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“They don’t let you drive the firetruck, do they?” Troy joked, hoping to lighten the mood and put her back on firmer footing.
“Oh God, no, I’d be terrible. The engineer does that. They’re in charge of the drive and everything that has to do with the truck. I go in.”
Horrible memories popped into his head at that, but he pushed them to the edge of his mind and focused on her. He might have put her at ease, but the image of her running into a fire did not relax him at all.
“Gotcha. Look, I’ll give you the address and here, you can track my phone. I know you’re out of data, but this way if you lose me, you can find my location right here in the app. Does that make you feel a little better?”
Megan smiled and watched him type it in. “Yeah, actually. That helps a lot. You’re okay with this though?”
Troy waved a hand through the air. “You can follow me wherever. I mean, I’m mostly here, so it won’t be interesting. I’ll try to go to the grocery store more often to spice things up for you.”
Megan smiled again and put the phone back in her pocket.
“Let’s roll.”
CHAPTER30
Three hours later, Megan pulled into the driveway down at Laura’s house for dinner and parked behind Ash’s cruiser. The antique store had been exactly what she had expected—a dusty warehouse full of nooks and crannies with stacks of treasures, loosely categorized. The owner was an older retiree named Mac who was versed in local history and accompanied by a golden retriever named Lucy. The pair of them delicately wound through the narrow paths toward the back warehouse.
Megan had never been one for antiquing but had marveled at all of the trinkets, eyeing the perfume bottles and music boxes carefully in hopes of finding a match to the one she had, to no avail. It was easy to see what someone would love about it. The scent of once-loved books on the shelf, mixed with wool of old military uniforms, with notes of silver polish—it was like walking into a memory you had long forgotten and had suddenly recalled from deep storage.
Troy had bought several doorknobs, placed a hold on a bathtub, and even had checked out a few pieces of furniture. It had been another day of shopping with him, which was easy and natural. Troy asked her about everything he looked at and listened with interest to what she had to say. If she stopped to admire something, he stopped and listened to her memory. She returned the favor when they reached a stack of World War II war bond posters. She knew how much he liked history, but hadn’t realized how much he had studied.
It had been interesting, lighthearted, and fun. With a kiss goodnight, he had shut her door and waved her off as she headed to Laura’s, thinking of him for the whole drive.
She knocked on the door, which swung open immediately.
“Hey, there you are! We were about to call you.”
“Sorry, am I that late?”
“For me? No. For you? Yes. Come on in. We’ll be ready in about ten minutes. Ash is in the dining room.”
Megan walked in carrying the two-liters she had stashed in her car earlier, and put them in the fridge for later. Carter glanced up and waved from the kitchen stove, while Holden bounced around showing her all of his latest toys. Eager to see, Megan admired each one before he ran up to his room for the next round of show and tell.
Ash waved her over next to the empty chair in the dining room. She smiled but looked tired and more rundown than usual.
Typically, Ash was the calm, serene one who managed her body through a series of supplements, green juices, and fitness classes, but today, dark circles were under her eyes. If Megan hadn’t known her, she wouldn’t have thought twice, but immediately she was on guard.
“What’s wrong?” she asked when Laura left to check on Carter and the food.
“I’m great; thanks for asking.”
“Sorry. I forgot that part. You just look—”
“Like hell?”
“No, like you’ve been working overtime and then some.”
Ash shook her head and took a drink of some sort of bottled juice Megan didn’t know. Judging from the green color, she never would.
“Yeah, it’s just these cases of weird attacks. None of it makes sense, and I’m trying to figure out the link.”
Megan reached across the table and held her friend’s hand. “You’re doing a great job.”
Ash wasn’t one for too much emotion, but she looked up and smiled before closing her eyes in what appeared to be relief. “I did get one thread to pull on, but it’s not getting me anywhere yet.”
“How come?”
