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Her hands went to the pockets of her coat, finding keys and a small notebook inside. There was a key ring with a plain silver key attached with a dog on it. After a closer look, it was her childhood dog, and it made her smile.
She turned her attention to the notebook, flipping it open and reading the writing inside.
Carlington Auto Shop
Apartment: 194 Everglade Lane.
Cell Phone: 214-555-7294
Remember the rules.
The rest of the notebook was empty, so Carol closed it after she’d flitted through the pages. It went back into the pocket of her coat before she reached around to the back pocket of her jeans, realizing that she had a cell phone. She turned it on and checked the number—it matched the number from the notebook.
She stared at the keys in her hand. Did that mean the apartment listed was what she should use as well?
Carol shook her head, storing the items back in her pockets before looking around once more. She was sure that if anyone had been watching, they would immediately think she was a crazy person. Time to move.
She glanced around the street, seeing the rows of shops all around. Her eyes fell on the street corner, an old sign sporting the words Carlington Auto Shop letting her know exactly why she was here.
There was her unfinished business.
She began walking down the block and then across the street, approaching the doors of the garage’s office. Carol had no idea what she was going to say—she wasn't allowed to say anything about her previous life, according to the rules.
What would happen if she broke the rules, though?
Carol didn’t want to find out. She was supposed to save Brett Carlington and his shop, so they must be in some sort of trouble. First thing was figuring out what sort of trouble and what she could do. Carol approached the door, opening it and hearing the bells sound above her head. She smiled as she looked around the small office, seeing that someone decorated as best they could.
As she approached the desk, there was a young girl, around eight, books open in front of her. She had long blond hair and was wearing a red sweater. She looked very familiar, but Carol couldn’t place exactly when or where she’d seen her, so she tucked the feeling of familiarity away and smiled.
The girl looked up and sat straight in her chair. “Welcome to Carlington Auto, how may I help you?”
The way she spoke made Carol giggle, her very small voice sounding so very professional and adult. “Well, aren't you a great worker?” she asked, making her smile and nod. “I was just passing by…”
Oh, great, here was the part where she was going to have to make up a story. She wished that she could tell the little girl about her mission, but even if she maybe wasn’t old enough to understand some of it, she heeded the trench-coat man’s words.
“…and I saw your incredible decorations. Did you do them yourself?” She hoped that by talking with the girl, she might be able to figure out what she was supposed to do around here.
The girl hopped out of her chair, nodding. “Yes, my daddy let me decorate all by myself. Come look!”
Carol followed her as she led her over to the small tree, which was sitting on a table to the side. “These are all the ornaments that I made. Look!” She listened and nodded as she explained the ornaments to Carol, two for her, two for her daddy, two for Uncle Andy. When the tree had been explained, she moved over and told her about cutting out the snowflakes that were in the windows, talking about the different shapes she’d made.
Carol was so enraptured with the little girl’s explanations that she didn’t even notice the time passing. She guided Carol all around the little office space before she brought her back to the desk, talking about the homework she was doing for school.
It was when they were going over Lacy’s math homework that the two of them were interrupted.
“Lacy, what’s going on here?”
Carol raised her eyes to see a man standing in the doorway that led to the garage and she felt butterflies in her stomach begin to flutter. She’d never seen a man as handsome as this one, even with his grease-stained overalls and sweat-slicked skin.
He had dirty-blond hair that was sticking up every which way, making it look as if he’d just gotten out of bed. His face had a dusting of scruff, mature but still casual. His green eyes were bright as they studied Carol and Lacy sitting there together, a question in his eyes.
“Daddy, this is Carol!” Lacy said excitedly as she put her homework page down on the desk and rose to greet him. “She came in the shop a while ago and we’ve been talking and now she’s checking my homework, and Daddy, she’smuchbetter at math than you are.”
The man chuckled at Lacy’s words, his eyes still fixed on her. Carol blushed under his scrutiny, realizing that she’d been spending time with this man’s daughter without even meeting him first. She really hoped he wasn’t an overbearing, protective parent that would take offense.
Her nerves were relieved when he rubbed his hands with a cloth, getting the grease off them before offering one to shake. “Brett Carlington, nice to meet you. It seems you’ve made a good impression on my Lacy-bear, here.”
Carol nodded, taking his hand. It was calloused from years of hard work. “Carol. Sorry for intruding, but the moment I walked in, Lacy was talking ninety miles a minute and we just got caught up in everything.”
