Page 24 of Abandoned

AJ clapped. “Good. I’ll let you two have a minute. I’ll wait in my car, and you can follow me to my place.”

After AJ left the room, Will stood and strode to Zara. He extended his hands to her, and once her hands were in his, he tugged her to her feet and against his chest.

She leaned her head against him and soaked in his strength and comfort. The break-in might have shaken her up, but at least she had Will by her side.

Zara took the mug of tea AJ handed her and snuggled deep into the squishy couch that had been made up as a bed. It was so strange to be staying at someone else’s home, especially someone she’d known only a short time. She’d never had a friend who would open up their place for her.

AJ sat in an ancient armchair, clearly a thrift-store find. In fact, most of the furniture in AJ’s over-a-garage apartment looked like resale-shop treasures. It was quaint and seemed to fit AJ’s sweet, easy-going personality.

They chatted about what growing up in Hazel Hill had been like. Her childhood sounded much different than Will’s but nothing like Zara’s. Homeschool, Christian home that wasn’t quite healthy, and an older brother she’d grown distant from over the years.

Zara sipped her tea. “Will said you went to the same homeschool group?”

AJ nodded. “Sure did.” Her eyes became distant as she stared at the floor.

“Can you tell me about what Will was like then? Or is that too much?”

AJ’s smile returned, and she met Zara’s gaze. “Nah, he’s fine. He was a total goofball. He’s settled down a lot as an adult. I think a job like y’all have does that. But he was always a dreamer. ‘What if we …?’ was a common phrase out of his mouth. Got him and his friends in trouble on more than one occasion, but it was mostly harmless.”

“Sounds like he was fun.”

“Definitely. He always wanted to be a cop.”

“Logan too?”

AJ nodded. “And Will always talked big about becoming a detective. He would have made a great one too.”

“Do you know why he didn’t?”

“Simple. He never finished college. Can’t be a Hazel Hill detective without a college degree. Even Logan and I finished. If we managed, he could have.”

“Why didn’t he finish?” Zara’s concern was piqued.

“That’s just Will. He’s an idea man, runs headlong into something until he gets distracted or it gets hard. Don’t get me wrong, he has a great work ethic but struggles to look long-term.”

“Is that something I should worry about as far as our relationship?” Was Will a quitter? She didn’t want to have anything to do with a quitter.

AJ shook her head. “Nah. I’ve never seen him so smitten with anyone else.”

“He said Victoria scared off his last girlfriend.”

AJ laughed. “I don’t doubt it. I don’t know anything about that because I’ve hardly talked to Will in the last five years, but his sister is a force to be reckoned with. She babysat my brother and me when we were little. No one got away with anything. She may be a second child, but she has zero second-born characteristics.”

“I guess being the oldest daughter of a large family does that.”

AJ laughed. “For sure. Do you have any siblings?”

“Not that I know of. My dad left when I was six, so anything could have happened after that, but he never said anything.”

“Just you and your mom then?”

Zara snorted. “Hardly. More like just me. I mean, Mom put a roof over my head and made sure I went to school every day, but there wasn’t much more than that. She was too busy getting high or finding a new boyfriend.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay. I learned how to do things for myself. And now I’m trying to learn to let Jesus take the wheel in my life. That’s a whole new challenge.”

“That’s for sure. I haven’t always walked close with the Lord. I chose to follow Him as a kid, but I let life crowd Him out for a while. It’s so good to be back to letting Him lead and guide my life.”