The left vent angled slightly upward, the right angled straight. I adjusted both so they matched. The temperature read seventy-two. I lowered it to seventy and waited for the display to stabilize before letting go.
Zoey had moved the seat back farther than necessary, so I slid it forward one notch. The cup holder insert was crooked. I fixed it. The rearview mirror was tilted a fraction too high. I corrected that too.
When the numbers lined up, when the symmetry returned, my shoulders eased.
My phone buzzed, and I glanced at the screen.
Nora.
I answered on the second ring.
“Hey, Nora, what’s up?” I said.
“I know you’re technically off,” she began, which meant she was about to ask for something that wasn’t small.
“What happened?”
“Pete tried to install the new filtration system under the main bar by himself.”
I closed my eyes briefly. “And?”
“He threw his back out. Again. He’s currently on the floor behind the taps insisting he’s fine and asking for ice.”
“Is the system installed?”
“It is partially installed,” Nora said carefully. “The intake line is disconnected. The pressure regulator is not calibrated. We can’t run water through the bar at all.”
I looked toward the clinic doors.
“No sinks. No tap water. No ice machine. No draft lines,” she continued. “Lunch service starts in three hours. We have a bridal party arriving at three.”
The scene played out in my head immediately. Guests crowded in the main lodge bar, expecting craft cocktails andlocal beer on tap. Pete flat on the floor behind the polished wood. The staff trying to explain why the faucet wasn’t working.
“How long has it been down?”
“Forty minutes.”
“And Pete?”
“Embarrassed. In pain. Defensive.”
Of course he was.
“I’ll be there soon,” I said.
“You’re on vacation.”
“I’m aware.”
“It’s not your responsibility to solve this.”
“Yes,” I said. “I know.”
There was a beat of silence.
“I can stall for a bit,” she added. “But not long.”
“I know.”
