Free Away by Megan Linski Page B

leave Rosemary with him!”
    “Young man, sit down!” Dolly demands, and she leaps up as well.
    “You don’t understand. If there’s even the slightest chance that he could go off on her, there’s no time to waste,” I protest.
    “You don’t want to anger Jack McGowan!” Dolly hisses, and she yanks me back down. “You’re going to need all your strength if you’re going to try and take his daughter away from him. He’ll do whatever he can to stop you.”
    “He could be doing whatever he could to hurt her,” I say, and I begin to shake. “The longer she stays with him the bigger chance...”
    “Jack doesn’t blow up like that very often,” Dolly says slowly. “He’s very patient. He never loses his temper, but when he does...yes, I’d say he was dangerous.”
    “But then what if Rosemary pisses him off, and there’s no tables or chairs to take it out on?” I insist.
    “It’ll take quite a lot to push Jack completely over the edge, and Rosemary’s a smart girl,” Dolly says. “She’ll know better than to make her father angry.”
    I wasn’t so sure. Rosemary was good at pushing people’s buttons, and sometimes she just didn’t know when to stop. If she was mad at her father and she wasn’t completely sure what he was capable of, she would do things to purposefully make him angry. I knew she would.
    “What I can’t understand is why Rosemary didn’t say anything to you,” I say slowly. “What is he threatening her with? A weapon?”
    “Did it ever occur to you that Rosemary might not want to be rescued?” Dolly asks, leaning forward.
    “What? That’s ridiculous,” I say.
    “Rosemary hasn’t seen her father in years,” Dolly says gently. “There might be something in her that misses him. Even if she doesn’t want to be his prisoner, if there’s a part of her that wants her father’s attention she won’t try as hard to escape.”
    “Absolutely not,” I shake my head. “He kidnapped her. She has to be terrified right now. Whether she misses him or not, she knows that it’s safer to stay away from him.”
    She doesn’t say anything more. She gets up and pours me from the pot a large bowl of potato soup and grabs a few warm rolls from the microwave. “I expect you to eat all of it,” she says sternly, gazing at me. “I’m going to bed, but I put a few pillows and a blanket on the couch for you. Don’t worry about the dishes; I’ll clean up in the morning.”
    She heads off to bed. I immediately dig into my soup, burning my tongue with the hotness of the liquid. It’s thick and creamy on my tongue, tasting of cheese and soft potato, mixed with an array of vegetables and herbs. It’s delicious. I finish that and the rolls off in minutes. When I have a full stomach I put my empty bowl in the sink and go to lay down on the couch.
    I expect to drop off immediately, but my mind is racing. If Rosemary could’ve said something to Dolly in order to get away, why didn’t she? She knew I was trying to rescue her. She couldn’t not know. She knows I would do anything for her...right?
    My mind repeats the fight. Did Rosemary take that as a breakup? I didn’t think there was anything in this world I would ever leave Rosemary for, but even if there was an argument definitely wasn’t one of them. But did that fight make her think I didn’t care about her?
    I take a ragged breath. And then there was the fact that she was with her father. She had seen him hit me, but had she been so angry and upset after our fight that she didn’t care that I was hurt? No, no, that was a stupid idea. Rosemary hated her father, didn’t she?
    But then what if she didn’t? It had been years since she had seen him. Was there something in her that longed for his affection, something that was big enough to make her stay? Could Dolly possibly be right? Did she not want to be found?
    I shake my head at the ridiculous idea and punch my pillow into a more comfortable position. These pointless wonders