“May as well stop for coffee as to sit in this traffic.” Louise called something else to Hans, and he pulled in front of a quaint shop built of stones. She fumbled with her wallet. “Meri.” Louise pointed to her stockinged feet. “Could you get the coffees for us?” She chuckled. “I doubt I can get my shoes back on.” She handed her a twenty Euro bill “This should cover whatever we want. Feel free to get us a pastry too. Their strudels are to die for. And I’ll have an iced latte with a dash of vanilla and a sprinkle of cinnamon.”
“Sounds good. Thank you.”
“No. Thank you.” Louise beamed at her. “You’re an angel of mercy.”
Hans called something back and Louise translated, explaining he was in a no parking zone. “So we may have to circle around.”
“No problem,” Meredith assured her as she got out. She felt blessed to have fallen in with such a kind generous woman. As she shut the door she remembered how her friends back in Papua New Guinea were praying for her trip...and that she’d meet some good people along the way. Maybe this was an answer! Perhaps her unexpected encounter with Louise would end up being more than just passing. She hoped so.
The coffee shop, with its geranium filled flower boxes on the windows, turned out to be even more charming on the inside. But as the Dutch door closed behind her and the sedan pulled away, she got a sinking feeling. Was she foolish to leave her bags with someone she barely knew? Chiding herself for her suspicions, she attempted a chuckle. That sweet old woman? How ridiculous.
She got into a short line but felt a little uneasy about how slowly it was moving. Although this did allow her time to study and translate the menu and to prepare to order in German.Finally it was her turn, and she stumbled through her order of two iced coffees and one apple strudel and one raspberry scone. The barista, a short blonde woman looked amused. “American?” she asked with arched brows.
“Is it that obvious?”
“I’m from Seattle,” the woman told her with a grin.
“Really?” Meredith blinked. “Do you live here?”
“Just for the summer.” She told her the total, and to Meredith’s surprise, it took most of the twenty. “Yeah, we have taxes on some food items here.” She winked. “For the tourists.”
“Oh, yeah. Of course.” Meredith smiled back. “Sorry, that’s all the cash I have.” She dropped the meager change into a tip cup.
“No problem.” The blonde waved to the next customer and told Meredith to enjoy Vienna.
As Meredith moved out of the way, she glanced out the window. Traffic was still snarled and the sedan not in sight, but perhaps that was for the best since they’d only have to wait anyway. Instead of fretting over the absent car, she thanked God for allowing her to meet Louise at the train station. Perched on a stool, she allowed herself to daydream. After all, she was in Vienna, living out her dream to see Europe. She thought about the elegant Louise, imagining what it might feel like to be invited to visit her home. Judging by the older woman’s appearance, she was well off. Wouldn’t it be a treat to be a guest in her home? Not only would it save some Meredith’s travel funds, it would probably be much more luxurious than the hostel, which would be like a noisy dorm with smelly shared bathrooms and probably a lot of partying college students. Louise looked like the kind of person who would live in a beautiful townhouse. Or perhaps an estate. Like something out of a movie. Maybe she had a delightful son…or grandson…or maybe Meredith was being perfectly ridiculous. Still, it would be cool to save some money and stay in the hypothetical lovely place.
Meredith’s plan was to frugally budget her money early in the trip. She would save splurging for later. For two years, she’d been earning extra money by babysitting for various missionary families who lived on the base where she’d taught school. She’d managed to accumulate about $4,000 which she’d used to purchase traveler’s checks, as well as her Eurail pass. She’d heard you could get by on a hundred dollars a day by staying in hostels and purchasing food from open markets and such.
And if worse came to worst, she’d heard you could sleep on the train at night to save lodging money. For emergency backup she still had the Visa card her dad had sent her after David had left her behind. She hoped not to use it, but it was reassuring to know it was safely tucked in the interior pocket of her backpack along with her other valuables…in the trunk of Louise’s car…which was still MIA.
She bit her lip as she stared out the window. What if something went wrong? With all this traffic and circling around, they might’ve gotten into a fender-bender. She wished she’d thought to grab her phone from her pack. And to have gotten Louise’s number. More than that, as her order was called, she wished she hadn’t allowed Hans to put her pack in the trunk.
The blonde barista smiled, wishing her a good visit as Meredith picked up the tray holding the coffees and small bag of pastries. She thanked her but had no interest in food or drink. Instead, she felt slightly sickened in the pit of her stomach, like she’d just swallowed a brick.
She tried to make light of herself as she stepped outside into the late afternoon sunshine to wait for Louise. She must be making a mountain out of a molehill. Probably symptomatic of culture shock. The car likely was coming around the corner right now. But as she peered down the one-way street, she saw a steady stream of traffic but nothing resembling the missing sedan. What make was it anyway? Mercedes? She was no experton cars. And although she thought it was black, she wasn’t positive. Maybe it was navy? Or slate? She only remembered it was dark.
Her pulse raced like she’d just climbed a mountain as she sat down on a bench in front of the shop. She took several slow deep breaths. She’d learned the trick after she’d suffered a panic attack after David left her behind in Papua New Guinea, a way to calm her down and soothe her nerves. She didn’t want to look like a basket case when Louis’s car pulled up, acting like she didn’t trust them.
Meredith breathed a few more slow breaths then sipped her iced mocha, which tasted metallic despite the sweetener. Or maybe it was just her. As she slid the drink back into the space on the cardboard holder, she wondered what time it was now. How long had that car been gone? Without her phone, she had no idea.
Biting her bottom lip, she continued staring down the street, praying desperately for God to bring that sedan back. But although traffic was lightening and time was passing, she still didn’t spot that car. As tears threatened, she suspected she’d seen the last of it. What a fool she’d been to trust complete strangers—and in a foreign country too! Good grief, she’d been warned about scams like this. Still, she’d never expected it could happen to her. Had it really?
She stood, not quite ready to give up. After all, Louise was well off. Why would she want Meredith’s humble bags? That was just silly. Surely, they’d been involved in a fender-bender like she’d imagined earlier. They were probably on a side street, answering questions, filling out paperwork. Hadn’t she heard enough sirens to explain that?
Determined to turn every stone, still carrying her tray, she walked down the one-way street toward oncoming traffic then turned at the first corner. She continued, following the streetsthat seemed to loop the coffee shop block, hoping she wouldn’t get hopelessly lost in the process. Until she was finally back on the original street, in front of the coffee shop, with no sign of Louise or her fancy car anywhere.
Meredith had been duped.
2
She couldn’t stop the tears now. Tears of frustration, humiliation, and exhaustion from her long flights just to get to Vienna. What does one do in a situation like this? No phone, no money, no passport, no nothing! Was this what it felt like to be homeless?
She thought of her father. She could ask him for help, but the last time they’d talked, while she was in Hong Kong, he’d excitedly explained his own vacation plans. His summer break had begun last week, and his best teacher friends, Mike and Brad, were just starting out on what they hoped would be their final trek on the Pacific Crest Trail. They’d been going at it for two summers now and hoped to finish up in Canada by August. More than likely he would be out of cell phone reach by now. Not that she could call him.
With one last hopeless look down the street, she remembered the friendly American barista in the coffee shop, but when she tried the door, it was locked with aGeschlossensign hanging in the window. Closed. She peeked over the geraniums to spy lights still on, and the blonde barista counting out the till. Indesperation, balancing the coffee tray in one hand, Meredith knocked on the window until the blonde finally came over to see who was making the commotion.
Meredith mouthed the word “help.” The barista, who bore a furrowed brow, unlocked the door, let her inside, then relocked it. “What’s going on?”
