“Well, that’s good, I guess. I’m glad he’ll be okay, even if he is a creep.” I tapped the edge of my desk. “How did you know I was involved with the rally?”
“I saw the signs in town, and I looked up the name of the group on the internet. When I called them, they gave me your number. I don’t want to start trouble—well, any more trouble, I guess—but it seems pretty damned stupid to protest something like this. I was hoping you could get your group to call it all off.”
I nodded. “I think I can make that happen.”
“Okay, then.” Tracie stood up. “I’m sorry to bother you here. This is a cool place, you know? We came here a couple of times during school, for field trips, but I haven’t been back in a long time. I loved history in high school, but then I kind of forgot how much I liked it until I came over today.”
I rose to my feet, too. “You know, we have lots of volunteer opportunities. If you’re interested, let me know, and I can get you set up. It doesn’t have to take much of your time, but if you enjoy history and working with people, it can be rewarding.”
Her pretty face lit up. “I’d like that. Hey, maybe something good might come out of this mess, after all.”
I thought about meeting Max that first day after the protest. If I hadn’t been there in that field, with my broken-down car, stuck just as he was driving by, we never might have met. I couldn’t imagine living the rest of my life without the man I’d come to know and love. Although I was sorry for what both Tracie and Private Reardon had gone through, I couldn’t help being grateful that serendipity had led me to Max Remington.
“You’re right about that,” I agreed. “My grandmother used to say that it’s an ill wind that blows no good. I hope you can find the silver lining in everything that’s happened to you.”
“Thanks.” She turned to leave, hesitating before she went through the doorway. “I just wish I had a way to get in touch with Private Reardon. I’d like to apologize for taking so long to come forward. And I’d like to thank him for standing up for me that night. But I guess that wouldn’t be possible.”
I grinned. “Sometimes the impossible isn’t quite so unlikely as you might think.”
