I grabbed my keys.
“Get your raincoat. We’ll pick Sophie up so she doesn’t have to walk in this.”
Emma smiled and hurried toward the door.
I went outside to start my fourteen-year-old Honda.
I turned the key.
Nothing.
I tried again.
The engine made a weak clicking sound, then fell silent.
I sat there staring at the dashboard.
The battery had been getting weaker for weeks. I’d noticed the problem, but I had been putting off the repair until payday.
I tried my portable jump starter.
Nothing.
I tried one more time, hoping the car would suddenly come back to life.
It didn’t.
My stomach tightened.
I needed the Honda to get Emma to school and myself to work across town. There wasn’t a bus route that would get me there on time, and I couldn’t afford to rely on rideshares for several days.
For the first time that morning, being late wasn’t my biggest concern.
