“I guess I’ll just go in there and check the place out and see if she’s there.”
“And if she is?”
“I suppose I’ll ask if I could have a word with her.”
“Are you sure that’s the best way to approach her?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“Something a little less public, maybe? If she recognizes you, there’s apt to be a strong reaction. She might not want that to happen in front of her employees and customers.”
“That’s true. So what do I do?”
“How about I go in and talk to her?”
In truth, he wanted to barge in there himself, take one look at her and know in his gut whether she was his long-lost sister. But Memphis had a point about taking her by surprise in public, not to mention her place of business.
“I suppose that would be okay,” he said. “Let me help you.”
He got out of the car and went around to the passenger side, opened the door and held out his hands to help her out. As she’d been on all their stops, she was stiff from sitting so long and grimaced when her leg fought back against the movement.
“Take your time,” he said.
“Don’t have much choice about that,” she replied with a wince.
He kept his hands on her shoulders until he was certain she was steady enough to stand on her own, and then he retrieved her cane from the back seat, which she used only when she was walking by herself. Otherwise, she’d leaned on him, and he’d joked about being her human cane.
“Don’t tell her who I am. I want to see if she recognizes me.”
“Got it.”
“Are you sure you feel up to this?” he asked.
She gave him a withering look that was in keeping with her usual sassy self. “Do I need to remind you that I, too, am a U.S. Marshal and more than capable of walking into a public place and asking a few questions?”
“No, you don’t need to remind me,” he said in a testy tone that was all about his emotions running rampant. “Go on ahead, then, and if you wouldn’t mind, hurry up about it.”
She grimaced. “You should’ve gotten a more able assistant if you want me to hurry.”
“You’ll do just fine.”
“Gee, thanks.” She reached out to put a hand on his face. “Keep breathing, okay? You’ll know soon enough if it’s her.”
“I’ll try. Thanks for taking one for the team.”
“You got it.”
He leaned against the car, arms crossed, and as he watched her slowly cross the street, she reminded him of the story about the tortoise and the hare. While she was normally the hare, right now she was making the tortoise look like an Olympic sprinter.
Thinking of stupid things like tortoises and hares helped to keep him from rushing past her and barging into the flower shop to take care of business for himself. He supposed she hadn’t asked about the plan of attack because she’d been busy formulating one on her own.
When Memphis finally reached the door, a young couple who were coming out of the shop held the door for her and waited patiently for her to make her way inside.
Jesse could barely breathe while he waited. It’d been twenty-six years, and these next few minutes would be the longest of them all.
He stared at the façade of the cheerful-looking store without blinking, afraid to miss anything. By the time Memphis finally appeared at the door twelve minutes later, he’d been about to go in after her.
His heart nearly stopped when he saw she wasn’t alone.
