Read Catch a Falling Star Online
Authors: Lynette Sowell
Catch a Falling Star
Catch a Falling Star
By
Lynette Sowell
Book One, Lone Star Hearts
Dedication
This book is dedicated to the soldiers and their families I’ve known since living in the Fort Hood area for more than twenty years. If I tried to name you all, I would probably leave someone out, so I won’t try. Some of you have become like family to me during the time we've shared in this cultural melting pot of central Texas. Thank you, all of you, for your service to our country.
In memory of Allen Wayne Latham, an American hero who passionately loved his family, loved his country, and loved his God, and made a difference in all the lives he touched. You words have not fallen to the ground, friend.
And for C.J., my hero, as always….
Author’s Note
Starlight is
not
a real town in central Texas near Fort Hood. But there is a real Rebecca’s Kitchen in Kempner, Texas that serves wonderful pie, and a real reservoir named Belton Lake that does have houses far beneath its surface. The only character based on a real person in this book is John Caraway, who, like many veterans, tells us his stories. We should all want to pull up a chair and listen to them.
Table of Contents
“Billy, my boy, I need you to do me a favor.” Aunt Zalea’s voice rang out like a bullhorn over the sound of the power saw.
Billy Tucker tried not to jump. He hadn't seen the older woman making her way along the packed dirt driveway from his family's main house. He flipped the switch on the saw and the blade screeched to a halt.
The early June sun already rose high in the sky as the mercury snaked its way past ninety degrees. A trail of sweat slid down Billy’s temple. He rubbed his forehead with the back of his sleeve and winced. Stupid shoulder. Never mind the cramp in his hand or the twinge of electric pain in his right leg.
“What’s that?” He hadn’t planned on taking a break from framing the porch of the old cottage. Matter of fact, he was behind already on the cottage repairs after his younger sister Maddie had burned breakfast. He squinted past Aunt Zalea and saw she'd parked her car next to his pickup about thirty yards away, at the main house.
Aunt Zalea fanned her face. “It’s a hot one, Billy-boy. I should’ve saved myself the walk from your house, like young Madelynn suggested. She told me I could just come on down to talk to you. I could have called, too. But I figured I'd pop on by to ask you the favor in person.” She parked herself on a stack of lumber. “How’s the porch framing coming along?”
“Not as fast as I hoped. Jake had to run to Ace for more nails.”
“You talk to your parents lately?” Aunt Zalea shook her head. “I’m trying not to be jealous. Colorado sounds like just the thing right now.”
“They’re doing great. We Skyped last night. Mom said to tell you hi.” He studied the older woman. Sunlight glinted off her flame-red hair tinged with hot pink.
“Tell her hi back for me.” Aunt Zalea glanced back toward the main house. “They’d be real proud of how you kids are doing since their move.”
Billy nodded. “They’re coming here for Thanksgiving We’ll be going there for Christmas. Or that’s the plan. Jake’s counting on the Yellowjackets making the playoffs.”
“That brother of yours lives for the game, doesn’t he?” Aunt Zalea resumed her fanning. “Pity the girl he winds up with during football season.”
“He’s driven, that’s for sure.” Billy had to acknowledge Jake had plenty of drive. More than enough for both of them.
“Look at me, chatting about the family, and I haven’t told you what I need.” Aunt Zalea chuckled, her soft-looking girth giving a slight shake as she did so. “I need you to pick someone up from the airport. Herb doesn't want me driving tonight. Supposed to be a round of thunderstorms coming in.”
“When do you need me to go?” Billy shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
“Tonight. Her flight gets in tonight. Last flight in from Dallas.” Her expression brightened. “Oh, and best of all, you won’t need to drive to Austin. She’s flying into Killeen.”
“I can handle that. Who am I picking up?”
“Well, um, I’m not supposed to say.” She shifted to standing, knocking a few two
by sixes onto the dusty path. “Oops. Sorry about that.” She hunched over, trying to pick up the nearest one.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll take care of those.” Billy met her at the stack of lumber and placed the wood back in place. “Okay, I’ll pick ‘
her
up, whoever she is. So what’s with all the secrecy? Do I get to hold a sign? Or wave a flag, or what? Is there a code word I should know?”
“She doesn’t want anyone to know she’s coming. Doesn’t want a lot of fuss, you know.”
No, he didn’t know. “I’m not going to tell anybody. I’ve got too much work to do around here to leak anything to the media between now and then.”
“That’s truer than you know,” said Aunt Zalea. “She doesn’t want any media involved.”
Footsteps pounded along the lane from the main house to this perfect clearing on the Tuckers’ sixty acres. A few cedar bushes and a few live oak trees blocked the view of the house.
A trail of dust followed Maddie as she approached them at a fast trot. “Did she tell ya? Billy, did she tell ya?” Maddie’s hair swished past her shoulders, her bare arms already sporting the first tan of the summer. What had Mom and Dad been thinking, leaving him and Jake to keep an eye on Maddie for the next three years of high school?
“Yes, I get to pick up some mystery lady from the airport. Last flight in.” Billy scanned the sky, with only a few white fluffy clouds drifting lazily by. “Supposed to be thunderstorms heading in late tonight. We sure need the rain. But I wish it would hold off until we get the framing done for the porch.”
“Can I go too? Can I?”
Aunt Zalea frowned. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. The less fuss, the better. Besides, you’ll have plenty of time to see her in town, Madelynn. She doesn’t want anyone to see her arriving.”
“I still don’t get what the big deal is,” Billy said.
“Me either.” Maddie’s pout was worthy of an Oscar. “I promise I won’t scream or do anything dorky. Really. I just want to welcome her back to Starlight.”
“I’m sure you do,” Aunt Zalea said, touching Maddie’s out-of-control hair. “But really, she’s been through a lot. I think she’ll come around in time, but she just needs some space, too.”
“Ladies, I’ve really got to get this porch framing done if it’s going to rain tomorrow. So could you clue me in?”
“Justine Campbell is coming back to Starlight!” Maddie squealed then covered her mouth. “I can’t help it. Justine Campbell. And she called
you
, Aunt Z, to help her.”
Aunt Zalea fluttered her hands. “She had to call somebody, poor thing.”
“Poor thing. Huh.” Billy snorted. Right after supper each evening, the nightly entertainment news show came on, and for several months the news had traced Justine Campbell’s meteoric fall from grace. He changed the channel, but even online the news was inescapable. Speculation swirled throughout every means of communication possible. Was it drugs? Alcohol? Reckless driving? Everyone had a theory, but Justine Campbell's camp remained tight-lipped while the woman recovered.
“She needs compassion, Billy Tucker, and don’t you forget it.” Aunt Zalea waved a manicured finger at him and clutched her purse to her side. “Don’t believe the media. They always show the worst because that’s what people want to hear.”
“Yeah, Billy.” Maddie propped her hands on her hips.
“Don’t disrespect your brother, Madelynn.” Aunt Zalea waved a finger at Maddie. “You might be right, but there’s a way to tell him. I’m not his baby sister, and I’m a good thirty years older than him.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Maddie toed the dirt. “Sorry, Billy. But you can see it in her eyes. She looks like that leopard at the zoo. She wants out. She just doesn’t know how.”
Billy nodded. He could relate to that feeling. He rubbed his palms together. “I know.” Maddie had grown so perceptive, even for fifteen. She still was preoccupied with her own world, like many teenagers, but the fact she could have compassion for people spoke well. Better than his own attitude.
Sorry, Lord.
Justine Campbell, flying into Killeen and back to Starlight? Imagine that. No wonder she wanted the last flight in. For her sake, he hoped her flight from Dallas wasn’t delayed or canceled. The media piranhas would eat her alive wherever she went.
Not him, though. He wasn’t media, and he wasn’t in the business of entertaining a diva whose name was synonymous with everything they tried to shield Maddie from. Their efforts hadn’t worked, not with the way Maddie practically glowed at the thought of the starlet returning to her old hometown.
Nope. Billy would be too busy to entertain much thought of Justine Campbell. Too much to do, too much of his own junk to sort through.
# # #
The ball cap, no makeup, and dark glasses had worked so far. Thankfully none of the gate attendants had let on anything when Justine removed her shades long enough to have her identification verified at the gate. That, and she hadn’t had to ride in coach until now. Stupid puddle-jumper planes. She nudged her carry-on bag with her foot then glanced out the window at the flickering clouds.
Justine bit her lip. She should have taken Neil’s advice and let him book her a flight into Austin, then hire a car to drive her to Starlight. It was touch and go if the flight would be canceled because of the impending storm, but in the end the air traffic controller had cleared Flight 3228 into Killeen.
The plane shuddered in its descent. Justine didn’t feel any fear, although a few of the other passengers gasped. She’d faced death more than once in the last few months and come out on the other side, just barely. Her hands throbbed, the pain acting as a barometer. Yes, a storm was coming. Would the pain always be this bad?
“May I take your cup? We need you to put up your tray table.” The blond flight attendant stopped at Justine’s seat.
“Sure. Here you go.” Justine handed the woman her cup. She wondered if the woman would save it as a souvenir. Maybe not. But Justine kept the napkin the flight attendant had placed on her tray table, with one word and a set of numbers written in pen. A Bible verse. She needed to ask Azalea Bush if she could borrow a Bible. She folded the white square stamped with the airline’s logo and tucked it into her bag under the seat in front of her.
Touchdown
. The mini-jet fired its afterburners and fought against the forward pull. Justine knew she ought to be terrified of flying. But statistically it was safer than driving, and that she knew all too well.
“Welcome to the Killeen-Fort Hood Regional Airport. The time is 10:28, and the current temperature is sixty-five with light showers at this time.”
The lady across the aisle took out a cell phone.
Justine had no one to call. As long as Azalea had made sure she had a discreet ride, she need call no one. Not even Mom.
She wouldn’t even stop by Wal-Mart to see if Mom was working. Public humiliation was her new best friend, but not Mom’s.
Justine found her cane then her footing. Tugged the carry-on from under the seat. Less than thirty minutes, and she’d be home free for the moment. Neil called her crazy. What else did she have?
“Neil, if I’m going to come back at all, I need to go for the best physical therapy, out of the spotlight. Back in Texas, I can get both. Therapy at Scott and White Hospital, and no spotlight in Starlight,”
she’d told him.
“Whatever your stay in the Fort Hood area, we hope it’s a pleasant one,” the flight attendant announced. “And for those serving our country, we thank you for your service.”
“Hoo-ah!” one of the guys on the flight said.
Soldiers. Now they were the true superstars. Justine never did anything so brave, even when shooting
Dead in the Water
. Neil had been a genius to get her the leading role. Finally, some serious attention from the other studios, and a big step up from the romantic comedies.
She let one of the men pass through the narrow aisle. Recognition flashed on his face. “Thanks.” He bobbed his head, and a dimple winked at her.
Then she took her place in the line of people exiting the plane. She leaned on her cane, each step sending freshly charged lightning bolts down her leg. This was a dumb idea, truly made in a moment of tears and loathing of California.
C’mon, girl
.
Pull yourself together
. She reached the end of the Jetway and moved aside to let others pound past her. A tiny airport, but pretty.
Whispers nearby, and a “No, it’s not her” drifted her way. The nearly empty airport wouldn’t hide many people. She hoped Azalea had come through with her ride of the plan. If not, she’d call a cab.
The ant’s trail of travelers wound its way to the escalator. A woman ran to one of the male passengers and molded herself against his chest. He threw his arms around her.
Justine blinked, from the pain in her leg and from a deeper pain. This was the way she wanted to return to Starlight. She’d gotten exactly what she wanted. No fanfare or speeches or photo ops, especially in her condition. Photos would come when she was ready for them.
She managed to get onto the escalator without tripping or knocking anyone else over with her cane. Get her trio of bags, get her ride, and get back to what she used to call home.
Then she saw the sign, held by what looked like a cowboy. Someone had written a simple “J.C.” on a small square of paper. The cowboy had a military buzz cut similar to the ones sported by a few of the men on the plane. He glanced her way, then studied the tiled floor, then shifted his gaze to the baggage carousel. His boots, though, made her stare. Hand-tooled leather, red flames on a black background from what she could see. Neil would be drooling on the tiles if he saw them.
Justine glided to the bottom of the escalator and hoped she could gracefully make her way to the cowboy and ask him for help wrangling her bags. So far, so good. Her carry-on strap dug into her free shoulder. Then the rubber tip of her cane caught the lip of the escalator as the last step folded down. Oh no. She wasn’t going down. Not like this.
She clamped her left hand on the solid edge of the escalator. The cane skidded away from her. Her knee hit the tile. Of course it would be her bad leg. Someone behind her gasped. The cowboy shot forward.