Amy was sitting in the rocking chair crying and reflecting back over the events of the last month. It was now the second week of March and she yearned for warmer weather, but wasn't sure if she would be staying here now. The way her Daddy had been acting during the month left her puzzled and hurt. It was Saturday, but she woke up to find him gone again. Last weekend she had come downstairs to find the shed door padlocked with a note posted telling her she was getting too worked up lately.
She remembered it all started when the company had a dinner party a little over a month ago and Daddy took his co-worker, Shelly. 'He said I was too young and didn't know the proper way to act' thought Amy bitterly. What concerned her more was the fact that Daddy hadn't had sex with her for almost the same amount of time. He would come home late and be too tired. When she tried to touch him, he would shove her hand away and, again, say he was too tired. On the weekends like today, he'd say he had to go in and work on a special project. This morning, as she was gathering the clothes for laundry, she came across one of his work shirts; it reeked of perfume and sex.
Amy's heart was breaking thinking that Daddy didn't love her anymore; didn't want her anymore. She got up and looked outside again at the bright sunshine and where some of the snow had melted leaving puddles scattered around on the ground. She decided that maybe a walk would do her well; a long walk to get her thoughts in order and clear her mind. She decided to leave Don a note in case he came home before she did. She wanted to let him know how much he had hurt her and wanted to hurt him back just as much.
Amy wrote the note, went to the kitchen and got a butcher knife, picked up his shirt and stabbed it through the note and shirt right onto the locked shed door. She went back to the window and looked out again before putting on her coat and leaving. The air was crisp and cold, but the warm sun helped lighten her mood. No real destination in mind, she just started walking down the road in the opposite direction of town.
Don was tired by the time he finally got home and was looking forward to being with his Sweetie. He had finally completed work on the big project and fighting off his co-worker's advances for the last time. The house was dark when he pulled in which wasn't like Amy. She always would leave the outside lights on for him at least. When he got to the door, he discovered it was already unlocked. Concerned, he went inside quickly.
"Sweetie?!" he yelled and his heart was beating fast when there was no response. He ran upstairs flicking on the upstairs light switch at the bottom of the stairs. Don ran room to room yelling for her, no response ... no answer. He ran down the stairs towards the kitchen and stopped dead in his tracks when he saw his shirt stabbed, hanging on the shed door with a note. He removed the knife and recognized the shirt. The one Shelly had wiped her hands all over it trying to entice him before he shoved her back in anger. He had been so tired he had forgotten about it until now.
Amy's note was to the point:
Don, I know you have someone else. Over the last month, you have made it perfectly clear that my affection and attentions were not wanted. Finding this shirt was the last thing I could bear. I'm going for a walk.
Amy.
Don's mind was reeling with both anger and panic in equal degrees. He called his boss, Tony Hammond, first and told him what Shelly had done. He made it perfectly clear that she had better be gone before he would return. He slammed the phone down and started out to the truck. He looked up and could just make out a figure limping down the road. A cloud finally cleared the moon and gave him enough light to see it was Amy's figure. He ran towards her with anger and relief.
Amy's ankle was swollen and hurting. When she had fallen, her ankle twisted and she and landed in a ditch of melt off. She was hurt, cold and hungry. Her body temperature was dropping rapidly and she was so tired. Her mind told her to keep moving, so she kept looking at her feet and concentrated on just trying to keep one foot in front of the other. She told herself 'almost there now' constantly, but she wanted to give into sleep. 'Just need to rest a few minutes' she thought, stopped and then felt a pair of strong hands grab her arms before everything went black.
Don reached and grabbed her arms and she collapsed into his. His anger spilled from him when he realized she was injured and ice cold. He stripped the water sodden coat from her body and quickly carried her back to the house. He called 9-1-1 for paramedics and then started removing her wet clothing dumping it on the floor. He wrapped her in blankets trying to bring her body temperature back up and started to massage her legs and arms.
"Sweetie, don't leave me. Please, Sweetie! Don't Leave Me!!!" Don was shouting and he saw her stir once and then still again. "Come on Sweetie! Please, I love you!" and he kissed her lips; they were blue and as cold as ice. Don was crying by the time that the paramedics arrived. They wrapped her in a hot air blanket and slowly started to bring her body temperature back up. Don explained that she had left a note saying she went for a walk. When he got home, he saw her on the road and she had collapsed into his arms.
Amy heard Daddy's voice calling to her and tried to reach him. She felt like she was floating in a pool of black water and trying to break to the surface. When she opened her eyes, a man was shinning a light into them. Once the light quit blinding her, she recognized the cabin and the man told someone she was awake. Daddy's face loomed above her and he was crying.
"Thank God, Sweetie, I thought I lost you!" and he kissed her lips. "I love you Amy. You were wrong. There's no one else, Sweetie, only you!" He grasped her hand and laid it on his cheek.
Amy smiled and a tear trickled down her cheek. "Head hurts," she whispered.
Don looked up at the paramedic, "She says her head hurts."
"She has a lump. She must have taken quite a fall. She's lucky she didn't break any bones, but she has a sprained ankle." He gently tilted her face so Don could see the bruise forming on the side of her head. "We'll get her ready to transport."
Amy shook her head. "No," she said, now a little more audible.
Don looked at Amy with concerned eyes, "Sweetie, you've got to get checked out to make sure everything is alright."
"No," Amy said once again. She squeezed her Daddy's hand tightly. "Everything is fine now."
