“Fair enough. How long were you in?”
“Fourteen years.”
He whistled. “Some time.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Nothing else I need to know about in there?” He gestured, indicating the interior of my truck.
“No, sir.”
“Where you headed?”
“Work.”
“Where you work?”
“I’m in construction.” Why was he asking me all this? I didn’t have to answer these questions. I needed to stop. “Am I going to be detained or something?”
He smirked. “Not today.”
His assumption I was up to no good made me squeeze the wheel tighter and clench my jaw. I swiped my forehead again.
“Did you get the permanent tags yet?”
“Probably. I haven’t checked my mail.” Truth was they probably got sent to the Pleasant Gap house. Didn’t even think it through until that very moment.
He tapped the side of the truck. “Let me go put your information in and I’ll be back.”
Officer Barkley didn’t ticket me. He told me to replace the tags immediately, which I did as soon as I clocked out.
TWELVE
Julia
Irubbed my eyes and yawned under my palm. If I had known Gina and Blake were going to be thirty minutes late, I would’ve gladly slept longer. The bench right outside the complex’s gated entrance wasn’t comfortable, and the humidity was already on the rise. The sun was peeking over the edge of the horizon, casting pink and purple streaks across the sky. At least I had a beautiful view while I waited.
I checked my phone again. Gina had shared her ETA via the Maps app. Eleven more minutes. Quiet moments were the worst. Pain and memories always found me. I opened a few apps on my phone, looking for something new to keep my mind engaged. There was a “Memories” notification on Facebook. I pushed it, and a picture of me, Jack, and Cameron came up. My breath caught in my lungs. I hadn’t looked at a picture of Cameron in a long time.
I wanted to swipe away but my eyes were glued. He was so happy and full of life. We were all holding up champagne glasses at a wedding. Gina and Blake’s wedding to be exact. His blue eyes twinkled and his smile—always perfect—was wide with laughter.
Hot tears pressed at the corners of my eyes. My hands shook. I pressed the three dots at the corner and deleted the memory from my feed. I had deleted the photos of him on my Facebook, but the Memory was Jack’s and he tagged me. I threw my phone into my backpack and zipped it with ferocity that almost broke the zipper.
Jack picked that exact moment to drive by. I rolled my eyes. Perfectly inconvenient timing as always. He pulled onto the shoulder of the quiet street and popped out of the squad car. Even in the dim light, I could see his cheerful countenance. He always greeted the day with sinful glee. “Sis! What are you doing?”
“I live here, Jack. You don’t.” I crossed my arms across my chest. “The real question is what are you doing?”
“Chipper as always, I see.” He leaned on the trunk. “My shift started early. On patrol.”
“Cool.”
“So, why are you sitting out here at 6:15 in the morning?”
“I’m waiting for Gina and Blake to pick me up.” I shifted my backpack across my lap, praying it would miraculously impede his twin spidey senses.
“Hey, wait a sec.” He put his hands on his hips, making him look huge. “You said no dangerous stuff.”
“I didn’t have anything planned when you last asked me.” I lifted my nose in the air. He wasn’t going to tell me what to do.
