Читать книгу BORDER JUSTICE - Aubrey Smith - Страница 4

That night Sierra Lara had been dressed in her very best party attire. She was seventeen. This was her first prom. Randy Howard had not been her first choice for the prom, but, as it turned out, he was her date for the night. She had waited until the last minute for Leo Castro to call, but he had asked Jill Harris instead. At first Sierra was heartbroken, but then decided she wouldn’t let Leo spoil her first prom.

The Sounds of Music were to play at the dance. She was now looking forward to Randy picking her up. She looked at the clock on the stand next to her bed. It was almost eight and she was ready. Her mother Anna had helped her get dressed. Her older sister Sandra had let her borrow her gold necklace. It was the antique necklace that had belonged to their great-grandmother. When she walked into the living room her father Tony, said she was a vision of loveliness.

“You’re too darn pretty to waste your time dating Randy Howard,” he said.

He was stern when he told her she shouldn’t plan on staying out all night, even though he knew it was a custom in Magic Valley for dates to last until dawn on prom night.

“But I expect you home by two o’clock, not a second later. Remember that tomorrow is the sheriff’s election and you promised to help your mother and me pass out Vote For Rey cards,” he said. Reluctantly, she agreed.

After all, what choice do I have? she thought. “It isn’t fair. I’m almost a grown woman. No, I am a grown woman,” she said.

Her long black hair was loose and hung free around her neck. She had brushed it until it shone. Tonight, she wore a long silky white sarong skirt over a black and gold-beaded body shirt. The saleslady in Harlingen had told her it was, “The latest trompe L’oeil design.” The dress was utterly feminine, beautifully styled and luxurious beyond anything she had ever owned before.

When she took a final look in the mirror that hung in the hall by the front door, she realized her daddy was right. She was pretty with sparkling, almost black eyes, high cheek bones with just a hint of Mexican-Indian heritage and she was almost as tall as her dad.

“Esa troca hace mucho ruido,” her father said as Randy drove up. Sierra agreed. She too had heard the truck as soon as it turned off the highway. When she opened the door, Randy had a purple orchid for her. He was all thumbs as he tried to pin it on her dress. She could tell he was nervous. The rented tux from The Formal Shop didn’t seem to fit him just right.

“Well, we’d better go,” Randy said. He kept smiling and fooling with his tie, nervously watching for her to agree.

“Yeah, I guess it’s time.” She hugged her dad. “I love you and don’t worry, I’ll be home by two.” Quickly she hugged her mother and her younger sister Rosemary. Then she followed Randy out the front door.

Randy’s old red truck was parked in front of the house. “I washed it today. First time it’s been clean in awhile,” he joked. “Yes, madam nothing is too good for you tonight.”

When they got to the truck, Randy opened the door for her. He made sure her dress was in before he closed the door and rushed to the driver’s side. The motor roared to life and they drove away. They hadn’t gone but three blocks when Randy gave her a huge smile.

“Open the glove box,” he said.

“Why? What’s in there?”

“Just open it and you’ll see.”

She was cautious as she pushed the button to open the compartment. When the door fell open, she looked inside and saw two glasses.

“What are these for?” she asked.

“See that hose hanging down in the center by the gear shift? That’s a special invention of mine.”

“What?”

“Take one of the glasses, and hold it under the hose. I’ll show you how it works.” Both windows in the truck were down. The night was warm and muggy as they drove along School Street. Warily, Sierra reached into the glove box and took out the two glasses.

Magic Valley‘s high school was just down the street, but, instead of driving directly to the school, Randy turned left on Avasolo Street. He slowed the pickup to a crawl. When she placed a glass under the hose, Randy pushed the windshield washer button and liquid squirted from the hose into the glass.

“What an invention,” Sierra laughed. “What is this, Coke?” she asked as she lifted the glass to her mouth and smelled. It definitely wasn’t Coke. She knew right away that it was wine or whiskey.

“This is liquor! Where did you get this? We’re going to get in trouble with this in the truck.”

“Not to worry my child, it’s Sangria.” Randy’s smile turned into a grin as he assured her. “Taste it, you’ll like it. Don’t worry, no one will ever find out I filled the windshield washer with wine. Take a taste.”

Sierra hesitated, but then put the glass to her lips. “Just a taste,” she said. How sweet and warm this is, she thought as the wine rolled down her throat and, at first, took her breath.

“Hold my glass under there, Sierra, I want to try it. One glass of wine, then we’ll go to the dance.” She was afraid that the liquid in her glass was going to spill and quickly took another sip to lower the level. Two squirts and the second glass was full. She handed it to Randy and sat back in the seat. By the time they arrived at the school, they’d both drank two glasses of the wine. She smiled as she recalled that only the first drink had taken her breath and, after the first swallow, the wine seemed to taste better with each sip.

After the wine, Sierra thought Randy looked very handsome in his tux as he held her close while they waited to be announced. The gym was decorated as a space station with a large cardboard rocket ship in the center of the floor. A large red and yellow sign over the gym door proclaimed this year’s theme, Look to the Future.

After being announced, they sat with Rhonda Phillips and Jimmy Carson. The band had already started. Randy said, “Let’s set the floor on fire Baby.” She thought he was funny and wondered why she’d never noticed how cute he was. They had to take off their street shoes to dance. When Randy knelt to help remove her shoes, Sierra felt a rush of excitement as his hand touched her leg and caressed her calf. She flushed and quickly stood. She thought they danced like those two people you see in the old movies on late night TV. She tried to remember their names and once started to ask Randy, but she was soon lost in the romance of the night and forgot all about the old dancers.

The evening seemed to whirl. All too soon the dance was over. At exactly midnight, the principal Mr. Ramirez announced that the next song would be the last dance of this school year. He wished them all a happy summer.

Sierra was so happy as she and Randy left the auditorium. She wore his tux jacket around her shoulders, his arm around her waist. As they strolled across the parking lot toward Randy’s pickup, she felt his hand slide lower on her hip and squeeze. She started to say something, but they were almost to the pickup. When he opened the door for her, he pulled her close and kissed her. She closed her eyes and was, at first, startled when he pushed his tongue into her mouth. Just one kiss, she thought.