“Thanks.” She took the bag from Liz, but before disappearing into the bathroom, she hugged her friend. “Thanks,” she said again.
She dropped the bag inside the bathroom, peeled off her ruined clothes, and tossed them in the trash can. Everything she was wearing was either ruined or smelled so bad of smoke, she didn’t want to try to salvage it.
She’d already seen her reflection in the mirror several times, so she didn’t bother looking again. Instead, she stepped into the small shower and let the lukewarm water wash away as much as she could. She was thankful she and Liz used the same shampoo. The familiar scent warmed her and helped her relax even more.
Even though they were best friends, Liz was a great deal shorter than Kara, so the yoga pants she’d brought her hit her mid-calf. The baggy sweatshirt, however, was soft and exactly what she needed.
When she stepped out of the bathroom, Nick was sitting up and eating from a tray of food while Liz was chatting about what she’d gotten her parents for Christmas.
“Hey,” she said, stepping beside Nick.
“Do you feel better?” Nick asked.
“Much.” She sat beside him.
“Why didn’t you tell me Larry kicked you?” His hand reached up to her face. “Is it bad?”
“No,” she lied.
“Yes,” Liz said. “She’s purple. From the tip of her chin to the top of her cheekbone.”
“Tattletale.” She stuck her tongue out at her friend, who laughed.
“If I didn’t tell him now, when he gets his vision back, he’d never trust anything I said again,” Liz pointed out. “They brought you a tray of food too.” She motioned to the tray on the table.
“Here.” Nick moved over. “We can have breakfast together.”
“Did you fill Liz in on what the police said and the photo?” she asked, settling beside Nick.
“Yes,” Nick answered.
“My parents wouldn’t even let me come here alone. They dropped me off in the lobby like I was in grade school.” Liz rolled her eyes. “They’re going to pick me up in an hour.”
“Liz says there’s a huge manhunt out for the four of them,” Nick said.
“It’s all over the news. Their mug shots are up there and everything.” Liz motioned to the television. “Want to watch?”
“Sure, but let’s keep the volume down,” Nick answered.
For the next hour, they watched the news. There weren’t really any new details. Some very grainy video of the shooting at the farmer’s market. One shot in particular stopped on a grainy picture of what was obviously Willy running away from the gazebo area.
“We were standing about ten feet away from there.” Liz visibly shivered.
“We got lucky he’s such a bad shot,” Nick joked.
“Too bad whoever it was that shot Rudy wasn’t,” Liz said softly.
“Yeah.” Kara reached out for Liz’s hand.
“I’m—” Liz started but then her phone chimed. After reading a text she sighed. “My folks are here to pick me up.” She stood up, but then gasped lightly. “I forgot to give you both your presents.” She rushed over to a large bag she’d dumped just inside the room and pulled out two small packages. “Here.” She shoved one towards Kara and the other she set on Nick’s lap.
“Do you want us to open them now?” Kara asked.
“Of course. I want all the joy of seeing your faces when you see…”—she winced as she looked at Nick’s unfocused eyes—“find out what I got you both.”
“I have yours back home. I was going to drop it off…” Kara said as she unwrapped the small blue box. Inside sat a small gold key. Kara pulled it out and held it up. “What?”
Liz smiled. “It’s a key to your future. My parents have agreed to lease you the building next to Get Buzzed. If you want it. The place is yours to open your bakery.” Liz squealed happily. “Which leads us to your gift, Nick. I didn’t know what to get a man who has everything, so…”