Planetfurry BBS

[Alexi]

Well, I'm finally going to post the first chapter of this. please tell me what you think.

Alex.

p.s. No definite title yet.

Chapter 1. On any other day.

Heavy, lead gray clouds overhead leeched the vibrancy from what little color there was to see, leaving the world dark and shadowy. Frank looked out his window and exhaled. A slow swirl of smoke drifted away from the cigarette that dangled from his muzzle, spreading out as it collided against the window pane. A thick blanket of unbroken snow covered the yard and powdered the trees. Combined with the snow currently drifting down in large, lazy flakes, the whole scene would have looked as picturesque as a holiday greeting card. But it wasn’t. A slate colored copy of an otherwise breathtaking view.

It was going to be a long, cold day. With a sigh, Frank turned away from the living room window and walked back towards the kitchen. He took one last drag from his cigarette before flicking it into the fireplace in the corner. The middle aged ferret knew this and accepted it as he did most things. It was simply a fact that was to be dealt with, nothing more. He picked up his coffee mug from the counter and poured himself the second cup of the morning. “Guess that trip into town’ll have to wait a bit.” He spoke to himself quietly. “Oh well. More time to work, I guess.” He took a sip and headed off to his workshop.

Molly heard a faint crash. It was not a loud crash but enough to wake her from her sleep. She looked around her bed room and saw nothing amiss. With a huge yawn, the little rabbit slid out of her bed and pushed her feet into her slippers. It was still fairly dark, even though the clock beside her bed said it was already after 7:30. Her window was frosted over with a thick layer ice but, the light coming through the hazy film was dim and seemed a bit washed out. Feeling more than a little fearful, Molly decided it would be a good idea to go climb into her parent’s bed. Snuggling down in between her mommy and daddy always put her at ease. The world couldn’t hurt her if they were holding her. She grabbed her stuffed dolly and went out into the hallway. The first thing she noticed was the cold. Nowhere near as warm as it usually was. She headed off towards the stairs and up to her parent’s room.

As she opened the door a cold gust ruffled the fur on her ankles and caused her cotton tail to flatten against her. She looked in and saw a large branch sticking through most of the window on the far side of the bedroom. She shivered and hurried over to the bed making sure not to kick the kerosene heater that was halfway between the bed and the door. She had clipped it once with her toes and remembered quite well how bad it had hurt. She scrambled up onto the mattress and crawled over to her Mommy. Mommy was lying on her side with one arm and her head draped across her husband’s chest. “Mommy,” Molly said as she shook her mother’s shoulder. “The tree broke the window. Can I snuggle in?” She shook her mother a second time when she got no response. “Mommy?”

Frank listened to the radio announcer as the weather report was repeated a second time. The snow was showing no sign of letting up any time soon but at least it wasn’t going to get any heavier, only another three to four inches by midnight. Setting down the rifle stock he was etching, he reached for his pack and tapped out a fresh cigarette as he walked out of his workshop and into the downstairs den. Staring out at the cold, gray world through the large windows opposite of him, Frank sighed as he rubbed the bridge of his muzzle. It was a bad day so far. The ghosts just wouldn’t leave him alone for some reason. Every time he tried to concentrate on working, his mind would wander off and his memories would begin to pick away at his will.

Walking over to the window, he leaned against it with his forearm pressed against it slightly above his forehead. He shook his head and turned away from the window. This was exactly what the therapist had warned him about. He needed to get away from things for a bit. Out of the house and out of his routine, anything to snap himself out of funk he was slowly slipping into.

Walking quickly down the hallway, he headed up the stairs and back into his living room. Reaching into the closet, he pulled out an old camouflaged foul weather coat and slipped it on. Zipping it all the way to the top of his neck, Frank took one last look around his surroundings; his eyes coming to rest on the cell phone setting on the coffee table. For a moment, he contemplated putting it in his pocket but thought better of it. It was doubtful that anyone was going to call him and to be perfectly honest the thought of who gave him the dammed thing would only dredge up another mistake. Those thoughts were exactly what he was trying to step away from for a while. He opened the front door and stepped out onto the porch. With one hand shielding his lighter, Frank lit up his smoke finally and started off towards the woods. It was bitterly cold and the slight breeze was trying it’s best to worm into the fur on his face. He reached up and raised the collar on the coat. “Single digits my fuzzy backside. If it’s above zero, I’ll eat my own tail,” he muttered as he reached the edge of the tree line.

The woods helped block the wind. Slowly, with the weight of the winter silence only shook by the faint tinkling of falling snow and the rustle of the wind in the high branches, Frank relaxed and opened himself to the world around him. He forgot about the work setting on the bench of his gun shop, the nightmarish memories of his past, everything... Only the sound of nature existed. His ears twitched on top of his head, rotating this way and that as he took in everything around him. Alone with only the crunching of his boots in the snow, Frank enjoyed his respite.

Molly zipped her coat up and pulled the hood up over her head almost too fast for her ears to pop out of the little openings made for them. Something was very, VERY wrong. She couldn’t get her Mommy or her Daddy to wake up. On top of everything, her head had started hurting when she went back downstairs to use the phone. The phone was silent and she couldn’t understand why. She had given up after several tries.

She did know that Mrs. Brindle, the nice old beagle that babysat her every now and then, was just on the other side of the woods. If she ran fast enough, the path out back would take her there in five minutes compared to running down the driveway which would take almost twenty minutes. That was what her Daddy had said once, before he made the path through the woods. She shivered as she hopped to the bottom of the stairs and ran for the opening in the trees that was the start of the path. She was a short ways into the path when the pain in her began to ratchet up, becoming agonizing. Molly stopped for a moment and sank to her knees with a cry as the pain stabbed at the back of her eyes. It lasted for several seconds until, finally, it subsided to the point she could stand. With great effort, Molly opened one of her eyes and blearily started back to the path. She moved a branch from a bush out of her way and worked her way around it then over a tree root. She continued to work her way through the scrub brush and frozen, leafless trees. Never once as Molly trudged, trying to see her way through the tears and the throbbing in her head, did she stop to wonder about the things that seemed to have grown up on the path.

Well into the afternoon, Frank was very relaxed. He had walked through most of the woods that made up the majority of his property. The silence had been a blessing. Its expansive presence seemed to consume the world around him, until he could actually believe that there was nothing beyond the forest. It possibly went on forever. He was halfway along the back property fence. He watched a pair of small birds pecking away at the ground next to an old walnut tree. There, the wind had drifted the snow so that a tiny patch of earth was left barren.
His reverie was lost, however, when he heard the distinct crunch of snow under foot. He slid the hood of his coat back to let his ears move more freely. It was faint, but he could definitely make out the sound of someone trying to walk through the snow covered woods with much difficulty. The years of training he held from a life of military service kicked in. No one lived within five miles of his property and that was if someone came in from the front. Back here, there was nothing and no one save the expanse of the Cherokee National Forest. Frank crouched slightly and circled, as quietly as he could, around the direction his ears told him was the intruder. Whoever the person was, it where only a few yards ahead and off to the side of the trail that he had been walking on. With little difficulty, he slipped through the trees and stopped a tree or two short of the rise that lead down the back of the mountain and into the park. He could hear the person approaching slowly. He decided to wait and then reassess the situation. He tensed as the footfalls sounded closer. As he watched, a small sugar pink coat came into view about eight feet away. Frank watched as the little girl stopped, shook herself and then started again but in a direction away from him, and the path. Relaxing a little frank pushed himself away from the tree and walked toward her.

Not trying to be quiet, he was only a foot or so away when she heard him and turned around quickly. She looked up into his eyes and for the first time, Frank could see that she was a small Rabbit, not even ten years old. The girl gasped and almost fell over backwards as she tried to back away from him.

“Take it easy now, hon. I ain’t going to hurt you.” He raised his hands out away from his sides with his palms open. “Just kind of wondering why you’re out here in the middle of the woods all by yourself.” He watched her as she stood there, shivering in front of him. Something seemed to snap her out of her fright as in the blink of an eye; she ran to him and started sobbing. Frank knelt down and put his hand on her shoulder. “Hey, it’s okay…” was as far as he got.

“Please mister, you got to help me. Mommy and Daddy, they won’t wake up and the phone won’t work. Please you have to make them get up!” The little child cried at him.

Frank gathered up the child and did his best to calm her. Nothing she said made much sense. No one lived behind him and the nearest house was the Richards and that was a good five miles away and on the other side of the farm. “Honey, where are your parents?”
The little girl sniffed. “They’re in their bedroom and they won’t wake up. Please mister, make them get up. I’m scared.” Frank sighed. “Little girl, I’m not sure how you got all the way out here but there ain’t a house around here but mine.” He realized his mistake a second later when she began to sob loudly. Quickly as he could, Frank held her to him and tried to calm her back down a little.

“Hey, come on now. It’s alright.” He thought hard and came up with a solution. “Let’s try this. You tell me what your Mom & Dad’s names, are and we can call them on the phone. Okay?”

“But the phone wouldn’t work and they won’t wake up! I shook and shook. I yelled and they just keep sleeping mister.” The girl replied before dissolving back into tears.
The hairs on the back of Frank’s neck began to stand up. He really didn’t like the sound of this now. “What’s your name honey bun?” he asked in a more serious tone.

The little girl sniffed her tears back for a moment. “M, Molly.”

“Molly what? What’s your last name, sug?” He was now looking her over carefully, checking to see if she was hurt or wounded in any way. Though nothing more than a few scrapes were evident, he did note that she was starting to not shiver. He knew what this meant. One way or another, she had to get out of the snow and fast.

The little girl struggled mentally for only a moment before replying to him, “Molly Bloom.”

Frank scooped her up, stood, and started back along the path. “Well, Miss Molly Bloom, let’s get you in out of the cold and I’ll call the sheriff and have him go out and get your Mom and Dad. How’s that sound?” The little girl nodded between sniffles and Frank hurried a little faster, trying to make his way back up the trail to where the trees broke and the back pasture lie. If he cut across them he would cut the trek down to about thirty minutes.

He noted as he went that his tracks where getting harder to see, harder than they should be. Sparing a glance around his immediate area gave him the answer. The snow had picked up. Not a white out by any means but a marked increase that would spell doom to anyone trying to back-track a trail. Luckily, Frank had owned this farm for most of his adult life and knew its layout intimately. “So much for the weatherman’s forecast,” he thought dryly as he cut out across the open grass field and headed in the straightest line he could for where he knew the house to be.

By the time he arrived, it was edging towards early evening and with the storm clouds filling the skies, it was barely twilight. Stomping his boots to shake off the thick crust of snow, Frank stepped inside the house and set molly down beside him. “Now let’s get you thawed out while I get a hold of Sheriff Mercer and see if he can find out about your folks.” Molly let him peel her out of the coat and her boots. He looked at her clothes. She was dressed only in a set of thick, flannel Pajamas half soaked in spots and frost covered in others. “Jiminy Christmas, sweetheart! Get over here by the fireplace!” He pulled the little rabbit over to the hearth and lit the set up that he had placed in it that morning. As the kindling caught fire from the burning paper beneath it, Frank reached for the phone and started dialing numbers.

After a few rings a male voice answered with a deep southern drawl. “Sheriff’s department.”

Frank wasted no time. “Parker, It’s Frank Pulaski.” the chipmunk’s voice took on the warmth of familiarity.

“Hey Frank, how you doing? Keeping warm I hope.”

“Yeah, doing fine. Look, I just found a little girl wandering around on the backside of my farm, and she’s hollering something about her folks not waking up.” He glanced down at Molly and was relieved to see that the young rabbit was shivering but not as badly as before. She was huddling close as she dared to the fire that now blazed in front of her.
Sergeant Parker’s ears twitched as he sat up a little in his chair. “Really now? That’s odd. She give you a name?” He reached over, grabbed a pencil out of a cup, and slid his desk journal in front of him.

“Yeah, she said her name was Bloom, Molly Bloom.” Frank told him. Parker started writing down the name then continued “Probably just another runaway. Had a couple last week tried to get all the way to Knoxville. Got about as far as the county line though. Had the dammedist cock and bull story you ever heard too.”

Frank replied quickly. “No, she doesn’t look, maybe seven, eight years old.” He watched Molly warming herself.

At this, Parker sat straight up in his chair. This wasn’t a run of the mill call in. He focused more now on his questions. Despite the laid back attitude the Georgia native was often teased about, Sergeant William Parker did take his job seriously when the situation required, and a lost child was something he considered to be very serious. He began typing the girl’s name into the computer next to him and sent out a registry search. A few minutes later he got a ping. “Well, I have a Robert and Linda Bloom, but they’re all the way over in Alberville. That’s a right smart walk.”

“Yeah, but how’d she get all the way out on my back forty?” Frank replied.

Sergeant Parker scribbled down their address and handed it to patrolman. He placed his paw on the mouthpiece for a second. “Hey Jennings, call over to Rick in Alberville and have him run one of his boys out to that address. See if they got a kid missing.” The uniformed badger nodded and headed off to call. He brought the mouth piece back up. “I got somebody calling over their right now. What do you suppose she meant by her folks not waking up? Think something funny’s going on?”

“Don’t rightly know. I ain’t none too fond of how it sounds though.” Frank looked down at Molly again and saw that she was looking back at him with a scared look on her face. He smiled and pulled the phone away slightly. “They’re sending an officer out to your house now, sweetie. Everything’ll be fine.” She relaxed a little but he could tell she was still very upset. The part of his heart that hadn’t become jaded over the years vowed that everything would be alright, he’d see to it himself if he had too. He watched as she looked back at the fire and continued to shiver. “Hey Parker, can you see if Doc Hastrider can make a run up here and give the little gal a looking over. She’s been setting here in front of my fire place for a bit and she’s still shivering something awful.”

“Yeah, I’ll send him up that way. He’s been through here a time or two this morning. They got most of the main roads salted, and that old Bronco of his shouldn’t have too much trouble so long as he’s careful.” Parker replied. Frank half snorted. “I’ll dang well meet him down at the bottom of the drive if he needs me.” He bit his lip and tried very hard not to say things that he usually said. He was sure that whoever the Blooms were, they wouldn’t take kindly if he taught little Molly any new words with four or less letters.

“You take care, Frank. We’ll get this straightened out in no time.” Parker reassured him.

“You too Parker, thanks.” He turned back to Molly. “Well, Sergeant Parker says they’ve got a man going out to your Mom and Dad’s right now. Once he gets them up and tells them where you are, we can get you home, alright?” The little girl brightened up considerably at this. When Frank sat down on the hearth next to her, she hugged him around his neck. “Thank you, mister.” Her eyes were filled with tears and Frank smiled at her. “It’s okay, honey; I’m just glad I could help.” He put an arm around her and squeezed gently. After a second though, he leaned back and placed his other hand on her cheek. Despite having been in front of the fire all this time, molly was still frighteningly cold. “Hang on a second, okay?” he told her before he patted across her clothes. Her Pajama pants were soaked on one leg up to her thigh and past the knees on both legs. Her top was a little damp but enough that he could still see a little frost on the bare edges. “Wait here.” He got up and went down the hall.

Molly watched as the strange ferret came back down the hall with a bundle under his arm. He turned and walked into another room, and she heard the rattle of pans followed by a sink running. After a moment, he reappeared with a large basin in his hands and the bundle over his shoulder. “Alright Miss Molly,” he called her with a smile that was warm and caring. “We need to get you out of those wet clothes and into something dry and warm.” He set the basin down and handed her the bundle. It was a large, terry cloth robe. “Here, shuck out of them PJs and slip that around you. It’s going to be a bit big on you, but we can just pull it nice and snug and bundle the rest around those cold little toes of yours.”

She nodded and watched as he turned away for a moment. She slid the shirt over her head and the slipped out of her pajama pants. The bathrobe was huge on her even after she wrapped it around herself. Her hands stopped just passed the elbow of the sleeves and it pooled at her feet. When the ferret turned back around, he giggled slightly and adjusted the sash that it fit her more snuggly. He reached down and picked up her clothes. “Why in the world is only one leg wet?”

Molly knew and looked down at the floor. She squeaked out quietly in an embarrassed, little voice, “I had an accident when you scared me.”

The strange ferret squatted down beside her and placed his hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay, sug. There’s nothing to be upset about. Sometimes it happens. I didn’t mean to scare you though. I am sorry.” He smiled at her. “Well, give me your underwear too, I’ll just run a load of laundry later and get everything all clean and dry, okay?” She hesitated for a moment, then stepped out of her panties and handed them to him.

He reached up and grabbed a couple of large pillows from the sofa and set her on them next to the fireplace. He rolled up some of the excess robe and placed the basin in front of her. “Here, put your feet in here and let’s get them thawed out.” She placed her left foot in the water and jerked it pack quickly. “Oww! Mister, it’s too hot!” she cried.
He pulled the pan back and placed his paw in the water. “Sweetie, it’s barely warm.” He reached down and picked up her foot. “Jeese, they’re near frozen. Hold on a sec.” He took the basin away and a few seconds later came back again. “Try it now Honey.”

She did and this time the water felt warm but uncomfortably so. She slid both of her feet into the bowl and looked at him. “Thank you Mister.”

He gave her a small but worried smile. “You’re welcome. And please, just call me Frank. Everybody else does.” Molly looked at him. She knew what her Mommy had told her about talking to strangers but Frank was very nice and he had helped her so much. She concluded that this wasn’t the kind of stranger Mommy had meant. As long as she knew his name now, Frank wasn’t a stranger.

Frank moved to set behind Molly. He placed one of her ears between his hands and held it. It was as cold as ice. “Poor little thing.” He said quietly to himself more than her. “Molly, how long where you outside walking?” he asked. She was shivering a little less now but still shook far too much for his liking.

“A long time. I woke up this morning, and it was cold in the house. I went to Mommy and Daddy’s room, but I couldn’t wake them up. I ran downstairs and tried to call Mrs. Brindle, but the phone wouldn’t work. I put on my coat and my boots and I started running to Mrs. Brindles’ house, but my head started hurting real bad, and I got lost.”
As he listened, Frank picked out key bits of info and tried to piece together what was going on. He wasn’t happy with what he was hearing. “Does your head still hurt now, sweetie?” She shook her head and somewhere in the back of his mind, a nameless dread started to form.

He held onto her ear gently until it no longer felt as if it were made of solid ice then moved to the other one. He listened as Molly continued. “I kept walking and looking around for the path Daddy cut, but I couldn’t find it. Then you came up behind me, and I got scared and…” She stopped and started to hug herself more. Frank released her ear and held her close to him. “Don’t worry, little honey bunny. Sergeant Parker and Sherriff Mercer are going out to get you parents. They’ll take care of everything.” She relaxed a little.

Once he was sure that Molly was doing better, he took her clothes downstairs to the washing machine and placed them inside. When he returned, Molly had her arms around her legs and was rubbing the robe lightly. He heard her sneeze as he stepped into the kitchen and place a pan on the stove and reached for the refrigerator. A short while later he came back into the living room with a steaming mug in his paws. “Her you go little lady.” He said cheerfully. “A nice cup of hot chocolate should help heat you up from the inside.” He watched as the girl accepted the mug and sipped from it.

“Thank you, Mister Frank.” He laughed and sat back down beside her.
A knock at the door caught frank’s attention. He rose quickly and headed over to the door. He opened it and saw Dr. Hastrider standing on the porch. “Parker called me on my cell phone. He said you found a little girl out in the woods?” Frank stepped aside and let the older raccoon in.

“Yeah, she was half frozen when I found her out on the back forty.” He walked over to where Molly was sitting and knelt down. “Molly, this is Dr. Hastrider, he wants to take a look at you and make sure that you’re okay.” He stepped back as the doctor sat down beside her.

“Hi there, little lady, what’s your name?”

She looked back at him and answered in a small voice. “Molly, sir.” He laughed a little and opened the bag he had been carrying. “Well now, Molly, if it’s okay with you, I’m going to give you a quick check up to see if you’re okay. Alright? ” when she nodded, he parted the robe a little at the top and placed his stethoscope to her chest. Frank smiled as he saw the old raccoon’s unique bed side manner soothe away molly’s fears for a little while. He watched as the doc checked her breathing and felt her little ears and paws. He asked her questions and nodded here and there as she answered.

When he was done, he placed his gear back into the bag and stood up. “She has a little bit of frost bite on her feet and on the tips of her ears but nothing to worry too much about, provided that she stays in and stays warm.” He looked down at her and smiled. “Her lungs sound a tiny bit congested. I’d keep an eye on her next day or so. Don’t want the little darling to catch cold.” He made a motion as he headed for the door for Frank to follow him. As he pulled on his coat he tilted his head and looked to the door. Frank nodded and walked him out onto the porch. Once he closed the door, the old doc looked him in the eyes. “I didn’t want to say this in front of the girl, but listening to her story has me a might bit concerned about her parents.”

“Why so?” Frank asked. He crossed his arms and listened more intently. “Well,” Doc began. “She said her Mom and Dad were sleeping too sound to wake when she was shaking them. Couple that with the fact that she developed a headache but only after going outside in the fresh air, AND her description of the headache makes me very concerned. When you hear back from the police, I want you to call me immediately. I don’t like this. Not one bit. Could be that they went into hiberitory coma, maybe not. It just doesn’t set right with me, though.” He shook Franks hand and headed back into his Bronco while Frank returned inside.

Once back inside, Frank went down stairs and switched Molly’s clothes over into the dryer and set the timer. When he came back up, he poured himself a glass of hot chocolate and sat down next to Molly. She wasn’t shivering now, and her fur color wasn’t nearly as pale as it had been. With circulation returning to normal, he could see that, even though her face was a warm gray, her cheeks where snowy white as was the thick tuft on her chest right at the base of her throat. Her paws as well as the tips of her ears where charcoal in color and only a shade lighter than the fluffy dollop of black hair that cascaded off her head. On impulse, he reached out and put his arm around her shoulder. Molly leaned over and cuddled up against him. Together they sat there and sipped hot chocolate and watched the fire.

“Thank you, Mister Frank.” Molly said after a while.
Frank looked down at her. “You’re welcome, little honey bunny.” She yawned slightly and sipped her cocoa some more. Frank stood up for a second and walked over to the T.V. He flipped through a few channels until he came across a movie that was fairly family friendly. Picked up Molly and set her on the couch then sat down next to her. “I’m afraid I don’t have too many channels, but it should pass the time until your parents call.”

“Are they okay?” she asked him. Frank didn’t want to lie to her but his fears where only suspicion. “Doc thought it might be hibernation instincts kicking in. You did say it was cold in the house. But I’m pretty sure they’re fine. Probably worried sick about you though.” A slight ding from down the hall told Frank that the dryer downstairs was through. “I think your Pajama’s are done. Be right back.” He went back downstairs and collected the girl’s laundry, taking time to cut off the light in his shop as well. He returned back to the living room and handed the clothes to her. “There we are all clean, dry, and still warm.” He picked up their mugs and went to the kitchen to refill them while Molly changed in privacy.

Molly quickly pulled on her undergarments as well as her Pajama top. She pulled on the pants and reached around to button up the tail hole. A few minutes later, Frank came back into the room holding a tray. He placed it down on the coffee table and pulled it closer to where they sat. On the tray were their mugs, full once more but with a large marshmallow floating in hers as well as a bowl of lettuce and other vegetables and a sandwich that Frank picked up for himself.

“I apologize, but I wasn’t too sure what cute little rabbit girls eat. Hope its okay.” Molly looked up at him and nodded vigorously. Until now, she had not realized just how hungry she had become. She placed her paws together in grace for a second and then started eating a large piece of lettuce. She and the ferret named Frank sat on his couch and watched the television, eating quietly. Molly wasn’t so scared now. Frank was nice to her and had taken very good care of her. Hopefully, her Mommy and Daddy would call soon, and she would be back home. She hoped they wouldn’t be mad at her for trying to go get help and tell her how good she was being while in someone else’s house. She started on a couple of carrots that looked very tasty, then remembered her manners and tried to eat a little slower the way her Mommy had told her. She drank more of her hot chocolate and nibbled on the celery more sedately.

Frank half watched the movie. He had seen “white Christmas” enough times to know it well. He glanced down at his house guest and stifled a chuckle. The girl was consuming a leaf of lettuce with the speed and efficiency of a paper shredder. He couldn’t blame the little darling though. It’d probably been a while since she had eaten and she was entitled to eat as much as she wanted after an ordeal like today. He continued to watch Molly as she ate the lettuce and then a couple of cherry tomatoes followed by a carrot or two. She yawned after a few minutes and started eating at a more normal pace. After most of her hot chocolate and almost all of the plate of vegetables, Molly’s yawns were very big and her eyes began to droop. Frank placed his arm around her, and it wasn’t long before he felt her snuggle tightly against him. He looked down saw that Molly had curled up into a ball and pressed herself against his lap. He put his hand on her head and stroked her cute little ears. With a small sigh, she nestled closer and twitched her tiny little tail.

Frank couldn’t help but smile. Molly was a very sweet little girl. He reminded himself to tell her parents how good she’d been. “Assuming they’re okay," he thought to himself. Something about this seemed familiar to Frank but, he couldn’t pin it down. With a sigh, he pushed it from his mind and scooped up the tiny bundle of flannel and fluff that was sleeping beside him and walked down the hall to the guest bedroom. He pulled the covers back and placed Molly against the pillow. Once he had tucked her in, he retrieved a couple of quilts from the closet and put them on the bed. He reached out and ruffled her hair lightly before turning off the light and heading back out to the living room. A quick check of the fireplace and the local news, frank turned the lights out and turned in as well. It’d been a long strange day. He was glad that it was finally over.

[RunningCat]

I printed out the story and will take a look at as soon as I can. I have a better time reading stories off line. I will get to and tell you what I think OK

[Amalthea]

Very well writte. I like it.

[Onic]

Very intriguing. I look forward to reading more.
My only comment is that there is some perspective confusion in several places, such as when Molly is introduced, and the cutting back and forth on both ends of the phone conversation between Frank and Parker.
Otherwise, well written. You certainly have descriptive talent.

[RunningCat]

Well I FINALLY got around to reading the story and I must say that it is really good. Though I have the horrible thought that I know the outcome for Molly's parents I have to say that I really love how you treated the characters in the story as living beings. Does that make much sense? Any way I look forward to next chapter or day or what however it comes.

[Alexi]

Thank you for the critiques so far.

I have two chapters finalized and a third at the pre reader and the fourth in beta almost ready to get the red pen.

I will try to post with some kind of consistency but we all know how RL gets.

[Teric]

That's a sweet, touching story--it's heartwarming to watch the interactions between Frank & Molly.

I too am pretty worried about Molly's parents; I thought maybe a gas stove had been left on or something and the gas had filled the house. Makes me wonder why Molly's head started hurting when she went downstairs--was it just the cold? Or something else?

Nicely written, Alexi. A few grammatical errors here & there, but for the most part the reading went smoothly.

[D.F. Thompson]

A very good story. Well writen with characters that come across very life like. Am looking forward to more.

[Alexi]

Teric: Thanks man. I swear, no matter how many times I have pre-readers look over my work, stuff always slips through. I'm begining to think this will be a hallmark of my style. Oh well. I will have to make some post edits I guess.

D.F. Thompson: Thanks for the compliments. It's better than the last time I posted writing. Ch. 2 is up and Ch. 3 is at the editor's stage, awaiting it's red-lined return.

[Syrius]

It took me a little to get into it, but by the time the call to the sheriff went through, I dug in more avidly.

What is Frank going to be redeemed of? What of the parents? Is there a sale going on at Macy's this week? Who killed Kennedy? Why do you drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?

My only critique is that the emotions of the characters are a bit hard to make out, as it's not explained how a character is saying what to whom, but that's probably me. You also are missing a few commas to indicate pauses here and there. Minor stuff.

Moar, plz.

[Alexi]

I have a second editor now for Grammatical issues. I'm glad that you like it so far. CH2 is here and three is coming soon.

As for your questions.

1. From himself, his past, etc. It's a working title that will probably be changed soon.

2. That's in Ch2.

3. No, next week.

4. That's classified. I can't tell you.

5. Ask the owl.

[Alexi]

WooHoo! We have a REAL title now!

The story is now titled (officialy) as "Healing Hearts"

AND

It is now up on the Raccoon's Bookshelf.

WOOT!