“Are . . . you . . .” Audrey sputtered. “We should be punished.”
“Not rewarded,” Raelene gasped.
“Sarah tells me that a backpack will do since we can shop for what we need when we get there. And, girls, you two shouldn’t be punished for taking up for each other. That’s what family does,” Grace said.
When neither of them moved for what felt like a whole minute, Grace clapped her hands. “Get crackin’. This is my first vacation in my whole life, and I don’t intend to miss the plane.”
“It’s my first one, too,” Audrey chimed in. “When we did drive somewhere, we always had to be back in time to open the shop the next morning, or if we went on Saturday, we had to be back Sunday evening to get things ready for Monday. We can’t miss the plane, Mama.”
“But...” Raelene shook her head slowly. “I can stay here and keep up the house and flower beds and...”
“No!” Audrey raised her voice. “You have to go with us.”
Grace pointed toward the door. “Family doesn’t leave family behind.”
Raelene blushed.
The girl was thinking about finances, for sure. “Don’t worry about money. This is our graduation present to you, and we’ll take care of everything. Audrey, please rustle up a backpack for me. Now, go!”
“Yes, ma’am.” Audrey jumped up from the sofa and wrapped her arms around her mother. “Thank you, Mama.”
With tears streaming down her face, Raelene made it a three-way hug. “I’ve never been anywhere farther than San Antonio on a school trip. I feel like I’m dreaming.”
If Grace had had a single doubt in her mind, that brief moment erased it. For the first time in a year, her daughter had hugged her and saidthank you.
Sarah led the way into the airport and up to the ticket counter, where she explained that they were all flying newbies and needed help. The woman at the counter pointed toward a kiosk and motioned for them to follow her. She showed them what to do and stayed with them until they all had tickets in their hands.
“Thank you,” Sarah told the woman.
“I’m starving,” Audrey said. “We didn’t get any lunch, and we were too afraid of what kind of trouble we were in to even grab a snack.”
“We should have time to grab something after we find our terminal,” Grace said. “I’m hungry, too. I still can’t believe we are doing this.”
“Just think”—Sarah moved up to the front of the line—“we’ll be breathing ocean air before we go to bed tonight.”
“I’ve never seen anything bigger than Pilgrim Lake,” Raelene said. “Granny taught me how to swim there one time when Mama let us borrow her car for the afternoon.”
Grace patted her on the shoulder. “None of us have been very far, either. We all had a senior trip to Galveston, but I hear the beaches in Florida are much prettier.”
“I’m scared,” Audrey whispered.
Raelene looped her arm through Audrey’s. “I want to see everything out the window. I don’t want to miss one single thing.”
“Thanks,” Audrey said meekly. “I’ll be glad when we get there, but until then I can’t believe that I’m not dreaming.”
“I guess you know if you’ve rebelled and gotten a secret belly ring, it will set off alarms,” Grace teased as they lined up to go through TSA.
Audrey shook her head and removed her shoes. “Just my ears are pierced—and no tattoos. How about you, Raelene?”
“Neither one,” Raelene answered.
“But you’re already eighteen, right?” Audrey asked.
“As of February 1,” Raelene answered. “And to be honest, I’m scared of needles more than I am of flying. I closed my eyes and held my breath until the nurse finished the shot at the hospital.”
“I’ll be seventeen June 1,” Audrey said. “Mama, there’s a place to buy sandwiches and drinks. Can we stop there? I can see our terminal from here.”
“Sounds good to me,” Grace answered.
