Chapter 22 Annabelle
Annabelle
Annabelle rang the bell at the school entrance, tapping her foot nervously as she waited for the guard to buzz her in.
It seemed like it took forever for him to scan her license and print out a visitor’s badge; she was practically jumping out of her skin by the time she reached the office.
She threw the door open and ran in, looking around frantically for Olivia.
She was nowhere in sight. Where was she? Had they let her go to practice?
“Where’s my daughter?” she blurted out, her breath coming in short gasps.
“Excuse me?”
“Olivia Reynolds. I called saying I’d pick her up—”
The woman looked up from her desk. “Oh, yes. She’ll be right back. She went to the bathroom.”
As Annabelle waited, she thought about her dream again and wondered briefly if she was overreacting.
Was she going to spend her life worrying about everything and trying to dodge accidents?
But what choice did she have? She’d already seen some of her dreams come true.
What if she hadn’t stopped James and Scarlett the other night?
The door swung open, and Olivia walked in.
Annabelle heaved a sigh of relief. She was doing the right thing.
“Sweetheart, there you are!”
Olivia walked over and gave her a hug. “Why did you pick me up early? I’m missing practice.”
Annabelle put her arm around her daughter and ushered her out of the office. “Let’s go. I’ll explain outside.”
Once they were in the car, she turned to look at Olivia in the back seat. “I wanted to surprise you. Have one-on-one time. I’ve been working so much lately, and I miss you. I thought we’d go get ice cream sundaes.”
“I miss you, too, Mommy, but I feel bad missing practice.”
Annabelle felt bad as well, but she was too nervous about her dream to ignore it. Not after everything else that had come true already. “Don’t worry, sweetie, your coach understands. It’s only one practice.”
She pulled up to the ice cream shop, and they went inside.
“Why don’t you grab us a table, and I’ll go order our sundaes?
” She knew how her daughter liked hers—two scoops of chocolate with chocolate fudge and chocolate jimmies.
Annabelle almost gagged ordering it every time.
She ordered a vanilla sundae with nuts and caramel for herself.
She glanced over at Olivia as she waited at the counter while they made their sundaes.
Her heart swelled. Olivia was such a sweet and sunny child.
She’d practically been born with a smile on her face.
Even as a baby, she’d rarely cried. So different from Scarlett, who had screamed her head off the first three months of her life.
Olivia was that rare child who made everything easy, and Annabelle loved her to pieces.
“Watch where you’re going,” a male voice shouted at the entrance. Annabelle turned to see what was happening. A young man in a jean jacket with a buzz cut was pointing his finger into the chest of a man facing him. The other man was older, dressed nicely in a suit, his face red and eyes narrowed.
“You bumped into me, asshole,” the older man said. “Learn some manners.”
Annabelle watched as if in slow motion as the young man pushed the older one and he began to fall in Olivia’s direction.
She lunged toward Olivia and grabbed her just in time to get her out of the way.
The table and chair were knocked to the floor.
Olivia’s eyes widened and she held on to Annabelle, who was shielding her with her body.
“What is wrong with you?” she yelled at the two men. “Look what you’ve done!”
They both stared, open-mouthed, as Annabelle crouched down and gently touched Olivia’s cheek.
“Olivia, sweetheart, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, Mommy.”
Annabelle’s heart was pounding in her chest. She held out her hand to her daughter. “Come on, let’s get the ice cream to go.”