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“We were here to interview him for a documentary,” he said.“My understanding was that he was very respected in his field.”
I couldn’t help barking out a laugh.“Oh yeah?And what field is that?Conspiracy theorists?Raving lunatics?”
“There are plenty of people who believe that shifters are real.”
“I guess you’re one of them.”I knew it was rude, but I couldn’t help it with disappointment rushing through me.It shouldn’t have mattered to me what he believed, but I couldn’t bear the idea that this attractive man and his charming mother believed in shifters, of all things.
He cocked his head.“I’m sorry you’re dealing with all this.”
Far from home and anyone who knew me, I could be honest in a way I rarely allowed myself to be.“The truth is, I lost him a long time ago.To this,” I said, gesturing to the room.“These obsessions meant more important to him than anything else.”
He stepped closer.The afternoon sun streaming through the windows highlighted all the dust in the air.As he moved into a shaft of light, he was surrounded by golden sparkles.“Do you have anyone to help you with this?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You shouldn’t be alone right now.”
A ragged breath escaped my nose—half laugh, half sob.As if it was possible for me to feel anything but alone.“Thanks.Great advice.I’ll just go rustle up a support system, no problem.”
He pressed his lips together.“I just meant…I know how hard it is.My dad died when I was a kid.”
“Oh.I’m sorry.”He tilted his head in the barest nod, continuing to watch me with his ocean-deep eyes.Now that I’d started talking, words seemed to back up in my throat until they burst from my mouth.“I shouldn’t have come.I should have let someone handle it, like my mother told me to.I thought…I don’t know what I thought.That I’d find some sort of explanation for why he abandoned us.Now I’m here, and I don’t even know where to start.”
To my horror, tears welled up in my eyes.That’s what I got for being honest.Still, the words were right there, and I had to say them out loud for once in my life.“I didn’t know it was this bad.My father was completely insane.”
He inhaled sharply, moving closer to me.My skin prickled with awareness, though he was still feet away.He looked like he was warring with something he couldn’t quite bring himself to say.
Before he figured it out, his mother emerged from the bathroom, wiping her hands on her pants.My father hadn’t gone for niceties like hand towels, apparently.“I appreciate you letting me come in,” she said.“I wasn’t sure I’d make it to a gas station.”
“No problem,” I said, moving toward the front door.
The woman didn’t follow.Like her son, she was drawn to the map.After examining it, she looked at the man with her eyebrows up.He widened his eyes in return.She stared at him for another moment, then turned to me.
“I was just wondering…did your father have any colleagues we could speak with?Someone familiar with his research?”
“Not that I know of.”
She nodded.Worry creased her brow, but she was careful to clear it before she turned to her son.“Well.I suppose we should be going.”
“We could stay,” the son blurted.Color crept up his cheeks when his mother and I both stared at him.“We blocked out a few hours to interview your father.We could help you go through some of these papers and get a head start on cleaning this place out.”
“Oh, no, that’s really not necessary,” I said, shocked that he’d offer.People were supposed to be nicer in small towns than they were in big cities, but no one was that nice.“I’ll…I’ll hire some junk men to come and clear out the place.I need to get back to Baltimore anyway.”
“Baltimore?”The man sounded horrified.I wondered if he was one of those people who think all cities are wastelands.
“Don’t you want to save any of your father’s things?”Melinda asked.
I looked around the room, overwhelmed.“I…I honestly don’t know.”
She tsked in a motherly fashion.“How long has it been since you’ve eaten, dear?”
“Ah…this morning, I guess.East Coast morning.”
“You just got here today?Oh, honey, no wonder you’re feeling out of sorts.”She crossed the room and put a soothing arm around my shoulder.“Jasper’s right.We’d be happy to help you get a handle on this.”
I looked around the crowded, dusty room.I didn’t trust their motivations, but I also couldn’t stand the idea of being alone in this mess again.“Are you sure?”
“Of course we’re sure,” the woman said warmly.“Goodness, I just realized I haven’t introduced myself.My name is Melinda Moore, and this is my son Jasper Moore.”
“Dr.Edith Matthews.Edie,” I corrected, unsure why I’d given them my whole title.My life as Dr.Matthews, Internal Medicine Specialist at Johns Hopkins, felt a million miles away.
“Edie, I’ll tell you what.Anytime I come into Missoula, I have to get pizza from Antonio’s.Do you know it?”When I shook my head, she nodded knowingly.“Well, you will soon.Why don’t I order up a couple of pizzas while Jasper clears us a space to sit, and then you and I can make a dent in some of this stuff before our lunch gets here?”
