When Kate and her children step onto a bus early one Tuesday morning, she knows this is their only chance: their only chance at freedom and at a life of their own. But can she ensure their safety? Can she ensure they will never be found?This feeling haunts Kate as she and her children begin a new life far from New York, far from their troubled past.Little does she know that their new life will bring her closer to a different past, a life she had long given up, making her already fragile world more complicated than she could have ever imagined.
A Life of Their Own by Pauline Tait was published in September last year by Silverwood Books.
As part of the #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour I'm delighted to share an extract from the book with you today.
Extract from Chapter One - A Life of Their Own
Kate allowed herself to indulge in a little apprehensive exhilaration as the changing countryside took her further and further away from her past. Looking down at her two young children asleep beside her Kate knew this was their only chance. Their only chance at freedom and at a life of their own.
The hours were passing slowly, unbearably so at times, and they had seen many other passengers come and go. When they had first boarded the Greyhound bus early that morning in New York it was full, and Kate had watched as it almost emptied again in Philadelphia apart from a few lone travellers. Now though, even they had reached their destinations and, she presumed, were getting on with their lives. Kate and her children, however, still had around thirty-six hours of travelling and many stops ahead of them.
Looking out through the dusty window Kate watched as the bus trundled through the countryside, passing from town to town. She noticed how other women and children were freely going about their business. How they seemed to have a purpose, know where they were going and what they were doing. Some rushing around, jumping in and out of cars, hurrying in and out of stores. Others standing chatting and laughing on the sidewalks and sitting in cafés. It made Kate wonder if she would ever feel in control of her life again, ever find the confidence to make her own decisions. She wondered what her future might hold, whether she would sit in a café again with friends or, more importantly, make friends? She knew she had to. She had to if her and her children’s lives were going to be better.
She had told no one they were leaving or where they were going. It was the end of May and the last week of the school term. When she had collected her children from school on Monday afternoon she had told their teachers they would not be in for the rest of that week as they had to attend a family funeral upstate, an excuse she hoped they would never question. School was not back until mid-August, so she would have plenty of time to settle her children in a new home before she had to worry about enrolling them in another school.
They had left the house as normal on Tuesday morning but instead of their usual walk along the tree-lined avenues to school they had posted a letter and boarded the first of many buses. Kate knew that this would only buy her time until Adam, her husband, came home from work that evening, but by then they would have crossed through most of Pennsylvania
Pauline Tait is a multi-genre author living and writing in Perthshire, Scotland. After many years working as a Pharmaceutical technician and latterly as a Primary Support Assistant Pauline is now doing what she has always wanted to do; write! Her children's books have been praised for promoting kindness, thoughtfulness and being true to yourself and she uses her experiences in working with young children to make her events and school visits fun and engaging.Pauline's adult fiction novel, A Life of Their Own, tackles the subject of life after domestic abuse and has received brilliant reviews; "It was a beautifully written novel by an extremely talented writer. Excellent character depiction, plus an exciting storyline make for a roaring success. Highly recommended."
Married, with two grown up children and two mischievous Jackadoodles, Pauline is now enjoying writing full time. You can keep up to date with Pauline's writing and events at http://www.paulinetait.com/
Twitter @Ptait_author
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