Sally's heart raced with a mixture of excitement and trepidation as she landed at Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City. It was a humid summer afternoon, the kind where the heat clung to everything it touched, making even the air seem thick. Sally's two large suitcases bumped noisily along the cracked pavement as she made her way through the crowd toward the exit. She was struggling, her slim frame practically dwarfed by the oversized luggage. One of the suitcases was particularly troublesome, a brand new, sleek, navy-blue model that Aaron had insisted on buying for her just before she left Los Angeles.
As she approached the sliding glass doors of the terminal, Sally began scanning the sea of faces, looking for her father. Uncle Joe had always been the dependable sort—never late, always there when you needed him. She hoped that today would be no exception. Her eyes darted from one person to the next until she heard a familiar voice, gruff yet filled with warmth.
