Free Eden's Root by Rachel Fisher Page A

needed to get to Margie and Ross’s store so she could get herself a new gun. It was time to add stealing to her bag of tricks.
    They kept the guns in locked cases, but she knew that they trusted her enough to leave her unattended. They had already done it yesterday once they warmed to her story. Ross had even left a couple times with the cabinet keys still tucked under the register. It was easy, Fi thought. It mostly took the commitment to just go ahead and do it. When Ross disappeared into the back while Margie was in the restroom, Fi pounced.
    She slid behind the counter and grabbed the keys, locating the small one that unlocked the case on the wall behind the register. Carefully, she removed the small .22 Smith and Wesson she’d selected and then shifted the others to cover the gap. The keys jingled in her shaking hands as she fumbled with them, working to unlock the gun. Once it clicked, she breathed a sign of relief. This was more like it, she thought as she held the lighter, smaller weapon. She checked the safety and quickly slid the gun into her pack. Fi slipped out from behind the counter just as Ross emerged from the back, still on the phone.
    “You ready for practice honey?” Margie cooed as she stepped out of the restroom. Fi nodded, smiling shyly. She kept her eyes down, the demure little girl once again. Later that same day Fi also grabbed ammunition for both her guns. She decided to take an unnoticeable amount the next two times she came back. It would add up, she thought. All of her stolen booty was now tucked safely into Kiara’s bookshelf compartment for the night.
    Despite the effectiveness of the hiding spot, Fi was very careful to make sure the weapons were unloaded. She kept the Glock because she thought that it was better to have two guns than one. Next time she would also steal a hip holster for her gun so she could wear her gun and her hunting knife at the same time. Soon, she would wear them on her hikes so that she could get used to the feeling. In another week, she would also take her bow and get used to wearing the sling. Maybe even go on some personal hunting trips, she thought.
    She was looking forward to another overnight visit with her father. He would be impressed with her work: successful stealing, testing and selecting a better gun, getting more ammo. Even though she still had some of the money he’d given her, she’d learned more from the experience of stealing and she couldn’t buy ammo from anyone without raising suspicion anyway.
    Lucy’s car pulled up and Fi ran out the door. She knew that Lucy was just driving her now to be kind, not because she had any other errand. Sometimes Lucy would talk with her, but usually she was kind enough to just let Fi sit in silence. That was a tough one for Aunt Lucy, Fi thought with a smile. The woman could talk more and faster than anyone she’d ever met, always with flawless vocabulary, of course. They jokingly called her the grammar Nazi. Fi’s obsessive love of reading had molded her into a grammarian anyway, but Lucy sealed the deal with her constant corrections.
    “Say Hi to your Mama for me ok?” Fi nodded and ran inside. She knew that Lucy had already seen Maggie today, but everyone was so worried about her, about them. Her kindness made Fi sadder.
    Her father was deteriorating at this point and no one questioned her presence. Sometimes she spent more time there than the nurses on shift. With her fourteenth birthday just two weeks away, she worried that she wouldn’t have time to get all the information from him that she needed. He seemed to sleep more and more these days as he slowly drifted away from her.
     
     

You Have to Gather
    ----------- Fi -----------
    When visiting hours ended that night, Mike turned to Fi.
    “So, what updates do you have for me?”
    His voice was tired and he often listened with his eyes closed, but she knew that he wanted to share the journey with her. Whenever they talked, he seemed animated and