ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (23)

   The cab pulled up front of a very cute gift shop.
   "This is it. Stop!" Edie was so excited. This was her old friend's gift shop, Mrs. Johnson. Mrs. Johnson was in her fifties and also a double amputee. Her amputation was due to diabetes. 
    "Edie, it's so good to see you. Come one in," Mrs. Johnson said when she reached in the cab to hug her.
   "I can't. I don't have my wheelchair. It's a long story. Melvin and his wife, Alice, carried me into the restaurant but I don't want him to carry me again. Alice told me he had back surgery a month ago. Melvin, I could shoot you for not telling me."
   "My friend is here. I'll get him to get you. And this must be Susan. The last time I saw you I think you were four, am I right?" Mrs. Johnson hugged Susan. 
    Susan was thinking that Mrs. Johnson is like mommy. I wonder if there are more people like them? Or are they the only two in the world. Was Mrs. Johnson in a fire and if every one is in a fire do they lose their legs? So many questions. I'll ask mommy. 

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (22)

   "Well, all is not lost, I have a quarter," Edie said as she and Alice laughed.
   "You have a good sense of humor, Edie. You're Okay.  We probably could become good friends if you lived here."
   "I'm sure we could, but there is one thing."
   "What's that, kiddo?"
   "No, there's two things. Number one, don't call me kiddo and number two I'm not deaf or blind so you don't have to get down in my face to talk to me.  I'm a double amputee. That goes for you, too, Melvin. Everyone does that. They think because I don't have legs, I can't hear or see or even worse they ignore me like I'm retarded. Edie was smiling and saying this in a joking manner (even if it was the truth) so Alice and Melvin wouldn't be offended. But how many times was she offended? Children staring and pointing is understood but adults can sometimes be painful as a pain in the neck. "Oh God bless them. They don't know any better, either. It's something I'll have to get used to and just live with it."

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (21)

   Stop that, not around Mommy. She would say, "Everything will be ok now." Will it? Ever? she thought.
    Melvin did most of the driving with Alice switching over when they stopped for gas and once for a bite to eat. Breakfast sounded good to the adults but Susan had a burger and a milkshake. What a treat! Melvin ordered her some fries, too. "Mommy, when we get our new home, can we go out to eat burgers and fries every night?"
   After the shock of Edie being a double amputee, Alice and Melvin found her to be quite interesting. Edie used to ice skate, ride horses, dance, swim and dive. She also made her own clothes. Made her first dress when she was nine years old. Which interested Alice. When she told them she made Susan's dress she had on (not the muddy one) they were in awe. How? Then she told them. Too bad Edie was moving away. Alice could give and get her a lot of business sewing. That sounded good to Edie, to have her own business. That's what she's going to do. I have to get another sewing machine. She told Alice what happened to her sewing machine. 

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAIN (20)

    Melvin and Alice knew they were taking a chance on getting paid for this expensive trip, but why not, this woman needed help and "It wasn't going to make them or break them," as Alice said. And besides, they needed  a break from the business and Ted can handle everything. Good Old Ted. He was as faithful as an old hound dog and about as slow.
    Alice packed and Melvin checked out the car and told Ted what to do while they were gone. Edie cleaned up Susan's coat and Susan took a bath in an indoors tub with running water. First time since she was five years old when they lived in that house that burned down. When Susan thought of this, it frightened her and she got out of the tub. Memories started to come back of her old home and her bedroom and the dollhouse that Daddy built and her car that she used to pedal down the sidewalk to pick Ilea her friend for a ride. I guess we were four years old. And all my dolls, my pretty dolls and then Susan began to cry. 

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (19)

   Alice didn't look at all like she belonged in a small country town. She was dressed like a model, which she was until she married Melvin. She said she married him for his looks, which he was handsome. 
   "Now what is it that you wanted to talk to me about?" Melvin asked Edie.
   Edie just blurted out, "I need to go to Philly."
   "That's a long way from here. It's about two hundred miles. It would be a lot cheaper to go by train. Why cab?"
   Edie spoke up, "I know but I don't have my chair and I don't have any money."
   That made Melvin stand up. No money. How is she going to pay the $30.50 and she wants to go to Philly? If she was a guy, I would knock her out cold. "How are you going to pay your cab bill?"
   "I have a friend in Philly that will take care of it."
   "You want to go to Philly, Alice?"
   "I would love to and go shopping and see the bright lights."

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (18)

"Well, Ma'am, here we are.  At the office.  That will be twenty-nine dollars and fifty cents, please"

"I need to talk to your boss." Edie said. "Could I go in the office?"

The driver looked at her funny like to say, 'yea, how are you going to do that?'

"If someone could bring out a chair with wheels on it, I could be rolled in."

The driver stood there with his mouth open.  What a good idea, he thought.  This lady is smart.  She won't let her problems get her down.

A man named Ted came back with an office chair and his boss, Melvin, who was his brother.  Melvin needed to see where his chair was going, first off, then what was this story Ted was telling about a woman with no legs, no wheel-chair, out in the mountains, running away from her brother --and she was in the cab.

After the introducing, Ted and Melvin got Edie into the chair and wheeled her into the office.  Melvin's wife was there.  They introduced her as Alice.

ESCAPE FROM THE MOUNTAINS (17)

"Oh, my God!  He's coming up the drive-way!" Edie yelled in fright.  "Harry, help me get my sewing machine in!"

"It won't fit in the back seat, and what about your chair?" the driver asked.

Just then, Bill drove right by the cab as Edie told Susan to get down on the floor as she did the same.  Bill was going down the bottom of the hill to turn around.

Edie was really scared and was talking fast.

"Forget everything!  Just get us out of here before my brother gets back up the hill, PLEASE!"

The driver jumped into the cab, Mable pulled the wheelchair and sewing machine away from the cab and the the driver turned the cab around as quickly as he could being in a tight drive-way.

Edie looked at Mable holding her sewing machine. ('My means for making a living and my chair!')  Tears rolled down her face.  But more importantly, they had to get out of there and quick.

"Driver, drive as fast as you can!"

She held Susan.  The child was so afraid she was crying uncontrollably.

"Susan, please stop that crying."

"Mommy, I can't.  I wet my pants."

('Oh, the poor kid!  All I could think about was us getting away and with Bill catching us and how stressed out I felt, forgetting how all this is affecting Susan.'  Edie thought.)

"Stay down in the seat. You'll have to wear a pair of panties in the knitting bag.  I know they're still wet, but, not as wet as what you are wearing."

As Edie was helping Susan change, she looked out the back window and she didn't see her brother.  He couldn't keep up with the newer cab.

"Sir, you can slow down now. You've lost him." This was a good thing as the cab driver was in a sweat.

"Ma'am, where do you want to go?" asked the driver.

"Oh, I thought I told you.  To your office."

Edie hugged Susan and combed her hair.

"We're on our way now." Edie said, smiling.

"Where Mommy?"

"It'll be a surprise."

Edie didn't exactly know herself.  She had a friend in Philadelphia that they would stop in to see.  Maybe then she'd know what to do.