The Boarding House by Sharon Sala Page A

Ellie to come home. She’d insisted on taking a job, which he’d reluctantly agreed to, but only if she kept up her grades. With a 4.0 GPA, she’d given him no room to gripe.
    Now she was talking about colleges and leaving home and he was in a state of constant panic. He couldn’t think of one single way to keep her under this roof that wouldn’t get him arrested.
    When the phone rang, he ran to answer.
    “Daddy, it’s me. I have a flat. I’m at the parking lot in front of the old strip mall they’re going to demolish—the one on Randall Avenue.”
    Garrett frowned. That wasn’t the best neighborhood and it was getting close to dark.
    “Get in the car and lock all the doors. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
    “Okay,” she said, and climbed back inside and hit the locks.
    It was nearing dusk and their house was on the other side of town. It would take him at least ten minutes to get here, maybe more depending on traffic. She hunkered down in the seat and told herself everything was alright. Daddy would change the flat and then they’d go home. No big deal. She just wished Wyatt had stayed with her. She wouldn’t be scared if Wyatt was here.
    When a shiny black car with tinted windows drove past, she hunkered down even further in the hopes no one could see her. Within a couple of minutes, the same car came past her again, only slower. Her stomach knotted.
    “Keep going, keep going,” Ellie muttered, then nervously watched in the rearview mirror to see if it made a third trip around.
    When it appeared in her rearview mirror, she started to panic and this time when it rolled past, it didn’t go far before the brake lights came on.
    Her fingers tightened around the steering wheel. She thought about just starting the car up and driving away on the flat tire. But then both front doors opened and two young Latinos emerged. At that point Ellie got desperate.
    “Okay God, You and I haven’t had a conversation in about five years and we both know why, but I’m giving you one last chance to come through for me. Please don’t let these people hurt me. Amen.”
    She watched them get out with their baggy blue jeans and long plaid shirts hanging nearly to their knees. They had matching bandanas tied around their heads and walked with a slight swagger as they stopped at her window. They didn’t look much older than Ellie. One of them knocked on the window.
    “Hey, pretty lady, are you having car trouble?”
    Ellie could almost hear Wyatt telling her  . . . don’t let them know you’re afraid . She made herself smile.
    “I have a flat. My Daddy’s on the way to help me change it,” Ellie yelled, pointing to the right front tire.
    They circled the car, pointed at her tire, then one of them tapped on the passenger-side window.
    “Pop the trunk and we’ll change it for you,” he said.
    Two things went through her mind. If she popped the trunk, they could steal the tools and spare tire. If she didn’t pop the trunk, they might try going after her instead. She reached for the button.
    The trunk popped up behind her and the two guys disappeared. She heard thumping and bumping. The car shook a couple of times, and then to her amazement they reappeared. One was carrying the spare, the other the jack and lug wrench.
    “You don’t have to get out. Just don’t move around,” he said.
    Ellie nodded.
    Within moments, she heard the hubcap pop. It fell onto the concrete with a clang. When the shorter one suddenly went out of view, she realized he’d squatted down beside the wheel and was loosening the lug nuts. She heard them dropping the nuts into the hubcap and closed her eyes in disbelief. This was exactly what Daddy would do. Oh my God, they were actually changing her flat.
    When they began to jack up the front end of the car, it was instinct that made her grab the steering wheel to keep from sliding against the door. She was trying very hard to sit still—to not rock the car in any manner.
    There was a loud