"A taut, compelling family tale." -Kirkus Reviews
Millington Valley is a quintessential small Pennsylvania town: families go back generations. Football rules. Kids drink while adults look the other way. High school is a whirlwind of aspiration and rivalry, friendship and jealousy.
When smart and pretty Molly Hanover moves to town and attracts the attention of the football team's hero, Wade Thornton--a nice guy with a bad drinking habit--longtime friendships are threatened and a popular cheerleader tries to turn the school against Molly.
The young couple's future is shattered when Wade, drunk, wrecks his truck and Molly is thrown through the windshield. She wakes from a coma to find her beauty marred and her memory full of holes. As she struggles to heal, she becomes sure that something terrible happened before the accident. And there is somebody in the valley who doesn't want her to remember.
"A taut, compelling family tale." -Kirkus Reviews
Millington Valley is a quintessential small Pennsylvania town: families go back generations. Football rules. Kids drink while adults look the other way. High school is a whirlwind of aspiration and rivalry, friendship and jealousy.
When smart and pretty Molly Hanover moves to town and attracts the attention of the football team's hero, Wade Thornton--a nice guy with a bad drinking habit--longtime friendships are threatened and a popular cheerleader tries to turn the school against Molly.
The young couple's future is shattered when Wade, drunk, wrecks his truck and Molly is thrown through the windshield. She wakes from a coma to find her beauty marred and her memory full of holes. As she struggles to heal, she becomes sure that something terrible happened before the accident. And there is somebody in the valley who doesn't want her to remember.


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Overview
"A taut, compelling family tale." -Kirkus Reviews
Millington Valley is a quintessential small Pennsylvania town: families go back generations. Football rules. Kids drink while adults look the other way. High school is a whirlwind of aspiration and rivalry, friendship and jealousy.
When smart and pretty Molly Hanover moves to town and attracts the attention of the football team's hero, Wade Thornton--a nice guy with a bad drinking habit--longtime friendships are threatened and a popular cheerleader tries to turn the school against Molly.
The young couple's future is shattered when Wade, drunk, wrecks his truck and Molly is thrown through the windshield. She wakes from a coma to find her beauty marred and her memory full of holes. As she struggles to heal, she becomes sure that something terrible happened before the accident. And there is somebody in the valley who doesn't want her to remember.
Product Details
ISBN-13: | 9781612969404 |
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Publisher: | Black Rose Writing |
Publication date: | 01/25/2018 |
Edition description: | First Printing ed. |
Pages: | 250 |
Product dimensions: | 6.02(w) x 9.01(h) x 0.60(d) |
Age Range: | 13 - 18 Years |
About the Author
Read an Excerpt
CHAPTER 1
Four Months Earlier
Molly
Molly Hanover was not a liar, but she had started to make up stories so her mother wouldn't worry. She told her how she spent her days with her new friends, how cool the town of Millington Valley was, and how much it didn't bother her to start a new school in her senior year.
All lies.
Still, every day she forced herself out of the house. She convinced herself summer would end soon and school would fill her time. The band would be fun. Maybe she really would make some new friends. She didn't let herself think about all that she'd lost and about how lonely she truly was.
And she never let herself think about her dad.
One hot August morning, as she'd done every day since they'd moved to Millington for her mother's new job, Molly packed her phone, a water bottle, and her AP-required summer reading East of Eden. Before leaving the stuffy cramped apartment, she turned on the kitchen faucet to a trickle for her fat, orange Persian cat Derby.
On Main Street, the air was sticky and humid and her thick curly hair turned heavy within minutes. She stopped and brushed off the damp strands stuck to her neck, then looked both ways. The town was quiet and the front porches were empty. At the post office, she went inside to check the community board. A new flyer read: Babysitter Wanted. She pulled the phone number tag and tucked it into her book bag. Outside, she cut through the cemetery and hopped the chain that blocked the narrow gravel road, leading into the fairgrounds.
Flanked by clusters of old oak trees, the amphitheater sat low, its white dome bright in the dark shade. Molly found her favorite spot on the stage steps in the trees' cool shadows. She opened her book and leaned against the concrete wall, her legs resting on a lower tread. Millington Valley High School sat on a small hill across the street, its second story windows half covered in plywood. It looked as if it was about to shut its eyes.
She heard the boys before she saw them. Three football players emerged from behind the livestock building. They were headed straight for her, jostling with each other, their voices growing louder as they drew closer. She pressed her back against the wall, attempting to disappear. They paused in a sloppy huddle and dropped their gear.
"Friday night. Jimmy's house," a big, almost fat, kid said, a little out of breath. "His ID's for real now. Turned twenty-one last week." His blue practice jersey crunched up, revealing his belly. He was at least 6'4" and 260 pounds. His face was bright red with patches of acne. His legs were bare from his knees down and he wore flip-flops. "He's getting two cases."
"That's not enough," said a black kid wearing mirrored sunglasses. He was the only black person Molly had seen in Millington. "Everybody's coming." He socked the big kid's shoulder. "We're going to need more booze."
A slightly smaller guy with defined muscles and spiky blond hair said, "Goddamnit, Tank." His lips barely moved. "I've been sneaking up to the quarry every night and collecting twigs and branches, getting molested by mosquitoes for this bonfire, and we can only get two cases? "He chucked his helmet onto the pile of bags. "Are you kidding me?"
"Let's just serve the juice in Dixie cups," the black kid said and toed his duffle, sending up a puff of dust. "Maybe Tank can get his Nana's china, too."
"Shut up, Shady." The huge kid pinched a zit on his chin. "Wade'll score more."
"Stop picking your zits, Tank! You're so gross."
Tank turned bright red and wiped his hand on his pant leg. "Sorry," he said.
Molly felt bad for him. Then he saw her watching him and she felt worse. All the guys stared at her.
She looked at her book, letting her curls fall over her shoulders to hide her face. She read and reread the same sentence: All great and precious things are lonely. All great and precious things are lonely. Her heart pounding, she sat perfectly still, pretending she hadn't seen them. Maybe they would go away. But no, they walked toward her, dragging their bags over the stone path, a haze of dust following them.
"Hey, you new around here?" the black kid pushed his sunglasses onto his forehead.
She looked up at the big kid, the one they'd called Tank. The friendliest looking one.
He smiled, his eyes kind, his face flushed, and a pinprick of blood on his chin. "Just that we've never seen you around."
She nodded vaguely and closed her book. Say something, she told herself. Heat started in the back of her neck as she reached for her bag.
"Don't go," the spiky-haired kid said. He was good-looking up close with bright blue eyes and a dimple in his chin. "Me and my compadres can show you around." He stepped closer and did a little bow. "I'm Tommy, but everyone calls me Legs. And, that's Colin," he said and slapped the black kid. "But we call him Shady. You know, because he wears the sunglasses all the time and he's black."
"She's not blind," Shady said. "Excuse this ignorant a-hole."
"And this guy," Legs patted the big kid's stomach. "This here is Tank."
Molly smiled, blushing, tongue-tied. She felt stupid because she could see that they were the cool kids, and she wanted them to like her.
"What's your name?" Legs casually hooked his hands together and straightened his elbows so that his triceps contracted.
"I'm Molly." Her cheeks flushed again as she tucked her book into her pack and stood.
"Pretty name —" Legs nodded towards her book. "And smart. AP English? My sister has to read the same book."
"We're having a party Friday night at the quarry," Tank said.
"There might not be much to drink," Shady said.
Legs smiled — the kind of smile that was used to getting whatever it wanted — and said, "I'd be happy to take you. Introduce you to everybody. Everybody who's anybody, that is."
She hesitated, her fingers tightening around the railing. They watched her.
"What's your number?" Legs reached for the phone that was tucked into his white compression pants. "I'll text you about the party."
"Um ... I have to ask my mom." Oh my god! What a stupid thing to say!
"She has to ask her mom," Legs said, perplexed. They all looked dumfounded for a moment. But Legs said, "Sure. Okay. So can I have your number?"
"Sure," said Molly, and then she told him.
Shady dropped his sunglasses over his eyes. "We're meeting in the stadium parking lot around eight to ride up together."
Tank pointed across the street. "Behind the school, that's where the stadium is."
"No shit, Sherlock." Legs winked at her. "Don't mind these dummies!" He laughed and ran his hand through his spiky hair. "Move it." He whacked Shady on the back.
"Hope you can come." Tank smiled.
"I'll try."
"Keep the booze part on the down low," Shady said. "I mean, don't tell your mom."
"No. No, I won't." Molly couldn't help but grin.
They picked up their gear and walked away, their voices fading. Halfway across the fairgrounds, Legs turned around and waved with a big smile. Molly waved in return. The guys passed through the shade of the trees and back into the sunlight. They stopped on the curb, their silhouettes distinct against the school.
She was invited to a party.
Maybe she should go. Stop being the shy girl.
Maybe she'd make some friends, then she wouldn't have to lie to her mom anymore.
Molly picked up her bag and stepped into the sun. She raised her hand over her brow and squinted into the brightness. The school's plywood windows looked as if they had double-winked at her. The eyes seemed frozen mid-wink, uncertain whether to open all the way or shut completely.
People reinvented themselves all the time, right?
Maybe she could be somebody different here.
Maybe she could even forgive herself about what happened to her dad.
CHAPTER 2
Ann
"I'll work the tables tonight." Thelma Wilson tucked a small receipt book into her back pocket and adjusted her red apron. "I feel some heavy tippers coming on."
"Good luck with that." Mr. Robinson laughed. The jolly school bus driver sat with his forearms on the bar, nursing a beer, his Millington Valley baseball cap pulled low on his brow.
Ann squatted and pulled out a heavy milk crate packed with different vodkas. She found the Grey Goose bottle and pushed the container into place.
"Hey," a deep male voice said. "Don't I pay you enough?"
She shot up as she turned around, jamming her thigh into the keg lever. Her heart skipped as if she'd been caught doing something she shouldn't.
Peter Vitullo, a partner of the law firm where she worked during the day, sat down next to Mr. Robinson. She rubbed her leg and pushed her hair behind her ear.
"Doesn't look good for me if you're moonlighting." He snapped his chewing gum and brushed his chin; the diamond chips in his shiny Rolex watch caught in the light. His brown hair was thick and wavy, combed tight against his head, with strands of gray in his sideburns. He had a deep tan, and his teeth had been obviously whitened.
Mr. Robinson turned toward Peter. "Sponsoring the Vet Night at the Eagles game was just great. Nice of you, thanks. Me and my sweetie sure had a good time."
"My pleasure," Peter said.
Mr. Robinson swigged the last of his beer and set it on the damp-ringed coaster. "I best get going before Mrs. R starts with her texts." He nodded to Ann, touched the brim of his ball cap, and then headed out.
Ann set the bottles on the countertop and retrieved the half-empties from the shelf under the counter. "That's the rumor: that I work for the best law practice in Millington."
He chuckled. "I've got the only firm around." He pointed at the Grey Goose. "I'll take one of those, straight, on the rocks."
Ann turned over the tumbler and it made a soft thud on the wood counter. "Come here a lot? I just started last week."
"Try to." He opened a manila file and shuffled through some papers. Pulling out a sheet, he glanced up and caught Ann looking at him. Quickly, she turned her attention to the drink and scooped a cupful of ice into the glass.
"Can you post this on the bulletin board?" He pushed the paper across the bar. It was a flyer with a photograph of a white Cape Cod house with a For Lease banner across the top.
"Looks nice. What's the rent?" she said, sure she couldn't afford it.
"A thousand." He smiled and tipped his glass toward her. "But for an employee, I'll discount it."
She leaned against the bar and crossed her arms; a cool blast from the overhead vent fell on her shoulders. Maybe she could make that work. It would be much better than the claustrophobic, third floor attic apartment she had rented. She touched the flyer and then wiped her hands down the front of her jeans. "I'd love to take look at it. I could run out on my lunch hour." She hesitated. "I mean, if that's okay with you, for me to leave the office for a bit."
"It's fine. How's noon tomorrow?"
They agreed to meet and then Peter placed a twenty on the bar and left, his drink unfinished.
Thelma whizzed around the end of the bar. "Give me two Rum & Cokes, and a ginger ale. I see you caught Mr. Bigwig's eye."
"He dropped off a flyer about a house he rents." Ann turned a glass over.
"Sure, sure." Thelma raised her eyebrows and smirked. "I haven't seen that man with his wife in a decade. The word is she stays with her mother upstate a lot." She tightened her apron around her waist. "He never comes in here. Now, he stops by to drop off a flyer? He was here for a reason." She poked Ann on the shoulder. "You."
Ann stuck cocktail straws in the Rum & Cokes. She had Thelma figured out. As much as Ann liked her, Thelma was a drama queen — gossiping, matchmaking, and generally stirring things up — a first class busybody.
Still Ann smiled and pulled a damp rag from the slop sink and wiped the countertop. She liked the easy rhythm of the bar. Millington Valley felt good. She was a normal single mom here. Nobody pitied her here and that's the way she wanted it. This was the place where things were going to turn around. She finally had her associate's degree and a paralegal job. And if she could get this house, maybe she could give Molly the home she'd always imagined they'd have.
CHAPTER 3
Wade
At 7:30 in the morning, the thermostat on the post outside the Millington Valley football team's new state-of-the-art locker room read eighty-nine degrees. Inside, the cinder block walls gleamed glossy blue and bright white with a big blue MV stenciled onto the wall opposite the showers. The steel gray lockers were shiny new, each fitted with a placard that, if you were a starter, held your name and jersey number.
Wade sat on the wooden bench, in full gear, perspiration on his forehead, on his neck, and seeping through his pads. Too bad he couldn't shake his headache.
"That party was fun last night," Shady said, slamming his locker and then brushing his finger over his Keeser nametag. He adjusted his sunglasses. "Leggy said he'll meet us at the field. Had to go to the trainer to ice."
"Yeah, a little too fun." Wade rubbed his forehead. "Take those damn things off. You look like a pimp."
Shady smiled. "Maybe I am. That's right, Shady with the ladies."
Tank plopped down on the bench next to Wade, his thighs bulging underneath his compression tights. "Friday night's booze is coming along." His face was bright red from scrubbing it with the prescription acne wash he used religiously.
"Hope so." Wade rooted into the bottom of his gym bag, digging through dirty socks and yesterday's damp practice gear. He found the flask and pulled it out. "Hand me that Gatorade bottle, Shady." Shady tossed it to him. Wade unscrewed the cap and emptied half the flask into it.
Nobody spoke.
"What? What's wrong?"
"Already?" Tank shook his head. "We've got a three-a-day today."
"Bite the dog that bit you. Ever heard that?" Wade said.
"Legs isn't going to like this." Shady pushed his sunglasses onto the top of his head and grabbed his helmet, shaking his head.
"He's not my daddy." Wade waved his hand. "And who's going to tell him?" He went to the sink and filled the rest of the bottle with water.
Screw them, and Legs too. He'd show them.
Three practices — that was nothing.
Every one of them: Shady, Tank, and even Legs once, had puked after Coach R had run them, but not him. Not Wade.
No, he wasn't a pussy. A little Captain Morgan never hurt him.
*
After the 4:00 p.m. team dinner provided by the booster club, Wade sat under a shade tree near the livestock building in the fairgrounds, sipping his lukewarm whiskey-laced water. He was spent; his legs and arms heavy, his clothing soaked, and his lips salty.
The band practiced on the school parking lot across the street, marching in formation, making a lot of racket. He burped, the spicy tang of marinara sauce climbing in his throat. The heat rose off the parking lot's black asphalt. Mr. Franks, the bandleader, waved his little stick like a crazy man. He'd be in Mr. Franks' English class again this year. The guy was pretty cool, but way too serious.
Coach R's whistle blew followed by his command through the bullhorn that practice started in fifteen minutes. Thank God it was the last session of the day. Gathering his stuff, Wade slipped on his flops, took one last swig of his magic water, and started toward the locker room. Maybe he'd get pizza with the guys and play X-Box at Tank's later tonight.
"Thornton, hold up."
Wade turned around as Mr. Franks ran across the parking lot. The late afternoon sun was at his back. There was no way to dodge him.
"We need to talk," Mr. Franks said, out of breath.
"Yeah?"
Mr. Franks stuck his baton in the back pocket of his jeans. "Coach told me you're getting lots of looks. This year really counts, especially the first half."
"Thanks, Mr. Franks, I'll be fine."
"That's what you said last year and it was a struggle." His face grew serious. "You have an opportunity for a free college education."
"I'm just not into books." Wade smiled and shifted, his bag heavy at his side.
"I know, but Wade, football doesn't last forever; an education does." The sweat dripped from Mr. Frank's bushy eyebrows and he blinked. "I have an idea that might help you. See me at the end of the first week of classes."
Wade paused. "Sure. Anything for you, Mr. Franks."
Mr. Franks smiled. "Good. Keep an open mind." His eyes lit up. "And, go get 'em! States or bust, right?"
"Right."
(Continues…)
Excerpted from "What the Valley Knows"
by .
Copyright © 2017 Heather Christie.
Excerpted by permission of Black Rose Writing.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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