Page 25 of Shallow Remains

They chatted together while they rolled up their mats and put them away. Maddy hung back as Xanthe talked to the teacher for a few minutes and the others filed out.

“Think you’ll come again?” the instructor asked Maddy.

“I think I might.” She’d enjoyed it more than she’d expected.

“I love hearing that. If you meet anyone else around town who might be interested, please invite them. I’d love to get a dedicated group together for class at least twice a week.”

“Sure.” Though Maddy didn’t expect to be hanging around town.

“So, are you glad you came?” Xanthe asked her on the way down the stairs.

“Yes. I liked it.”

“I love that you sound surprised. I think it’s great that you’re trying new things. I know that’s not easy for you.”

Maddy smiled. “Thanks.” She liked Xanthe. Admired her passion and intellect.

She was good to Blaine, too. Good for him, because while they were opposite in some ways, Xanthe was strong and motivated and knew who she was. No pretention. Authentic.

She was also a badass. Saving whales and handling terror and disaster with a strength Maddy couldn’t even hope to match.

Basically, if Blaine screwed this up, Maddy would strangle him. Though from everything she’d seen during the few weeks she’d lived in Blaine’s home, he knew exactly how lucky he was to have found Xanthe.

The rain had started in earnest at some point during class. Maddy tugged the hood of her jacket up and kept under the overhang along the front of the building on the way to the sidewalk. Bronwyn and Willow were talking to Carla and Lindsay beneath an overhang near the curb, huddled together out of the wet.

Maddy stood back a bit while they talked. Because asking for the keys to go sit in the car by herself and wait wasn’t socially acceptable. She’d learned that one the hard way.

Lindsay appeared next to her, hung back a bit from the others as well. She exchanged a glance with Maddy. They both did that awkward smile that acknowledged their discomfort at feeling out of place.

Maddy considered some things to say, but stayed quiet because she didn’t feel like expending the effort with a total stranger.

“Did you move here permanently, or are you just visiting?” Lindsay asked her after a minute. The others were all laughing about something, and Maddy felt like an outsider. Seemed Lindsay did too.

“Visiting right now. Haven’t made up my mind about whether to stay or not.” Then she made the effort of lobbing the conversational tennis ball back across the net. “You?”

“Same. I came here for a change of pace to try it out and see what the fit is like. I work remotely, so I thought island life might suit me if I decide to stay for a while. What do you do?”

“IT. You?” The back-and-forth small talk was exhausting. She got the sense that Lindsay thought so too, but at least she wanted to talk about something more meaningful than the weather. Maddy always cringed when people resorted to that. Like, yeah, we can all see that it’s raining. Doesn’t need to be pointed out.

“Online marketing.” Lindsay shoved her hands into her jacket pocket. Another minute passed. “I don’t really know anyone here yet. Seeing as you’re pretty new here too and seem to hate forced socializing as much as I do, maybe we could get coffee sometime?”

Her initial reaction was an immediate no thank you. But she had to maintain some level of effort if she wanted to get out of this rut she’d put herself in, and she felt like Lindsay was a bit neurospicy too. “Sure, I’d like that.” Maybe?

They exchanged numbers, inputting them into their phones. Everyone finally said goodbye. Maddy and Xanthe dashed for their car up the street. It was raining hard enough that the drops splashed upward when they hit the ground.

As they neared the vehicle, Xanthe exclaimed in irritation. “Seriously? There’s no parking meter here.”

A piece of paper was folded under the passenger side windshield wiper. Maddy tugged it free, opened it.

It wasn’t a parking ticket. But her stomach grabbed when she saw the Arabic script printed beneath the English slogan at the bottom of the sodden paper.

TWELVE

Vengeance is Coming, the English type read.

“What is it?” Xanthe asked.

Maddy didn’t answer. Seeing the Arabic triggered the ghosts of all the dark things she had fought so hard to overcome. And the English was creepy on its own.