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get in as hurt as she is?”
    Cain didn’t bother answering the last
part. Plenty, he was sure. “I should get her. I don’t know where
she’s going from here, do you? And the things at the hospital, what
happens to those?” Cain needed to talk to Julie, he realized. She
couldn’t go back on the streets. Not now.
    “ Julie had me take the
fruit to the VA hospital along with the flowers. I gave her back
her clothes yesterday, cleaned and pressed. Was there anything else
that you were wondering about? I mean, I didn’t see any meds for
her or prescriptions now that I think about it.” He had given her
two, one for pain and the other vitamins. “And as for where she’s
staying...I’m sorry, I just assumed after seeing the two of you
together that she...that the two of you, well, I thought you two
were seeing each other.”
    “ No, we…we hadn’t gotten
that far. I mean she’s...shit! She drives me nuts, but I still find
myself wanting to be with her. I even find myself aggravating her
just to see her temper flare. How stupid is that?”
    Molly laughed. “Well, you do flare her
up. And of course you want to be with her.” She patted his cheek.
“Oh look, there’s Shannon now. Perhaps she can tell you how Julie
is doing.”
    Cain didn’t think so. He could tell by
the look on the girl’s face that something had happened. Somehow,
he knew that Julie was no longer in the house.
    “ Is Julie out here? I just
stepped out to go to the bathroom and Dan’s window was opened and
she wasn’t in there anymore.”
    Cain wanted to howl out his
frustrations. But first, he had a woman to hunt down, and heaven
help her when he found her. He was going to lay down some rules as
soon as he did. If he found her.

~CHAPTER SIX~
     
    Julie moved along the “homes” of her
buddies. They weren’t friends, not really. They’d as soon stick a
knife in someone’s back as to look at them. Some were all right,
though. Moon and Toby were two of those she trusted to an
extent.
    “ Miss Rocky, you shouldn’t
be wandering around this late. Get yourself a corner and stay
there,” Moon whispered harshly at her. She hadn’t even seen him
inside of his shelter.
    Julie was relieved. After Rodney, she
didn’t want to lose anyone else. “I got you something. But you have
to promise me you won’t share or let anyone else know you have it.”
She handed him a shiny apple from the fruit basket she’d
gotten.
    “ Oh Miss Rocky! This is a
treat. Yes, it is. An apple, a whole apple. I gotta share with my
man Toby. He likes them too, he does.”
    Julie pulled out a second one and
handed it to Moon. “I got one for him too. Plus, an orange each.
Don’t go telling anyone. You know what will happen if you do. I
don’t want anything happening to you.”
    “ Yes, ma’am, they’ll steal
it. Right outta my hand, they will.” He smelled the fruit as though
it was manna to him, then looked up at her. “You didn’t steal this
from someone, did you? They won’t be coming after old Moon for it
back, will they?”
    “ No, Moon. It’s yours fair
and square.” She watched as he sniffed it again. “Moon, do you
think I could bed down close to here tonight? My place is
gone.”
    Julie stayed with Rodney most nights.
They hadn’t slept together, but they had protected each other. She
wasn’t even sure she could go back to their place now. Not yet
anyway.
    “ Yeah. Heard about old
Rodney. Police had us all moved around that day. That butthole
Sherman had me so mad that Toby had to hold me back some. Wouldn’t
let us pay our respects or nothing. Shame, that. He was a good man,
that Rodney. You stay here with me and Toby. We got us a new house
just last week.”
    Julie looked at his new “home.” Someone
nearby must have gotten themselves a new freezer and Toby and Moon
ended up with a new house out of the deal. She was just getting
settled when Toby showed up. He’d gone on for twenty minutes about
the apple and orange. When they offered