A Child's Heart (Trent & Cassie's Story) A River City Novel by E. Ayers

messenger. You need powerful help on
your side. We need to take this to the mayor. I’ll go with
you.”
     
    ***
    Cassie barely had enough time to get back to the
museum before the teens began to arrive. Ari had given her a
thermos filled with soup, and two freshly baked rolls. While the
teens munched on hot dogs and popcorn, she found a quiet spot to
eat her food. She had just put the first spoonful into her mouth,
when her cell phone rang.
    “Hi,” Trent said. “As much as I want to see you
tonight, I can’t. I’m beyond exhausted.”
    “I got lucky and caught a nap. Tomorrow?”
    “Are you working?”
    “I’ll have to come in for a few hours. May I stop by
your house when I’m done?”
    “Yeah, I’ve got to mow the lawn in the morning. Mom
will be home, so Shawn can stay here, if you’d like to do
something.”
    “Let's do something with Shawn. I’m game for
anything. Call me in the morning.”
    “Night.”
    “Goodnight, my mutant from Death Star Three
Sixteen.”
    The strands of a chuckle came through the line before
the call ended. Closing her eyes, she remembered his lips on hers,
and his breath across her neck. A loud whoop from across the hall
brought her back to the moment. In two seconds, she was at the
door, surveying the teens and their fun. Assured everything was
under control, she went back to her meal.
    The evening progressed without a
hitch. The kids watched a documentary on a dig, and had a chance to
actually touch dinosaur bones. Three seniors from Drake Magnet
School for Gifted Students worked as disc jockeys, and kept the
young crowd happy with music. She had to laugh as one of the high
school seniors got a group together and taught them the Electric
Slide. Right foot, right foot, rock, rock,
turn . Soon most of the young teens were
participating. Joining the fun, she realized that Jim from River Lights who was
acting as a chaperone, was also snapping pictures of the crowd.
They were on their third line dance of night, when she bailed out
and found a seat.
    “This is great,” Jim said as he sat beside her. “I’ve
never seen anything quite like this for this age group. You need to
do this once a month.”
    “Uh! I’m not up to it.” She laughed. “Getting the
chaperones to volunteer is hard enough, besides the city is all
over me about funding.”
    “The museum had to have made money tonight.”
    “Oh, the museum is making money, but the city is
charging me rent and making the museum pay property taxes.”
    “What?”
    “Yep, you heard me. Jim, I need help. Would you
consider going with me to the mayor’s office? I’ve got a bone to
pick with the city that is larger than any dinosaur's.”
    “That’s not my beat, but I’ll give you someone who
would love to sink her teeth in such a story. Andrea Jenkins.”
    “Tell her to call me Monday morning. I’ll give her
the details.”
     
    ***
    Trent looked at the box he had
shoved under his bed. Knowing he was overly tired, and probably
shouldn’t, he opened it and began to sort through the items.
Unwrapping a small glass heart box sent a flood of memories through
his mind, starting with Colleen's smile on her sixteenth birthday,
as she opened the glass box filled with chocolates. Now it
contained her jewelry, including her wedding band. The tiny band
wouldn’t fit over the first knuckle of his pinky finger. Her gold
crucifix that hung on a delicate gold chain, he had given it to her
when she turned eighteen. Holding her earrings, made with pearls
and the tiniest diamonds, choked him with emotion, and tears began
to flow. My beautiful bride, I miss
you.
    He opened his eyes and realized he’d been sleeping
for hours. His fingers were still wrapped around the frame of
Colleen’s photo. Carefully, he sat up and began to pack her things
away. He scooped the diamond and pearl earrings from where they had
scattered in the sheets and put them in the glass box. Holding the
glass heart, he realized he had no desire to put it back