Everything stunk. That had been her life since the hospital. Smells and rages and sounds and sights. A myriad of hell that only seemed to be helped by her medication. And even then, it only made things manageable.

  ?Her mother was the first. The stink of wine and perfume ate at Kim's senses, making the woman ten times more repulsive than she had been.

  ?Her father hadn't managed to visit. He had tried to video call, but Kim couldn't look at the phone, let alone put up with the gritty metallic tone that electronic sounds left in her ears. He promised to be home when she got there.

  ?If the hospital was hell, the airplane was Satan's bathroom. It took a sedative to get her on the plane. And an extra dose of her meds. She wasn't unconscious, but she wished she was. Instead, it felt like the annoyances were still there, but she just kind of cared about them less. Like she was drunk.

  ?On the car ride home, the meds started to wear off. Her father called to say he would be another week. But that he was happy to hear about her progress. It was unclear if he would be home in a week or if he would surprise Kim.

  ?Home was a small mountain town called Alden. Kim used to hate the small-town vibe. But she couldn't help but love the fresh air that greeted her as they drove up to their home.

  ?Parts of Alden were a rugged kind of town. A lot of people imagined themselves cowboys. Which to Kim meant a lot of drinking beer and wearing stupid hats. The other part was skiing and tourism. In truth, the whole thing was a tourist trap. It's just the ski resort did it better.

  ?Usually, Kim hated the place, but it was all she could do not to hang out the window as they drove up to her home.

  ?Kim's home was huge. And it was on a huge lot. It was beautiful, picturesque, and nothing that appealed to Kim. All she saw were the not-too-distant woods. The mountains in the distance all but called her name.

  ?Kim burst from the car. She took off like a bolt to the backyard. Her mother screamed after her. But she wouldn't hear it. She was just happy to be away from the filth and stink.

  ?"Kim, please!" Her mother pleaded, chasing after her.

  Stolen story; please report.

  ?"I just need the yard, Mom. Please, I need to be outside!"

  ?Her mother sighed. "Fine." And she went into the house.

  ?Kim went to the swings in the backyard and waited for a familiar voice.

  ?"Kimberly, is it?" she heard a few minutes later.

  ?All her life she had been raised by a housekeeper named Sekwan. A Native woman. Kim had called her Sek. The woman in front of her wasn't Sek.

  ?"Who are you?" She was young, Hispanic, and attractive. Which meant her Dad had hired her.

  ?"I'm Jill. I'm taking over for Sek. Your mother asked me to keep an eye on you."

  ?Kim eyed her on the back porch like prey. "What happened to Sek?" She said with a dangerous tone. It made the woman swallow hard and step back.

  ?"I'm sorry, I thought your parents had told you. Ummm... I can go get your mom."

  ?Fury ripped through Kim. "No need!" She spat as she stalked past her.

  ?"Mom!" She roared as she stormed into the kitchen.

  ?Her mother sat at the table on her phone. An open bottle of wine at her side. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I planned to tell you. It slipped my mind with everything..."

  ?"SLIPPED YOUR MIND!!!" Kim had trouble finding her words. But the loss of her surrogate mother helped her find them. Sek was family.

  ?"Kim, sweetheart, she quit while you were away. She didn't want to say goodbye. I don't know what happened! I tried calling her when you got hurt. She didn't answer and I had to get to Nunavut to get you from camp."

  ?Furious, Kim grabbed her mother's wine bottle and threw it against the wall. The sticky red mess poured down the wall. "I'm going to town!"

  ?"Kim, you can't!" Her mother got up. "I won't let you!"

  ?Kim could hear the low growl rolling out of her. It should have felt strange. But it didn't. Like being in the fresh air, it just felt right.

  ?"At least let me drive you," her mother asked. Kim had scared her.

  ?"Yeah right. I'm safer hitchhiking! You drove me back from the airport sloshed and you think I'm going to get back in a car with you!?"

  ?"You can't drive, Kim!" Her mother yelled, finding her courage.

  ?"I'll crawl if I have to!" Kim shouted back. Turning, she stalked out the door.

  ?It was Jill that caught up to her about 15 minutes later. Kim turned to see her pulling up in her car. The smell of fear washed off of her like a tidal wave. "Look, if you want to go to town, at least let me come with you. I'm not trying to take your friend's place. If I don't come, your mom is only going to call the cops."

  ?Kim walked over to the passenger door and got in.

  ?"This doesn't mean we're friends," she said as she put on her seatbelt.

  ?"Understood," Jill responded as they drove off.