Billionaire's Runaway Princess Read Online Free PDF Page A

can find their address.”
    “Good plan,” said Flo. “Well, you’re probably in the right place, for tonight anyway.”
    The line had inched ahead as the spoke and finally Marisol rounded the corner and saw a lighted sign above the door people entered. “Saint Christopher’s Shelter.”
    “What is this place?” said Marisol. She knew Saint Christopher was the patron saint of travelers, but this didn’t seem to have anything to do with this place.
    “Do they not have places for homeless people abroad?”
    “Well, yes, of course.”
    “Then there you go?”
    “Pardon?”
    “This is a homeless shelter. Stick with me. I know the people here. We’ll get you a bed for the night. Me and Billy, we’re here for the dinner. It’s stew night, and they have the best stew in the city.”
    Homeless. The thought sent shivers through Marisol, but what did she expect? She ran away from her life. And now she had no money and no way to get any.
    They walked into the shelter, where was a long counter just beyond the door. A harried-looking young woman stood there handing out little tickets. She smiled at Flo when she gave her a ticket.
    “Hello, Flo. How are you doing tonight?”
    “Fine. I have a friend here. Marisol. She needs a place to sleep.”
    “I can’t guarantee anything. We have a waiting list tonight, so we’re doing lottery tickets for the last ten beds.”
    “For summer?”
    “It’s supposed to rain.”
    “Rain? Pah. A little rain wouldn’t do anyone harm, except for Marisol here. She’s so sweet she might melt.”
    “Sure, Flo,” the girl said with a smile. She offered a blue and red ticket to Marisol.
    “The blue ticket is for dinner, and the red ticket is for the bed. After we finish serving, we draw the tickets for the beds.”
    “Thank you,” said Marisol.
    “Well, good luck. If you need anything, let me know. We do intake in the morning, so if you don’t get a bed, come back and we’ll see what services you qualify for.”
    “Services?”
    “Yes,” said Flo. “They have social workers in here in the morning taking applications for food stamps, housing, medical, legal, that sort of thing.”
    “They’ll help with all that?”
    “We do what we can,” said the girl. “Services are limited, and it takes a while to process things through the State. It can take up to a month to get a determination. And not everyone qualifies, but we can point you in the right direction for emergency services.”
    “That sounds very generous,” said Marisol.
    “That’s nice of you to say, but really there’s not enough to go around. That would be generous.”
    “Come on, Flo,” said Billy grumpily. “I’m not waiting all night to eat.”
    “Go on,” urged Marisol. “I’ll catch up with you later.” She suspected Billy had more need of Flo than she did and she didn’t want to cause trouble between the two.
    “Billy,” said the woman. “Make sure Flo gets to the clinic tomorrow to test her blood sugar and blood pressure. Okay?”
    “Yeah, sure,” grumbled Billy.
    “I’m sorry,” said Marisol. “I didn’t catch your name.”
    “Margaret Kelley, but everyone calls me Peg or Peggy.”
    “Nice to meet you,” said Marisol. “Let me ask you. Is Flo going to be all right?”
    “What do you mean?”
    “She seems a little disoriented.”
    “It happens on the street. The endless dealing with the elements, finding shelter and food. She’s doing well, all things considered.”
    “But can’t something more be done for her?”
    “Not if she doesn’t want it. We can’t force her to take services. Her children tried to put her in a nursing home. From her description, it was an awful place. They kept her so drugged she didn’t know what day it was.  One day she just walked away. She’s afraid if she applies for her social security again, her children will find her and put her back in a nursing home.”
    “That sounds awful.”
    “Believe or not, there are worse places than the