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The sky had darkened by then, but inside felt cozy and warm. “We need dinner for tonight, right?” Annie asked. “We could make something together.”
“Yeah, about that—I don’t really have anything to make. I usually eat at the restaurant for lunch and bring home half to have for dinner.”
“I saw the tavern’s still open,” Annie said. “I always wanted to go there when we were kids.”
“It’s changed ownership since we were kids. According to Mama, the new owners are fancy. Sixteen different IPAs.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Sixteen? What’s happening to Bluefern?”
“I could go into town and pick something up for us? The tavern has a good burger.”
“I’ll go with you but stay in the truck.”
“Yeah, okay. You can wear my cowboy hat too, just in case.”
“Great. Let’s do it.”
Annie wasquiet on the way into town. A few stars dotted the purple-blue sky, keeping a crescent moon company. Scout sat between us with her head on Annie’s lap, sighing with contentment every minute or two. The road into town was dark without the streetlights I’d grown accustomed to in the city. It had taken me a little while to adjust to such a dark, quiet landscape when I’d first moved back to Bluefern.
“You all right?” I asked Annie.
The first light of town appeared. I lessened the pressure on the gas pedal in response. For Bluefern, the evening was busy, with many cars and trucks parked outside the grocery store. The tavern’s parking lot was equally full. The day before Thanksgiving was a popular night to meet old high school friends or go out with visiting family.
Annie leaned closer to the window as we passed Rafferty’s doctor’s office. “Look at that, his name on the sign and everything.”
“Do you remember Dr. Wilson? He used to scare us bad when we were kids.”
Annie rested her head on the back of the seat, looking up at the ceiling. “Oh my gosh, yes. He had that frightening nurse, too. What was her name?”
“Nurse Meyers. Aka Ratched.”
“She made me cry one time,” Annie said. “I can’t remember why, though.”
“She’d always tell me how she helped deliver me when my mother was a teenager. Emphasis on teenager.”
“I don’t remember her saying that to me, even though it would have been true.”
“She retired a few years back, thank goodness, or else Rafferty would’ve had to keep her on. Legacy and all that.”
“What about Dr. Wilson?” Annie asked. “He seemed old back when we were kids.”
“He died just last year. That’s how come the practice was up for sale. Rafferty bought it from Wilson’s kids.”
“How could he afford that?” Annie asked. “Just out of med school?”
“Always practical,” I said. “That’s my Annie.”
“Am I?”
“You always had a plan. But as far as the money for the practice goes, consider me a silent partner. It was an investment in my brother and in me.”
“I’m surprised he agreed.”
“Really? Why?”
“I remember him being very competitive when we were kids. He always wanted to be the best. Without help.”
“Let’s say it took some convincing,” I said. I’d worked on him for weeks until he finally relented and agreed to my proposal. We had no formal arrangement for him to pay me back, but I knew it weighed upon him. However, I’d convinced him that it made more financial sense to keep it in the family, as opposed to taking out loans. Rafferty already had enough debt from medical school.
