“And you’ve heard it ever since.”
Her smile lit up the space. “He was a great man. A great teacher.”
“You miss him.”
She nodded and ran her fingers over the shelves. “I do. We video chatted all the time. He wanted Joe and I to live with him after, well, after.”
After her parents had been killed.
“He and the Riveras talked and decided we’d stay in California. Stick with the same school and friends we had. But he was still involved in all the decisions.”
“I remember. He was always telling those corny jokes.”
Tansy laughed. “Why did the bike fall over?”
Sam waggled his eyebrows. “It was two tired.” He pointed his finger at her. “Why shouldn’t you write with a broken pencil?”
“Because it’s pointless.”
They wandered to the next aisle, swapping bad jokes they remembered.
Tansy stopped when she reached a box of old hunting clothes. Camouflage shirts and bright orange vests.
Her face changed. Tightened.
He knew she was against hunting. She didn’t eat meat under any circumstances. But this was something else.
Something in the box was triggering her.
“What is it?”
Tansy blinked, and her face was back to neutral. Except he could see past the façade.
“I was looking in this area yesterday. My phone must be here.”
They both looked down, and she spotted it sticking out from the bottom shelf. Where she’d obviously dropped it.
Because of something in the box? Or because of something associated with it?
Tansy snatched up her phone and headed to the stairs, demeanor cheerful. And fake.
Sam looked through the box quickly. He found nothing but musty old camouflage.
Now he had to figure out what it meant.
False Friends
Tansy walked onto the front deck of the lodge, hoping the night view of the lake would soothe her.
She’d tried to pretend to Sam that nothing was wrong, but she doubted it had worked. That was twice now that the box filled with camouflage had reminded her of James and his betrayal. And her own stupidity.
She wasn’t supposed to be stupid.
In science, mistakes were simply part of the process, part of the learning curve. They gave data she could use to improve the next steps, to get closer to understanding.
In life, mistakes were embarrassing.
She’d been a fool.