Nora sat, thinking his sheepskin coat made his shoulders look even wider, then watching the way he walked into the wind with his head down just enough to keep the wind from catching his Stetson as he got into truck. Before he could start the engine, Dylan called, and the first words out of his mouth were, “Is she okay?”
Ash turned his head, looking at the sheen of tears in her big brown eyes, and the beautiful shape of her, then answered.
“She will be. We have to stop at the pharmacy, then we’ll be right there.”
* * *
By the time they got to the Rose, Nora knew Ash had been right. She needed to feel normal again. To soak up the hometown welcome and be with people who knew her for the girl she’d been, and were not impressed with the high-powered world in which she now lived and worked.
Dylan had chairs waiting at their table, and when she walked in, and they saw her and Asher together again, and the fresh bandage on her hand, she became the object of much teasing and much sympathy.
One man they’d grown up with shouted out at Asher.
“Dang, Ash. Did you have to twist her hand that hard just to get her back?”
“Hush it, Roger. Everybody in town knows Nora Borden doesn’t do anything she doesn’t want to.”
That comment brought up countless stories from friends at the Rose, about their high school years. About Nora at fourteen, refusing to play basketball just because she was tall, and the fit the athletic coach had when she said no. And the time Nora proved to the computer science teacher that there was a flaw in the program he was teaching from, then fixed it for him on the spot.
Nora sat listening, surprised so many people remembered anything about her, and that she’d been admired for standing up for herself, when she’d felt like the nerdy girl who always made perfect scores and ruined the grading curve for everyone. Now, it was funny, and she could see that they were laughing with her, not at her, and all the sad, empty places inside her began to fade.
Pearl even made a quick trip out of the kitchen to give her a hug, and as she did, Gunner took it upon himself to ask about the black truck that made a U-turn the night of the shooting.
“Miss Pearl, did you recognize that truck, or see who was driving it?” he asked.
She frowned slightly, trying to picture it in her mind. “I know for certain that it was an extended-cab truck with big dually wheels, a ladder sticking out of the back, and one broken taillight. I didn’t see the driver. But I know he had nothing to do with shooting Jacob, because I heard the gunshot first and ran to the window. Then, I saw the black truck pass by the Rose and watched it go down the highway and make a U-turn in the parking lot and come back into town. I was calling Jacob by then, and still watching out the window when I saw the white sports car come flying out from the bar parking lot and go west. At that point I got dressed and ran to check on Jacob’s welfare. That’s about all I know. I need to get back in the kitchen before Davey messes with my chi.”
They were smiling as she left, trying to imagine what Pearl’s punishment to her grill cook might be for interfering with the setup in her kitchen.
“Black extended-cab truck. Dually wheels. Ladder in the back. One broken taillight,” Gunner repeated, and at that moment, Nora interrupted.
“That sounds like Miles Terrell’s truck. He works at Lowe’s. I was just in there earlier today and saw him leave in it to make a delivery. No ladder in the back but it had all of the other features.”
“Can’t beat the grapevine of small-town living,” Gunner said as he wrote down the name. “If this is him, then he may have more information for us. Many thanks, Nora.”
Ash winked at her, and Dylan gave her a quick pat on the arm.
“You are officially part of the investigation,” Ash said, “and here comes our food. Did you take a pain pill yet?” he asked.
She nodded.
He leaned over and kissed her cheek, then winked whenshe blushed.
“Outrageous man,” she said.
“No shame within him,” Gunner added.
Ash shrugged. “I’m not ashamed of anything. Didn’t you see the way those two truckers have been staring at her? I just posted my own version of a No Trespassing sign.”
Nora glanced up at him and winked. “Like I said…such an outrageous man, but since he did offer, I plan to keep him.”
After that, they began eating, but still talking among themselves.
“I’ll go run down Miles and see what he has to say,” Gunner said.
“After I tuck Nora in Dad’s bed, I’ll help Dylan install the new glass in the front door,” Ash said.
“You don’t have to do that,” Nora said. “I’ll be fine on my own.”
