Chapter 4
FOUR
FREYA
I slipped into my car and pulled up my GPS. It had been a long past couple of days. And as I made my way to the gas station to grab some coffee and a honey bun, I smiled.
My father was too good to me sometimes.
After marching upstairs after the argument with my mother, I had grabbed a bag of my clothes.
I didn’t even know which bag it was or what was in it, but I knew it had some of my outfits folded away.
I slipped a pair of extra shoes in there along with my toiletry bag and then I made my way out to my car.
My mother kept trying to stop me, grabbing my arm and yelling at me to not go.
That I’d put myself in danger. That I’d put all of us in danger.
It was my father who stopped her. It was my father who held her back as I got myself out the door.
And before I left, I sent my father a text.
Thanking him for allowing me to leave. Thanking him for the chance to do this.
To find the other shred of family I had in this world, despite what my mother thought might happen.
After that, I got myself on the road toward San Diego.
Even though the drive was only three hours, I was exhausted.
My mind kept reeling. The sound of my mother’s begging haunted me for the first hour of the drive.
I ended up pulling off into the parking lot of a motel just shy of two hours outside of San Diego.
After hauling all my things back to my parent’s house only to turn around and be back on the road, I was tired.
I needed rest.
My father understood my need to know family no matter how I was related to them.
And while this woman’s father wasn’t mine, she was my half-sister.
Half of me. I always knew growing up that someone was out there.
Being a single child made my mind wander a lot.
But every time my head hit the pillow, it felt like part of me was missing.
That part of me was still out there, wandering around aimlessly.
Trying to find direction in life. For the longest time, I thought I was just a dreamer.
Someone who would rather lose themselves in their mind instead of living in the world around them.
Especially with how sheltered and protective my mother had been when I was growing up.
But maybe it was because my body knew. Maybe it was because my heart knew that part of me resided in some sister I didn’t know about.
Maybe the universe was finally drawing us together.
I swiped my card in the gas station and took my snacks out to the car.
I’d woken up that morning in the motel room and opened my bank account to set myself a budget.
I needed to know how much I could spend per night in a hotel or a hostel in order to make the most of my visit.
And when I opened my bank account, I saw six thousand more dollars in there than I should have had.
A recent deposit from my father’s own bank account.
It was enough money to fund my trip and keep me safe in the process.
“Thank you so much, Daddy,” I whispered to myself.
I slipped back into my car and looked at the GPS.
I had an hour and a half to go to get to San Diego.
As I sat there sipping on my coffee and eating my honey bun, I pulled up hotels in the area.
Most of them were way too expensive. Two hundred bucks a night.
I mean, I didn’t need to be at the beach.
I just needed to be close to everything.
I could pinch more pennies if I didn’t need to constantly drive anywhere, so I focused on hotels in midtown.
In downtown. Anywhere with grocery stores and coffee shops I could walk to in my spare time.
And finally, one caught my eye.
It looked safe enough. It was tucked away in a small concrete courtyard with buildings on all sides.
With a coupon code I found online, I could get a night’s stay for eighty bucks.
With a breakfast included. I could stay for two entire weeks for just over a grand, so I scooped up the deal while I could.
I’d have to pay out of pocket for a parking pass once I got there, but the small hotel was centrally located and looked secure enough.
Nice rooms. A queen-size bed. A small balcony that overlooked the busy downtown street I’d be living on.
I booked the hotel while sitting in the gas station and shot my father the address.
“Just in case,” I wrote in the text message.
After inhaling my honey bun, I slipped my coffee into the drink carrier in my car.
Then, I set off on the last leg of my journey.
I didn’t really have a plan. I mean, I had her picture.
I could start showing it around places. The hotel room had a small fridge and a microwave, so I could run and get myself a few foods to heat up and make right there in my room to save more money.
But other than showing her picture around, I didn’t have a solid plan. Hell, I didn’t even have her name.
I’d need her name before doing much else.
I pulled into the alleyway of The Font of San Diego. A weird name for a hotel, but it worked. I walked in and got the key to my room and swiped my card again for a parking pass. I rode down the alley and took a left, finding a small garage tucked away on the opposite side of the small street.
I looked around for lights that would illuminate the space once night fell, but I didn’t see many.
“Be home by nightfall. Got it,” I murmured to myself.
I hauled my bag up to my room and slid my keycard into the door.
The small room welcomed me as the door slammed closed and I walked over to turn on the air conditioning.
At least Arizona’s heat was dry. Bearable.
But here? It was wet. It made it hard to breathe.
And as beads of sweat trickled down the nape of my neck, I stood as close as I could to the air conditioning vent before throwing open the curtains on my one window.
“San Diego,” I said, smiling.
I slipped my keycard and phone into my purse and started back down for the road.
I dipped into a small grocer right across the street and showed my first person her picture.
I didn’t expect the woman behind the counter to know who she was, but the more people I could show her picture to, the better.
I plucked a loaf of bread off the shelf along with some peanut butter and jelly.
I grabbed some chips. Some microwaveable meals.
I scooped up some honey buns as snacks and a small bag of apples.
I made sure to also grab some lemonade to have in the room with me.
Then, my card was swiped again.
That started my journey around the city.
I walked up and down the block, picking up a few things I’d need for my two-week stay and showing her picture around.
And every time I flashed her picture, I got the same answer.
People shook their heads. Told me no. Grunted their disapproval of my actions before shrugging their shoulders.
It was disconcerting, to say the least. And as the sun began to set on my first day in San Diego, I ended up breaking my first rule.
I went out past dark.
I didn’t go far. I went out the back door of the hotel which put me closer to the sidewalk than the main entrance did.
I walked down the block and dipped into a couple of late-night restaurants and local bars.
I flashed her picture, figuring that maybe she was a night owl.
I exhausted the three-block stretch around the hotel, but it was only eleven o’clock.
In places like this, eleven was when the party started.
So, I got back to my car and started driving around the city.
“Come on. Someone’s gotta know who you are,” I murmured to myself.
I parked in the parking lot of a bar just on the outskirts of downtown, closer to the water and right on top of Highway One.
If no one in this establishment knew who she was, at least I could enjoy a drink with the smell of the ocean water relaxing me.
I parked my car and walked into the Ocean View Bar.
And they had some pretty impressive drink specials for the evening.
“Last one, I promise,” I said to myself.
Then, I pushed through the front doors of the bar.
“Excuse me, I’m so sorry to bother you. But do you know this girl?”
“I’m sorry, I’ll only be a second. I just want to know if you guys know who this is? Or recognize her at all?”
“Yes, she’s my half-sister. I’m trying to find her.”
“You don’t? Not at all?”
“I’m not sure of her name. That’s what I’m trying to figure out.”
“She does look a bit like me, doesn’t she?”
As I made my way to the bar, everyone kept turning me down, though they had a lot to say about how similar we both looked.
That made me smile, but their insistence on not knowing who she was made my heart frown.
I slid onto a bar stool at the bar and tucked the picture into my purse, feeling more frustrated and more downtrodden than when I’d first begun my journey to find answers.
“What can I get you?” the bartender asked.
“I see you’ve got your Long Island Teas on special tonight. Could I get one?” I asked.
“I.D., please.”
I pulled out my driver’s license and slid it to the man behind the counter.
I’d always looked younger than my age. I mean, I was only twenty-two, but still.
Most people didn’t take me for much over eighteen.
He looked at me before he looked back down at the license and then held it up to the light. Trying to make sure it wasn’t a fake.
I was used to it. The bows I wore to pull my hair away from my face probably didn’t help matters, either. But I tried not to let it bother me. He finally handed my license back and began making me a drink, and I decided to go ahead and ask him.
I mean, if there was anyone in a bar who’d know who this girl was, it would be a bartender.
“Do you know this woman, by any chance?” I asked.
I pulled out the picture and showed him, but he shook his head.
“I’m sorry, I don’t. Something wrong?” he asked.
“She’s my half-sister, apparently. I’m trying to find her,” I said.
“I take it this is a new revelation?”
“Yes. Very much so. I mean, I always felt like I wasn’t really alone as an only child. But I would have never thought something like this.”
“Well, good luck in trying to find her. I’d try widening your search. A lot of locals don’t actually come into downtown if they want to have a good time. If she’s a local? She’s probably not in this area at all.”
Great. Just fabulous.
“Can I see that picture?”
I whipped my head over, and I watched a man come up to me. Tall. Dark. Muscular. A kind smile. I handed him the picture and he took it from my hand, his brow furrowing deep.
“I think I’ve seen her around here before,” the man said.
“Wait, really?” I asked.
I ignored the drink the bartender passed to me, letting it sit as the ice melted in the glass.
“Yeah. I mean, her hair’s a lot redder in person than in this picture. But I’m pretty sure I know who this is,” he said.
“What’s her name?” I asked.
“I’m not sure. She’s only come into this bar a couple times. Like the man said, she wouldn’t come around here too much. I’ve seen her a few times though, if I’m thinking of the right girl, on the other side of town. Like, if you’re heading north.”
“Did you see her in a bar? A restaurant? A coffee shop?”
He chuckled. “Slow down. It’s okay. There’s a bar called Chopper’s.
My favorite joint. Best quesadillas in town, if you ask me.
I’ve seen that red hair there a few times.
If you let me share a drink with you, I’ll take you there.
You can follow me, and maybe your search will pan out in that direction. ”
“Thank you so much. Seriously. You’ve been a lifesaver. And I’m Freya, by the way,” I said.
He nodded, his smiling comforting me. “Rhett. You have a beautiful name. It suits you.”
I blushed as the man ordered himself a beer.
The two of us talked, falling into a comfortable rhythm that resulted in another drink for each of us.
He was kind. Considerate. Made me feel like I was home even though I was three hours away from it.
I finished my second drink, and he downed his beer and he offered me his hand to help me off the stool.
He even settled my tab with the bartender and tipped way more than he should have.
“Thank you so much for the drink,” I said.
“It’s not a problem. Not an expensive drink, considering it was on sale tonight. Consider it a welcome to San Diego. You ready to head to Chopper’s?”
“Lead the way. Who knows? Maybe she’ll turn up tonight. My gosh, I’ve got so many questions to ask her.”
“I bet you do. You guys have the same hair, you know. I mean, yours is a little darker, but your faces are very much alike.”
I smiled at his compliment before he offered me his arm. I turned around and thanked the bartender, and then the two of us headed out to the parking lot. I couldn’t believe it. My first night in San Diego and I had a breakthrough that could change the course of my two-week stay in the area.
I couldn’t wait to find my other half.