Wyatt nodded. “However, if they did it, then you wouldn’t be able to pop open the garage door and possibly catch them. Truth is, I’ve seen it done before.”
“Have you?”
He nodded. “If you turn the power off at the box, that can thwart some security measures that need electricity to work.”
Jake felt marginally better. “Okay. Thanks. I know it’s foolish, but I’m hoping for stupid kids doing stupid things rather than someone lying in wait to finish me off when I least suspect it.”
Wyatt smiled. “I probably shouldn’t have said anything.”
“No. I like to be informed. I have so few memories that I want to know all I can.”
“Understandable.”
The crime tech, Becky, continued doing her thing. She had been quiet and seemed efficient, since it didn’t take her long. She worked around the back door, taking pictures from several angles, taking samples of anything that looked suspicious, dusting for fingerprints at the circuit breaker box, around the back door and several places inside Jake’s home where the culprit might have entered or exited or looked for valuables.
Becky headed across the yard to his back gate. She repeated the same steps, taking photos, swabbing areas to collect samples of Jake knew not what and then dusting for prints.
Once Becky was finished, she packed up her kit, told the sheriff she’d be in touch and left.
Wyatt reassured Jake once more before he also took off, leaving behind his card with his number and an invitationfor Jake to call anytime, day or night. Jake appreciated his earnestness.
Once he was alone, Jake searched his entire home, not sure what he was looking for. Perhaps he just wanted to reassure himself that he was truly alone.
He didn’t find anything out of place, but it didn’t relieve the roiling unease in his gut one single bit. His gut didn’t trust anyone, even stupid kids being stupid.
After feeling like his world was very small since waking up in the hospital, he took comfort in all those folks he had gotten to know who were on his side, willing to help him, offering not only aid of all kinds, but friendship.
Jake valued the friendships especially.
However he came to choose Alienn, Arkansas, as his home, he’d chosen well.
Chapter Eight
Beryl woke early with a spring in her step and a song in her heart. She didn’t usually wake up that way, but she had something to look forward to today. And his name was Jake Jones.
She’d mapped out the best route to Dark Matter Metal & Leather from the Supernova Supermarket and decided she would just walk over there when his place opened.
It would take fifteen minutes or less and she needed the exercise anyway. Besides, it was a lovely day to walk into downtown Alienn.
When she got to work, there was no growling or grinding from the ice machine with its new motor and that was glorious. She’d removed the problematic bracket that Jake was reconstructing for her. Mr. Dobbins had said one night without it wouldn’t hurt anything. And she really wanted it to be quiet at the front of the store.
Beryl walked through the Supernova Supermarket, checking things out as she did at the start of every day, and found no concerns. There were no irate customers with expired coupons to deal with, for which she was eternally grateful.
And again, that beautiful sound of silence from the front of the store made her realize she’d made the right decision in opting for the new motor. She’d have seven and a half years of promised quiet and that calmed her nerves dramatically.
The rest of Beryl’s morning went much smoother than the previous day. She left for Dark Matter Metal & Leather, giving herself double the time needed to walk there.
She was smart enough to know that she’d likely meet a few townspeople along the way and if the grapevine was alive, as it was every single day, she’d probably get more than one or two questions as she made her way downtown.
Beryl was surprised that she was only stopped once during her journey and that was to give directions to lost tourists in search of the Gamma-Ray Gallery. She pointed the pair in the right direction and kept moving.
Just when she thought she was home free, a voice pulled her back to Earth. Space potatoes.
“Beryl Ashcraft!” Ashleigh Graves shrieked in an excited tone when Beryl was mere steps away from this morning’s destination. “I’m so happy to run into you this morning. How have you been?”
Ashleigh promptly leaned forward, grasped Beryl’s shoulders and air-kissed each side of her face. Beryl found the custom annoying, but endured it, not wanting to cause a scene—make thatanotherscene—that would be fodder for the grapevine she hated.
“Ashleigh,” Beryl managed with quite a bit less enthusiasm. “I’m well. Thank you for asking.” Beryl purposely didn’t ask how Ashleigh was doing. It was petty, but not only did shenotwant to know, she didn’t care. They’d verbally tussled early in their acquaintance, well before Beryl and her family arrived on Earth. She clocked their frenemies status back to primary school on Alpha-Prime.
