From a Distant Star

From a Distant Star by Karen McQuestion

Book: From a Distant Star by Karen McQuestion Read Free Book Online
Authors: Karen McQuestion
and he got the color back in his cheeks. He spoke in a more normal tone of voice and responded in a way that made sense. He fooled everyone—his family, his friends, the doctors. Everyone but me and Mack.
    The end of the second week, I asked his parents’ permission to take Lucas out on Saturday evening. “Just out for a burger at Scotty’s,” I said. Scotty’s was the local burger joint, frequentedmostly by teenagers and young families. “And then to a baseball game at the high school. All the guys really want him to be there.” Lies. It was all lies. The best lies I could come up with on short notice.
    Mrs. Walker exchanged a skeptical look with her husband. “I don’t know. Lucas is just getting over being sick. I hate to take a chance.” She said it like he had a bad case of the flu and she was afraid he’d relapse. “Can’t you just watch a movie here? I can heat up a pizza for you, and we have root beer. It’s the kind Lucas likes.”
    “It’s just that everyone was looking forward to seeing him at the game. And he’s been cooped up at home for so long.” Through all of this, Lucas said nothing, another oddity. Usually he could charm his mother into agreeing to anything. She had a soft spot for her older boy.
    “I know, Emma, but what if something happens?”
    “Nothing’s going to happen.” I sensed I was losing ground here, but I wasn’t going to go down without giving it my best shot. “We won’t be far, and I’ll have my cell phone,” I said. “If he seems too tired or doesn’t feel well, we’ll come back early, right Lucas?”
    “Right,” he said. “We’ll come back early.”
    “And how are you planning on getting there?” Mrs. Walker frowned. “Lucas isn’t going to be driving our car, I can tell you that much.”
    “My mom said I can use her car. It’s very reliable. And it has all the latest safety features,” I added hurriedly. “She doesn’t want me to stay out late either. I told her I’d be back by ten at the latest.” Neither of Lucas’s parents said a word, so I made an adjustment. “Or we could be back by nine-thirty, if that’s better.”
    “It’s just that he’s only been well for such a short time,” Mrs. Walker said.
    Mr. Walker turned to his wife and said, “What if Eric goes with them? Would that make you feel better?” I didn’t want Eric to gowith us, but if that was the only way it was going to happen, it was better than nothing.
    Eric yelled from the next room. “I don’t want to go on their date. Let them go alone. What’s the big deal?”
    I silently thought,
thank you, Eric
, but it turned out that his objections and my wishes didn’t matter. Mr. and Mrs. Walker decided that the only way they’d allow Lucas and me to go out for the evening was if Eric came along. And so, with me at the wheel, Lucas in the front passenger seat, and Eric in the back, the three of us drove away from the farm at five-thirty on Saturday evening.
    “This seat belt isn’t staying closed,” Eric called out as we barreled down the highway.
    “It’s broken.” I tossed my answer over my shoulder. “Try the other one.”
    “So much for all the latest safety features,” he grumbled. “I can’t believe they made me go with you guys. Such a waste of my time.”
    I was nearly to Mrs. Kokesh’s when Eric figured out something was off.
    “Hey,” he said, his head swiveling to look behind us. “You missed the turn off to Scotty’s.”
    “We’re not going to Scotty’s,” I said. “Or at least not right now. If we have time, we’ll stop afterward.”
    “Afterward?”
    “I have to talk to Mrs. Kokesh about Lucas.”
    “Mrs. Kokesh!” I glanced in the mirror to see Eric abruptly sitting up in the back seat. “What’s going on, Emma?” Even Lucas seemed interested, turning my way with a questioning look.
    “I used her help to cure Lucas, but something went wrong,” I said, gripping the steering wheel. “Something went terribly wrong. I have

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