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Bran agreed. “Same here. Mom, has anybody tried to talk to you about it?”
May shrugged. “Not that I can remember, and something like that, I would remember. But that doesn’t mean that isn’t a possibility.”
I pulled out my phone. “I wonder…Bran, do you recognize any of these women? Daisy sent me the pictures. They match three sets of prints found in my shop.”
But neither May nor Bran could identify any of the three.
“There was a fourth set of prints we couldn’t ID,” Daisy said. “And since passports and driver’s licenses are issued without them, there’s a chance we may never know who they belonged to. Even if we did, we wouldn’t necessarily have evidence to link them to the crime.”
“Well, it’s nearing dawn, so my men will stay around and gather what evidence they can,” the fire marshal said. “We’ll let you know when we’re ready to head out.”
Bran placed his hand on May’s shoulder. “Get some rest. I’ll stay up till they leave. I can’t sleep anyway, I have to find a place to take the cow, goat, and horse.”
“I have room,” I said. “I have the shed, which can be turned into a makeshift stable. As long as you come over and take care of them, you can use it.”
“Thanks, love, but I’ll rent a stable somewhere. That will free up my time for rebuilding the barn.” Bran looked so dejected that I wanted to give him a long hug, but this was neither the time nor place. Instead, I reached out and took his hand, squeezing it gently.
“Whatever we can do to help, just ask.”
Bran worried his lip. “I know I promised to go to the wake with you—and I still will, if you need me too, but…”
“Don’t worry about it,” I said. “You’re needed here. But, can you keep an eye on my house, too? Just occasionally peek over there?”
“Of course, dear,” May said. “Now, go home and get to bed. I’ll get some rest, too, if Bran doesn’t mind.”
“Go to bed, Mom. You need your sleep.” He poured himself another cup of coffee. “I’ll call you in the morning, Elphyra. Well, you know, later this morning, given it’s nearing dawn.”
Dawn in October came late. It was five-forty-five, and the first hints of light were creeping above the horizon. The clouds had cleared away, we saw, when we headed out to the car. I felt bad for leaving Bran to contend with the mess he was facing, but he had insisted that he’d be fine. Grams and I climbed in Von’s truck and he eased back down the driveway. May had had her drive paved, and it occurred to me that it made sense. Heavy rains made graveled driveways unusable at certain times of the year.
As we got out of the truck back at my house, James emerged from the house.
“Everything okay? Did they save the house?” he asked.
“Yeah, thank gods. But if it weren’t for Kells, things might have turned out worse. He’s a hero, you know, and I’m going to tell Kyle that.” I paused, then added, “Would you guys stick around a few more hours? I’ll make you breakfast when I get up.”
“You don’t have to do that, and of course we can stay. We don’t have to leave until eight.”
That would give us two hours of uninterrupted sleep. Grateful, Grams and I headed into the house and locked the door. There was nothing to say, so I kissed her cheek. By the time I had stripped off my clothes and crawled into bed, I was so tired that in seconds, I was asleep, so deep that my dreams couldn’t find me.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Since Bree was supposed to meet with Grams’s lawyers, Grams had promised to be there to introduce them. So we were both up and dressed at nine—an hour after Von and the boys had left. I could have slept till noon, but then going to bed early would have been difficult. And with the wake the next day, I needed more sleep.
My phone chimed as Grams was making breakfast. I glanced at it. Kyle was texting me.
elphyra, faron isn’t awake yet, but the doctors are seeing a stir of brainwave activity. they say this is a hopeful sign and the next thirty-six hours should give us an answer as to whether he’s going to pull out of this. i’ll let you know if there’s any change. i’m not going to make it to the hospital today but i’ll be there tomorrow.
My pulse quickened. i’ll be thinking about him. i want to drop in, but today’s difficult and tomorrow, i have to be in port townsend for my cousin’s wake. but text me if there’s any change, please. by the way, thank you so much for von, james, and kells. they saved my neighbors’ lives and home last night.
von told me. they’re at your disposal as long as you need them. i know that’s what faron would want. i’ll talk to you later.
hugs and thanks again.
I set down my phone, staring at it. “Faron might wake up. For the first time in weeks, there’s real hope.”
I picked up my fork and began eating my omelet and bacon. What that would mean for Bran and me, I didn’t know. Or Faron and me. And even thinking about the situation was overreaching things right now. Faron had a long ways to heal, and that would be his first priority. I wasn’t about to burden him with thoughts of our relationship when he needed to focus on getting back to normal.
If he even remembers your relationship. Who knows what being in a coma for months is going to do? The thought hit me so hard, I dropped my fork.
