She's Gone: A Novel (38 page)

50

Far Away Eyes

On the 101 Freeway they passed a road sign. “Santa Barbara, 60 miles,” Charlie read. Jolie breathed in and audibly exhaled. A rising anxiety gripped her. She clutched her moonstone. He glanced over at her. “You okay?”

She nodded, pulled down the visor, and peered into the mirror. She’d been gone almost two years. On the inside, she was a completely different person. Had her appearance changed much? The same blue eyes and face stared back at her. Please let them forgive her.

In Santa Barbara, Charlie pulled into a gas station to clean up. They both emerged from the bathrooms looking fresh but road weary. Charlie had shaved and wore a white button-down shirt and jeans. He looked boyish with his shoulder-length hair. Jolie had changed into clean bell bottoms and a silk blouse and had combed her hair. She gave him directions as they drove and soon La Bamba turned up the long driveway to her parents’ house.

Nervous energy flowed through her body. Charlie parked, and they got out. He leaned against the car.

“Breathe and stay grounded,” he said.

A brief smile met her lips. Her legs wavered, weak with apprehension. How could she come back after being gone for so long?

She walked toward the courtyard entry, and her father appeared.
He stood in the doorway with his arms outstretched. It was the same vision of him that she saw in her reoccurring dream, at the pond with the Buddha, except now he was smiling. Charlie stood by the car. Jolie first walked, and then ran. She floated to her father’s arms and was enveloped in a bear hug. His blue eyes were wet, but his smile was unwavering. Her mother appeared and then her two brothers. She was engulfed in hugs. Jolie looked over at Charlie who was riveted to the same spot.

“Let me introduce you to Charlie. Oh, and La Bamba.”

Charlie moved toward them and shook her father’s hand and then her brothers’. He gave her mother a hug. They moved inside. “It looks like you could use a beer,” her father said to Charlie.

“And a shower,” Jolie said.

The next morning Jolie and Charlie sat out on the deck. The ocean sparkled in the distance and the scent of honeysuckle and jasmine mingled in the air.

“Look at this,” Charlie said as he waved his hand at the view. “I can’t believe I’m in California.”

Jolie smiled and looked at the ocean. The water glinted clean and blue. The oil platforms still loomed on the horizon silently threatening another oil spill.

“And your family. They’re so welcoming. Last night af
ter you went to bed I stayed up with your dad and brothers. They wanted to know everything about the war. They really missed you, Jolie. Your dad called me a hero for bringing you home.”

She would miss Charlie. His open honesty, his faint accent. She loved everything about him. “You are my hero.”

“I have to leave for L.A. soon.”

“I’ll write you,” she said. “I’ll let you know what college I get into.”

“You better.” He paused. “I was wondering something.”

“What’s that?”

“Can I come out for your birthday when you turn eighteen?”

A laugh spilled from her. It was a deep laugh that had been unconsciously silenced for a while. “I thought you’d never ask.” She met his eyes. He had been there for her the whole time.

“I’m sure we can think of something crazy to do for your birthday,” he said. “Another road trip?”

“Hmm,” she said, with a faint smile and a faraway look in her eyes. “How about a temple in the mountains of Tibet?”