Shadow of a Life Read Free

the Dean of Academic Affairs at Newton University
in nearby New Bedford. He was a good father and he tried hard, but
I think he sometimes hid at work so he wasn't reminded of his
loneliness. My mom left us when I was only six. I had a few happy
memories from when she was still around, but mostly I just
remembered her fighting with Dad all the time. When she left they
didn’t get divorced—they separated. It only made matters worse. Dad
wouldn’t even consider dating anyone else since he was technically
still married. I think he secretly hoped she’d return for good
someday. Anyway, Dad was an economics professor at Newton
University, but shortly after Mom left he was promoted to Dean of
Academic Affairs and left me with the task of raising
myself.
    I carried my empty cereal bowl to the
sink, rinsed it, and put it in the dishwasher along with the dishes
Dad left. Gazing out the kitchen window, I let out a deep sigh. I
felt dull. It was as if life was passing me by and I just watched,
waiting for something to happen, but nothing ever did.
    While in junior high, I read all the
Nancy Drew mysteries. I used to think of myself as Nancy Drew. She
was raised by her father like me, but Dad and I don’t have the
luxury of a full-time housekeeper like Nancy did. In our home, I
was the housekeeper. I wished that there would be some mystery that
would fall into my lap so I could go on fact-finding journeys with
my friends George and Bess. In my case, it would be Camille and
whichever other friends we could persuade to come along. I wouldn’t
even mind having a hot boyfriend like Nancy did. I really did live
in a fantasy world.
    I wandered back upstairs to
my room and plopped onto my bed, sitting cross-legged with my
laptop in front of me. If I started right then, I knew I could
finish my English report before the library even opened for the
day. I was writing a report on the John Steinbeck novel, Of Mice and Men . We’d
been given two weeks to read the book and then another week to
write a three-page paper about it. I finished the book in two days.
I was pretty sure Camille was still somewhere in the first
half.
    At eleven o’clock I hit save on my
computer and printed the final copy of my report. Probably not my
best work, but I was confident it would get an ‘A’ anyway. I
stretched my arms over my head and twisted in my chair in an effort
to straighten my back, stiff from being hunched over the computer
for an hour. I emptied the contents of my backpack onto my bed,
refilled it with library books ready to return, and headed for the
garage. At least Dad had gotten me a nice bike a couple of years
before. I would have hated to ride the same purple bike with a
basket and a bell that I had when I was a child. Talk about a
reputation killer. I got plenty of exercise riding my bike
everywhere. If there were frequent flyer miles for library addicts,
I’d be traveling free for the rest of my life. I think there’s even
a rut on the sidewalk—thanks to me and my Schwinn—between my house
and the library in town. It’s not that I didn’t like to do anything
else but read, I just got bored by myself. A lot. And books could
take me to places I couldn’t go in reality.
    I let myself out through the garage
using the keyless entry and headed down the driveway. That morning
felt much more like spring than the previous day and my light
jacket was more than enough to keep me warm. I even heard birds
chirping in the trees. I could feel my mood getting better with
every turn of my wheels.
    The Elizabeth Taber Library is an
older multi-story building with mature trees shading the front of
the structure. Its white and gray exterior welcomed me as it always
did. I chained my bike to a rack on the rear side of the building
and went inside. I browsed through the young adult section, looking
for any good mysteries that I hadn’t already read a million times.
Since nothing jumped off the shelf at me, I made my way to the
adult section in hopes