The Broken Road (The Broken Series) (12 page)

Patrick
picked up his chopsticks as he settled back into his chair. “I’m glad you like
it. Now, about that pile of paperwork…”

*
* * * * *

“Finally!”
I exclaimed to no one but Cade.

He
looked up at me with his warm brown eyes. He cocked his head to the side,
clearly questioning what all the excitement was about.

I
set my cell phone on the kitchen counter. “The furniture will be delivered in
less than an hour,” I explained.  

Cade’s
ears perked up as a soft knock sounded at the door.

I
gave Cade a curious look. “You off duty, my little guard dog?” I opened the
door and studied the young woman standing in front of me.

She
smiled. “Hi! I’m Kelly, the dog walker. We had an appointment to meet today.”

I
shook her hand, then motioned her inside. “Hi, Kelly. I’m Kri. Thanks for
coming over.”

“This
must be Cade. Hi, little guy.” Kelly kneeled as she invited Cade to smell her
hand. He rolled over and showed her his belly instead. Kelly laughed softly.
“Want your belly rubbed?” She immediately indulged him in the request.

I
was pleased to see how well they were hitting it off. Cade was afraid of most
people, which was understandable given what he had been through with me. Cade
stood guard over me through some difficult times. He had been painfully unaware
of the damage that could be done to his little nine pound body when my
ex-husband’s fists and feet came flying at me.

I
wasn’t sure about this whole dog walking business, but I couldn’t expect Cade
to cross his legs and hold it all day, especially considering my long work
hours and the commute. I watched Kelly interact with Cade. Her references had
panned out. Everyone raved about her. Still, I wondered how I could trust a
stranger with the one thing I loved most in the world.

“I’m
glad Cade likes you. He’s afraid of most people. He’s been through… a lot.”

Kelly
nodded in understanding as she continued petting Cade.

“I
called your references. Your clients obviously adore you; and I understand you’re
licensed and bonded.”

Kelly
nodded again.

I
continued. “Cade means everything to me. I have to know that you’ll always have
a gentle hand with him. He nearly died at the hands of a groomer, and he was
injured by my ex-husband. I have to know that you’ll never hit him or hurt him
in any way.”

Kelly
looked appalled that I would even suggest such a thing. “I’m so sorry to hear
that Cade’s been through all that. Please know that I would never hit any
animal under any circumstance.” Kelly’s voice was genuine as she continued to
stroke Cade’s belly. “Can I take him for a walk and explore the property today?”

“Sure.
I think that’s a great idea.” I handed Kelly the leash and showed her where I
kept Cade’s treats stashed. As the door closed softly behind them, I tried to
rein in my tears. My life was so different in Virginia that it was no longer
recognizable. I felt like someone had held me upside down, shaken the life out
of me, and left me to pick up the pieces… only none of the pieces were fitting
where they’d previously been.

Kelly
and Cade returned just as the moving truck pulled alongside my apartment. I
gave Kelly a spare key, we agreed on a time for Cade’s walks, and I pre-paid
her for the month. She gave Cade a treat and one last pat on the head. “I’ll
see you tomorrow, little buddy.”

I
scooped Cade into my arms and walked Kelly outside. Then Cade and I went to
greet the movers. I was anxious to see something familiar, something that would
reconnect me with my old life.

*
* * * * *

Driving
up I-395 into DC was a special kind of hell. The other drivers were beyond
rude. No one wanted to let me merge onto my exit. I had my turn signal on and
tried to inch in, but the cars were bumper to bumper and no one would budge.
Some man flipped me off for even trying. For whatever reason, the
every-other-car-goes-through rule did not apply inside the Beltway.

I
was forced to take a different exit. I spent twenty minutes looking for a place
to pull over so I could program my Garmin. I hadn’t bothered to program the GPS
when I left my house because I’d taken the route so many times with Habib. I
knew the way, but I was forced into unfamiliar territory when I missed the
stupid exit.

It
took me another fifteen minutes to reach the parking garage under the Thurgood
Marshall Building. My nerves were completely shot by the time I parked the jeep.
I couldn’t release my death grip on the steering wheel. All I could think about
was how much I wanted to move back home. I laid my head on my hands as I burst
into tears.

I'm
not sure how long I sat crying in the poorly lit garage, but a security guard
eventually rapped on my window. “Ma’am, are you okay?”

I
jumped in my seat when I heard his voice. I released the steering wheel so I
could lower my window. “Yes, officer. I’m okay. I’m sorry. It’s just that… this
was my first time driving in DC. I’m not used to driving in such a big city.” I
brushed the tears off my cheeks. I couldn’t believe I’d been caught crying over
my commute.

His
eyes gentled. “Driving around here does take some getting used to.” He glanced
at his watch, then added, “I’m Nathaniel. Can I escort you to your office
building?”

I
shook my head. “Oh, no. That’s not necessary. I know my way to the Senate Hart Building
from here.”

Nathaniel
smiled. “I could really use an excuse to get out of this dingy garage. I much
prefer fresh air,” he confided in a soft voice.

I
suspected this was outside Nathaniel’s protocol, but his warm eyes and kind
smile were difficult to resist. “Okay. In that case, I’d really enjoy the
company.” I smoothed my tear stained hands down my skirt and gathered my purse
and briefcase. I left my untouched coffee behind.

Nathaniel
reached for my briefcase as I locked the jeep. “Here, I’ll carry that for you.”

I
smiled gratefully as I handed him the briefcase. “Thanks. It’s really nice to
meet you Nathaniel. My name’s Kristine.”

He
fell in beside me as I walked toward the stairwell. “You know, Kristine,
everyone struggles with the commute around here. Part of the problem is our transient
population. There’s always a good percentage of people on the road who aren’t
familiar with the area.” He opened the door to the stairwell and held it open
for me.

I
shot him an apologetic look as we walked up the stairs. “I’m afraid I’m one of
those people.”

Nathaniel’s
smile widened as he opened the door to the main lobby. “The other problem is
the layout of the roads, but I have a theory about that…” Nathaniel nodded to
the guard at the security desk before opening the door that led outside.

“What’s
that?” I asked curiously.

Nathaniel
winked at me. “That the roads in DC were the South’s last revenge on the
North.”

I
burst out laughing. “Wow. That’s some serious revenge.”

Nathaniel
waved to another security guard, who was standing in front of Union Station.
“So, where are you from?”

I
glanced at Nathaniel. “I’m from Montana. Have you ever been there?”

Nathaniel
shook his head. “No. I’ve never traveled beyond Virginia and Maryland. I was
born and raised in DC.”

I
was completely shocked. “Are you serious? Everything is so close here. You
could be in West Virginia, Delaware, Philadelphia, or New York in just a few
hours.”

He
shrugged. “My entire family lives here, and DC is a fun city. I see no reason
to leave.”

I
studied him curiously. Maybe DC had some redeeming qualities after all, if
someone who grew up in the district never wanted to leave.

Nathaniel
eyed the Senate Hart Building. “So, which senator are you working for?”

I
smiled. “Senator Rockefeller.”

He
glanced at me. “I haven’t met him, but I’ve heard he’s a very nice man.”

I
nodded. “He does seem very nice. He’s certainly devoted to helping people who
are less fortunate than he is.”

Nathaniel
cocked his head and smiled. “We can certainly use more people like that.”

I
turned to face him as we approached the entrance to the building. “I agree.
Thanks for walking me to my office, Nathaniel. That was very kind of you.”

He
handed me the briefcase. Then he pulled a business card from his wallet and
tucked it in my hand. “It was my pleasure, Kristine. If you need anything at all,
please feel free to call. I’m here most weekdays.”  He gently patted my
shoulder. “Things will get better, you’ll see.”

As
I walked up the stairs toward the glass doors, I couldn’t help but think
they
already have.

I
spent the entire morning digging through the monstrous pile of paperwork that
had accumulated during my absence. I’d only been gone for one day to supervise
the movers, and it looked like I had missed an entire week’s worth of work. I
was about three inches into the pile when Patrick threw me a life preserver.
“Want to go to Cups with me?”

I
glanced up from the paperwork. “What’s Cups?”

Patrick
smiled. “It’s a coffee shop in the basement of the Russell building. They have
awesome coffee… better than Starbucks.”

I
set my pen down. “Nothing’s better than Starbucks.” I was testing Patrick.
Starbucks was good, but I knew there was better. I really loved the little mom
and pop shops that had cropped up all over Montana, Idaho, and Washington… especially
the ones that roasted their own beans.

Patrick
laughed. “Just you wait and see. Come on! I’ll give you a tour of the
underground tunnels while we’re at it.”

The
underground tunnels sealed the deal. As we made our way to the basement, I
thought about how different Montana and DC really were. Take drive through
coffee shacks for example. They were scattered all across Montana, but I hadn’t
seen a single coffee shack or even a drive through Starbucks anywhere in
Virginia or DC. The same held true for bagel and donut shops. They offered
drive through services in Montana but not in DC. I found the lack of drive
through options in Virginia and DC truly mind boggling, especially considering
the crush of people living in the area and the amount of time they had to spend
in their cars.

My
eyes widened in surprise when we finally reached Cups. The place was
essentially a windowless office converted into a coffee shop, but it had a very
long line. I figured that was a good sign. I was even more surprised when I
took my first critical sip of Cups’ toffee nut latte. I had to admit Patrick was
right about their coffee.

“I
have a feeling I'm going to be spending a lot of time at Cups,” I mumbled
around a mouthful of scone. The chocolate chip orange scone was about the most
decadent pastry I had ever eaten. We nursed our coffee as Patrick guided me
through the underground tunnels. Our first stop was the Senate Dirksen
cafeteria, which was swarming with people.  

Patrick
waved to another staffer who was walking by with a tray. “The cafeteria serves
breakfast and lunch. The food is good and it’s cheap.”

I
nodded. “Good to know.”

Shortly
after leaving the cafeteria, we entered a modern looking corridor where I made
a surprising discovery. “I didn’t know the metro ran under here.”

Patrick
laughed. “That’s not the metro. That’s the Senate Subway. It connects all the
senate buildings to the Capitol.”

I
stopped abruptly. I was totally enthralled with the discovery. “Can we ride
it?”

Patrick
chuckled. “Sure. We’ll catch it on the way back.” He continued walking down the
corridor that ran alongside the train track. Artwork from a nearby elementary
school lined the entire walkway.

I
trusted Patrick knew where he was going until my surroundings started looking a
bit sketchy. We had just entered a narrow corridor that appeared to be from a
different century. “Patrick, are you sure it’s okay for us to be here? This
area doesn’t look like it’s intended for the general public.”

“We
aren’t the general public,” Patrick reminded me. “We’re under the Capitol
building now. We’re allowed to be here as long as we have these.” Patrick
flashed his Senate badge at me.

I
studied my badge. “I didn’t realize this gave us access to the Capitol.”

“Oh,
yeah. I can show you all the places the general public never gets to see.”
Patrick winked at me. He was clearly enjoying his role as personal tour guide.

The
Capitol was the most beautiful building I’d ever seen. I couldn’t stop gaping
at the artwork or the architecture. The gleaming Brumidi Corridors offered the
grandest and most ornately painted walls I’d ever seen. The marble stairs that
led to the old Senate and Supreme Court chambers were worn down in the center
from so many feet passing over them. Goose bumps danced along my skin when I
thought about the historical figures who had walked down those very same steps.
I could have spent months inside that building and still not seen all the
beauty it had to offer.