May glanced at her.“Are you having chest pains?”
“No.”Not the kind the doctor could fix, anyway.
After an extremely thorough—waytoo thorough—examination, Amka strode out of May’s office, ears still ringing.“I really am all right,” she said, half to herself, half to May trailing behind her.
“I know,” May replied, arms folded across her chest, “but you’re bruised.You need to take it easy for at least a week, and if you have any nausea or dizziness, you have to let me know.”
Lance looked up from his desk in the corner, his eyes wide.“It’s all over town now.Christian carried you out of there like some hero in a war movie.”
Amka closed her eyes for a beat and fought the urge to smack her forehead.“Oh crap,” she muttered.“He’s going to hate that.”
May and Lance nodded at the same time in perfect sync.
The door banged open.
Wyland Friday and his son, Sheldon, bustled in, both of them dripping wet and smelling faintly of river water.Wyland had owned Friday’s Grocery for decades upon decades with his wife, whom he’d lost to kidney disease seven years ago.The men still wore fishing waders and hats, hooks and lures bobbing with every step.
“Our building burned down,” Wyland said, voice hoarse.He shook his head like he still couldn’t believe it.“Heard you were inside.You all right?”
Amka stepped forward and touched the older man’s hand.Wyland was around seventy, though arthritis had been chewing at him for years.He had grizzled gray hair, kind blue eyes, and always the same outfit: flannel shirt, jeans, fishing waders—rain or shine.“I’m fine.With just a little headache.”
Sheldon gave her a short nod.In his thirties, he had the same piercing blue eyes as his father, though his brown hair was still untouched by gray.“Do you have any idea what caused the explosion?”
Amka shook her head.“No, but the sheriff thought it was set on purpose.”
The silence that followed felt heavy.
“We’ll need to file an insurance claim,” Sheldon said, glancing up at his dad like he was waiting for permission.
Amka gave him a look.That was fast.
Wyland’s frown deepened.“It’s a little early for that, don’t you think?Let’s make sure everyone’s safe before we start counting inventory.”
“Dad, we had a lot of provisions in that storage unit.”
That wasn’t exactly true.Amka shifted her weight, noting a new pain in her right ankle.“Your spring shipment hasn’t even arrived yet.There wasn’t much in there.You’ll be fine.”
“There was more than you think,” Sheldon said quickly.“I’ll call the insurance company today.”
Wyland shook his head.“We don’t even know what exactly happened.”
“There was an explosion and accelerant on the floor,” Amka said.
Wyland’s eyes narrowed slightly.“Why would someone burn down our storage building?”
Amka couldn’t figure it out.“Who knows?We own it together, and there wasn’t a whole lot inside at this time of year.”
“Except you,” Wyland said grimly.
Amka’s stomach turned over.Why would anybody want to hurt her?Nobody, at this time, would benefit from her death.She didn’t have family and wasn’t married yet.Should she get a will?
Sheldon cleared his throat.“It’s too early to talk about any of this, but you’re right—it’s not a great place for storage anymore.Someone’s going to want to build there eventually.”
Build there?The property was probably worth a lot more than it had been just five years ago, considering Knife’s Edge was gaining more popularity.
Wyland’s hand landed lightly on her arm.“It’s way too soon.We’re just glad you’re okay.”
“Where’s Jarod?”Sheldon asked.
