was enough that they were warm, safe, and away from her husband’s “friends,” who would have come soon for another payment on the loan she was paying off for John.
Thinking about Colvin Jackson made Penny shiver.
She’d already given him thousands of dollars since John’s death, but the amount he claimed she owed kept changing, growing.
And even though she’d protested, he kept coming back.
Or rather, his minions did. She had a feeling that, at this point, Colvin was still coming after her just to be a dick.
Because he could. Because he seemed to like terrorizing her and her daughter.
She’d first met Colvin the day after her husband’s death. He’d come to their apartment, informing her of the debt—and the fact that he expected her to pay it in John’s absence.
Just a month later, she’d hoped he wouldn’t be able to find her and Bowie in their new location in a village outside the city.
But no such luck. And Penny tried to stand her ground, telling the man sent to collect the payment that she wanted to see the contract John had with Colvin, to prove that he’d indeed borrowed money from the other man.
At least, she’d assumed there was a contract, because if there was nothing in writing, Colvin had no legal leg to stand on.
The guy had left, making Penny feel proud of herself, as if she’d thrown off the giant weight that had been unexpectedly dumped onto her shoulders. She could save her money, get herself and Bowie back to the States.
She’d come home from work the next day to find their tiny little hut had been vandalized.
All their things either stolen or ruined.
Pots, clothes, blankets…everything was destroyed.
And the following morning, Colvin himself showed up, in his pristine and expensive-looking blue suit, demanding the monthly payment.