Later, long after the cake had been cut and the crowd had thinned toward the firepit outside, Izzy found herself sitting beside Burton Scott beneath a sky full of stars.
Grant leaned against the fence nearby, beer in hand, listening.
Izzy tucked one leg beneath herself in the Adirondack chair.
“We found paintings,” she said. “In the old cabin up on the ridge.”
Burton’s hand paused halfway to his glass. “Paintings?”
“Signed C. Vale,” Grant added quietly.
Something flickered across Burton’s face. For a second, the easy, party posture went still, shoulders tightening as he stared into the fire.
Burton’s eyes lifted briefly across the firelight.
Wade Hollis stood near the barn doors talking quietly with District Attorney Reid Calloway, bourbon in hand like he owned the ground beneath the place. Burton watched Wade a second too long before looking away.
Like seeing him still standing there after all these years, exhausted something deep in him.
Then Burton looked back at the flames.
“Huh,” he said at last. His thumb dragged once along the rim of his glass before he set it down.
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “I remember that girl.”
Something old and tired moved behind his eyes before it disappeared again.
Grant looked up.
Burton’s eyes stayed on the flames. “Clara Vale.”
A long pause settled between them.
“Whole town thought that was a walkaway,” he said finally. “Figured she packed a bag and left the valley behind.”
Izzy thought of the cabin on the ridge. The reading glasses, the cardigan, the mug furred with old mold.
“She left everything,” she said quietly. “Doesn’t feel much like a walkaway.”
Burton still didn’t look at her.
“People do strange things when they want to disappear, Miss Moreno.”
His tone was mild. His fingers tightened once around the glass.
12
Big Red Barn — After the Party
As the party started to wind down, Caitlin finally pulled back, her hands still gripping Izzy’s arms as she looked her up and down. The initial shock was fading, replaced by a playful narrowing of her eyes.
“Iz, I can’t believe you guys kept this from me all week,” Caitlin said, her voice a mix of a laugh and a scold. “You’ve been here since Monday? And nobody said a word?”
Izzy looked sheepish, glancing toward Burke.
“We wanted it to be a surprise, Cate. It was the hardest secret I’ve ever had to keep.”
“Well, it worked. I’m still shaking,” Caitlin laughed, then immediately pivoted. “But that’s it. No more secrets. You’re coming back to the cabin to stay with us. I won’t have you tucked away in a guest wing when we have so much catching up to do.”
