Always, Marissa said softly. I’ll see you in an hour, Elena, and whatever you need, we’ll figure it out together.
I promise. They hung up, and Elena stood there on the street corner holding her old phone, feeling something she hadn’t felt in so long she had almost forgotten what it was called.
Oh, she had one week to prepare. One week to transform from the homeless woman everyone ignored into someone who could walk into the Grand View estate with her head held high.
It seemed impossible. It probably was impossible, but Elena was going to try anyway. Elena walked slowly toward the coffee shop on Main Street.
With each step, she became more aware of how she looked. Her clothes were clean.
She always made sure to wash them when she could, but they were old and faded.
Her shoes made a soft squeaking sound because the Sauls were coming loose. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, but she hadn’t been able to brush it properly in days.
As she got closer to the coffee shop, she saw her reflection in a store window and almost turned around.
The woman staring back at her looked tired, worn down, nothing like the Elena who used to meet Marissa for coffee and laugh about silly things.
No, Elena told herself firmly. You called her. She said she would help. Don’t run away now.
She said to herself. She reached the coffee shop and stood outside for a moment, gathering her courage.
Through the window, she could see people inside. Well-dressed people sitting at small tables, typing on laptops, sipping fancy drinks that cost more than Elena usually spent on food in a day.
Would they even let her in? A young man behind the counter was watching her.
He looked like he might be the manager. Elena could see him thinking about whether to ask her to leave.
