Treasures of the Heart. Carol W. Hazelwood

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СКАЧАТЬ her auburn hair away from her face.

      People said Beth was just like her mom. They both had olive complexion and dark flashing eyes and an exuberant nature, but lately her mother’s vitality had waned. Her parents seemed to be waiting for something.

      “It’s true,” Beth said, before her mother could shut the door. “You used to play tennis together, laugh a lot…you know.” Beth fiddled with her pink bed comforter. “Now the house is like a morgue. Is it because of me?”

      “You’re exaggerating. It’s not you, Beth. Your father has his business, and I have mine, that’s all. His photography assignments have increased, so he wants to relax with his friends when he’s in town.”

      “He used to relax with you and me.” How far should she push? She was scared to know what was going on between her parents, but afraid not to know at the same time. Maybe it was all her fault. If only she hadn’t met Raymond.

      Her mother glanced at her watch. “I’ve got to run. We can talk at dinner. If you go out, leave a note.” Her mother gave a halfhearted smile. Before she shut the door, she said, “Don’t forget to feed Muffin.”

      Beth gazed at her bedroom wall covered with posters. She’d removed all pictures of animals and replaced them with a poster of Rap groups. Her mom didn’t approve of rap or tattoos or the hair styles. Her dad shook his head and talked about the bands he’d liked when he was a teenager. That made her feel better. He never said too much about anything, but when he did, it was always interesting. She pulled out her ipod and began listening to music she’d downloaded.

      When the phone rang, she darted into the hall to pick it up. “Megan?” she said. “I thought you went with the gang to Arrowhead.”

      At least Beth wasn’t the only one stuck in town for the weekend. Megan had her parents’ car and was going to the South Coast Mall. Since losing her job, Beth was strapped for cash and shopping wasn’t high on her list of things to do, but anything was better than staying home. Besides, Megan was a year older and made everything seem exciting. Through Megan, she’d made new friends, although Beth’s parents didn’t approve of them.

      After agreeing to join Megan, she raced back to her room, threw open her closet door, and yanked out a clean pair of jeans and a lace trimmed tee shirt. Stuffing the sweats she’d worn earlier into a corner, she grabbed a new pair of sandals from under her tennis racquet. For a second she thought of the tennis games she used to play with her parents. Nothing was the same anymore. She threw the racquet deep into the closet.

      Before she’d finished brushing her brown hair into a ponytail, the blast of a horn shattered the quiet street out front. A cotton sweater, belonging to her dad, hung from her arms as she galloped down the stairs. She flung open the front door and slammed it behind her.

      With a grin on her face, she plunked down in the front seat of the BMW that belonged to Megan’s parents. Megan’s long, blonde hair fell like a waterfall down either side of her face; her heavy eyeliner and dark red lipstick made Beth feel mousy. “I thought you’d be wearing jeans.” Beth noted Megan’s mini skirt and lacy camisole.

      “You never know who you’ll meet at the mall.” She pointed to the back seat. “I brought along a bulky sweatshirt. It’s good to have when shopping.”

      Beth frowned. “Why?”

      Megan laughed. “You’ll see.”

      “How’d you get the car?” Beth asked. “I thought you were grounded till school let out.”

      Megan laughed as she drove off. “Easy. My parents feel real bad they didn’t let me go to the mountains. I made a deal. I get to use the car, and I’ll get better grades.”

      “But I thought that’s why you were grounded.”

      “Logic has nothing to do with my parents.” Megan drove like a maniac, darted in and out of cars, screeched to a halt at a signal, then raced away as the light turned green.

      Beth swallowed hard and realized she’d never driven with Megan before. Did she always drive like this? Maybe she should have left a note like her mom had asked. “Darn!”

      “What?” Megan glanced sideways at her.

      “I forgot to feed our dog.”

      “Big deal.”

      “Yeah. Big deal.” Beth’s laughter was hollow. She pictured Muffin, her Golden Retriever, with her sad eyes beseeching Beth for a morsel of food.

      After parking the car, the two girls walked into the large mall and strolled along looking at various window displays. Megan elbowed Beth in the side. “Look at those two guys over there. Cute huh?”

      Beth nodded and smiled but thought they looked creepy. “Where do you want to shop? How about the Gap? Marcia works there on Saturdays. I know her from Spanish Club.”

      “Marcia’s a drag,” Megan said. “Besides, you quit Spanish Club. She’s not your friend anymore. Let’s go to the Limited. I saw something there I wanted last week.”

      “I didn’t bring much money, but it’ll be fun just to look.”

      Megan eyed her. “I’ll show you a thing or two. You need to get educated.”

      Inside the Limited, they browsed through the clothes. Beth held up a red blouse and looked at herself in the mirror. “Doesn’t this color look great on me? And this is super.” She held up another one, but sighed when she read the price tag.

      It wasn’t until they were in the dressing room trying on clothes that it dawned on Beth what Megan had in mind. “You can’t do that,” Beth said as Megan put two shirts on under her sweat shirt. “You’ll get caught.”

      “No, I won’t. See.” She pulled a special scissors from her purse and cut away the cumbersome antitheft device on the blouses. “Got this when I worked at that crummy store in Costa Mesa last summer. Come on. Put that blouse on under your sweater just like I’m doing.”

      “I….I don’t really need anything. I’ll meet you out front.”

      “Chicken! Okay. If that’s how you feel. Stay away from me. You’ve got guilt written all over your face.”

      Beth left Megan and waited outside the front of the store and pretended to window shop. After a while she became uneasy. She couldn’t keep walking back and forth in front of the store. Where was Megan? She looked at her watch. Perhaps she’d changed her mind about stealing the merchandise. Beth reentered the store in search of her friend and caught sight of long blonde hair between a man and a woman. Beth ran over to them. “Megan, what’s happening?”

      Megan’s eyeliner was smeared, and her lips trembled. Two security guards held her firmly between them.

      The woman stopped short and glared at Beth. “Were you with this young lady?”

      “We drove here together.”

      “Did you steal something too?” The man’s voice snapped at her like a hyena.

      “No!”

      The woman eyed her suspiciously and looked closely at Beth’s clothes. СКАЧАТЬ