“It’s what Josh, Arty, and Filly say we need for a few nights in the park. Are you going with me to the bathroom or not? I thought I’d also pick up some milk and maybe a six-pack of beer while we’re here. Arty said he put enough ice in the cooler to last until tomorrow,” Emma answered.
“Good God!” Sophie groaned.
“You might want to put your boots on if you need to use the bathroom. Looks like that gravel would hurt bare feet.” Emma snagged the keys and her purse and opened the door. She unfastened her seat belt and followed the signs around to the side of the building where the restrooms were located. She wasn’t a bit surprised when she finished to find Sophie waiting at the door with her boots on.
“If we were on Facebook right now, I would unfriend you,” she fumed with her arms crossed over her chest.
“Good thing we’re in the real world, then, isn’t it?” Emma flashed her brightest smile. “If you’re not ashamed to be seen in the store in your pajama pants and no bra, come on inside and see if there’s anything you might like to take with us. I’ve still got my hundred dollars I left the institution with, so I can get what I think we might need.”
Sophie went into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. “You are a witch.”
“I believe it,” Emma yelled through the closed door. “I got you out of bed, so I must have superpowers. When we get back home, I’ll see if I can make a broom fly and turn frogs into princes. Maybe I’ll turn Teddy into a frog and you’ll be plumb out of luck.”
“Hush,” Sophie shouted. “Go buy the beer.”
Emma didn’t budge. No way was she giving Sophie a chance to hitch a ride back to the trailer park. “If they have whiskey, I might need a bottle of that just to get me through the next few days with an old cranky-butted woman.”
Sophie slung open the door. “Don’t call me old.”
“Well, today you look twenty years older than me,” Emma said. “Your hair is a fright and your boobs are sagging. It’s a good thing Teddy can’t see you right now.”
Sophie crossed her arms over her chest again and stormed back to the car, got inside, and slammed the door so hard that it rocked the vehicle.
“Mission accomplished,” Emma singsonged. “Being mad is a step up from being numb.” She got two six-packs of beer, a couple of bottles of cheap wine, half a gallon of milk, and, on the way to the register, she picked up two Cherry Mash candies. Emma hadn’t had one of those in years, but just seeing the red-and-white wrapper reminded her of the days when Rebel used to give her and Sophie one while they sketched or colored in their books. Maybe just having one would help Sophie get over all this and make up with Teddy.
Sophie was still in a mood when she got back to the vehicle. Emma wedged everything except the candy into a small place in the back, and then got behind the wheel again. “I’m going to turn Lulu off now, and you can guide me through the park and to the best campground.”
“Why do you call the GPS Lulu, and what are you hiding in your pocket?” Sophie asked.
“The cleaning lady we had after Rebel got fired was Lulu. She had a voice just like that GPS lady, and she was very blunt, not at all like Rebel. She never told stories or brought me one of these.” Emma tossed a Cherry Mash candy toward Sophie.
Sophie caught it midair. “Don’t think because you brought my favorite candy out here that you are forgiven.”
“Eat it and drink your coffee and tell me what to do now,” Emma said.
“Drive straight into the park, stop at the toll booth, and pay for us to go inside. It’s fifteen dollars for each of us,” Sophie said.
“Get your purse out,” Emma said.
“Oh, no.” Sophie shook her head. “This is your party. You pay the cover fee.”
Emma did a quick tally. She had more than thirty dollars left in her purse, even after buying what she had, but there wouldn’t be much left. Hopefully Arty and Filly had packed enough food to get them through until Sophie’s funk ended. Thank goodness Filly hadn’t let her pay for the things she’d asked them to pick up at the store while Sophie was gone, or she wouldn’t have been able to pay the toll.
They pulled in behind four pickup trucks when they reached the adobe booth with an American flag flying high outside. “Is there a camping fee in addition—” Emma started to ask, but two of the trucks in front of her shoved something out the window and went right on through, so she had to pull up.
“Sixteen dollars a night,” Sophie answered. “How long are we staying and which campground are we using?”
The best-laid plans and all that crap, Emma thought as she tossed out the idea of staying until the weekend. She had enough money to get them into the park. They sure wouldn’t go hungry, but Sophie had better get out of her mood by the end of the day.
At least you tried, and you got behind the wheel and drove again, and you asserted a little authority over Sophie.
“Yes, I did,” Emma whispered in agreement.
“You did what, and who are you talking to?” Sophie asked.
“I got you out of the house. I don’t have the money for campgrounds, so you’ve got until midnight to get yourself back on track,” Emma said.
Sophie grabbed her purse from the back seat and fumbled in it. “I need more than one day to be miserable.”
The last truck in front of her drove away, and Emma moved up to the window. Sophie shoved two papers at her. “Keep your money and give her these.”
“What are they?” Emma handed them to the woman in the booth.
The woman stuck her head out and smiled. “Is that you in the passenger seat, Miss Mason?”
“It’s me.” Sophie leaned forward and waved. “Good to see you again, Edna.”
“Glad you made reservations and got your annual pass in early,” Edna said as she handed Emma the tag to hang on the rearview and a pass to Cottonwood Campground.
“I always do. Have a great day.” Sophie smiled and waved.
Emma was as surprised about Sophie’s fake smile as she was about the fact that her friend had been going to make her use the last of her money when she had a pass to the park. Emma shoved her money back into her purse and tossed it over the seat. “You are evil when you are cranky. You would have let me use all the money I had, wouldn’t you? And you can smile for a stranger, but you’re fighting me every step of the way.”
“You are evil when you won’t leave me alone to work out my depression,” Sophie said. “I left you alone to take care of your demons. Drive, woman. There are cars behind you. And that woman didn’t make me get out of bed and drag me off looking like this.”
“Yep, you did leave me alone for about sixteen years, but you would have had to wade through Victoria to help me. Even you don’t have that kind of strength.” Emma put the SUV in gear and headed down the narrow two-lane road. “I don’t have that many years to worry with you.”
“So, you’re going to toss me away now that you and Josh are flirting?” Sophie asked.
“I swear to God,” Emma said as she clenched her teeth in a sudden burst of anger, “you should have been Victoria’s daughter, not me. Maybe when Rebel came to clean houses when we were just little kids, the nanny switched us.”