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“Perfect.” Emma grins. “I’ll take some before-and-after shots for you.”
She ducks out of the booth to leave instructions for the other waitress and probably to tell her to give it a rest with the line cook because the girl abandons her flirting and starts sulkily rolling cutlery into napkins instead.
“Ready!” Emma says cheerily, slinging her purse over her arm.
“You gonna wear that out?”
She looks down at her spiderweb apron. “Oh, shit! No, I’ll leave that here.” She tosses it over the back of a chair.
The air is beautifully crisp as we leave the diner, a cool wind blowing off the ocean directly into our faces. Emma’s curls look impossibly bright against the slate-gray sky.
“Nippy, isn’t it?” She buttons her jacket.
“I like it,” I say, not mentioning that it was stuffy in the diner with all the heat from the grill.
“Where did you park?” Emma scans for the Bronco.
“Up by the hotel.”
“There it is!” She spots my rusty old car and makes a beeline until shouts break out on the hotel steps.
“Is that Tom?” Emma cries, already running.
* * *
18
DANE
When I wake to a sky thickly blanketed in cloud, I feel the opposite of most people—excited instead of oppressed.
The sun is my enemy, my jailor. It’s the dividing line between me and everyone else, trapping me in the darkest, loneliest hours.
I didn’t mind so much, the last few years. The dark was where I wanted to be.
But now I’m watching Remi rattle past in her old Bronco, heading in the direction of town, and the thought of not seeing her for at least seven more hours sets my teeth on edge.
No, fuck, it’ll be a lot longer than that—I’m supposed to work tonight.
That decides it.
I apply my prescription-grade sunscreen and dress in a dark suit then grab my UV umbrella out of the stand by the door. It looks like a normal black umbrella and won’t draw much attention on a day like today, though it would be better if it were actually raining.
I haven’t driven into Grimstone during daylight hours in months. The streets and buildings look bleached and faded in the dull gray light. Only the flame-toned leaves burn brighter than ever.
Heads turn as my car drives past. The old anger rises in my chest like a snake. I see the looks, the judgement, and I hate them back with ten times the bitterness.
I could happily watch this town burn, every last building. I’ve known nothing but misery here. But I don’t leave, because I earned this hell and there’s no escaping it.
Remi’s orange Bronco is easy to find; it’s parked right in front of the Monarch. Where Remi herself might have gone is another question—her car is equidistant from the hardware store and Emma’s diner, and not far from the grocery store, either.
I try Lou’s Hardware first, which turns out to be wishful thinking—no Remi, only a redheaded woman in cat’s eye glasses who gives me a filthy glare.
I could check the grocery store, but really Remi’s car is a hell of a lot closer to the diner. I start walking in that direction at a slug’s pace, asking myself if I’m willing to risk Emma spitting in my coffee and rubbing my pancakes all over her ass before she sets them on the plate—if she’ll serve me at all.
I’m looking out for one carrot-top, but it’s the cousin I see, with his hands cupped around his face, peering through the window of Remi’s Bronco.
“Looking for something?”
