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He’d come home because he needed to; Faith Harris had reminded him of that. Okay, maybe her delivery had been off, but her words had hit their mark. It was past time for him to come here. Past time for him to see his family and friends again.
“What kept me away from here for so long?” When no reply was forthcoming, he pushed that thought aside for another day, because Ryan was sure he didn’t want to examine the reason too closely right now.
He lowered his window as a tall, elegant woman walked toward him. He looked at the long tail of her dark hair hanging out the back of an LAPD cap then at the face beneath. He knew those eyes would be dark like her brother’s. The last time he’d seen her, she’d been a tall, lanky girl.
“Morning,” she said, looking in his window.
“Morning.”
Her eyes studied his face. He too wore a cap and dark glasses, but he was sure she’d recognize him.
“Ryan?”
“Hey, Katie.”
She smiled, then leaned through the window to kiss his cheek. “Well now, this is a surprise. What’s it been, thirteen years?”
“Eleven.”
“Long overdue for a visit then, to my way of thinking.”
“Good to be back,” he said, unsure if that was the truth or not.
“You all good?” She moved closer to inspect him. “You look kinda pale.”
It’s been eleven years. I haven’t seen my mother since then, and my sister only briefly. What do you think?
“I’m okay. Just been a long trip to get here.”
“You drive in from Brook?”
“I did but flew in before that.”
“Well, the air around here will sort you out. Hope will be glad to see you before the baby arrives too. And your mom,” she quickly added. His mother had that effect on people. “You know where they live?”
“On the ridge?”
“That’s it. Hell of thing, her and Newman hooking up.”
“It is that.” Ryan had to agree. “Just out of interest, why are you stopping people?”
“Voluntary donations for the new facility.” She smiled.
“There’s a new building being erected?” That surprised him. Howlers weren’t that keen on change. “First one in a while, from what I remember.”
“Hard to believe, right?” She laughed.
“So, what is being housed inside this facility?”
“It will be a bigger place for concerts, gatherings, the occasional basketball game, stuff like that.”
“So, a hall or rec center?”
“The book club are calling it the facility, but as to why, I have no idea.” She smiled.
“They still running the town?”
“Complete control.”
