Page 3

I shrugged again.

She turned it over.

“Brady and Grady, Jasper Creek, Tennessee. Hmmm, sounds like a nice place.” She handed me back my picture and I shoved the picture back into my wallet.

She looked down at my signature in the sign-in book and then back up at me. “You’re Kai now, huh?”

I didn’t know what to say, so I nodded.

“Kai, I know you think you’ve gone through the tough part, but you haven’t. Trust your gut, Kai. You’ll find some surprising allies if you’re willing to let them in. They can make all the difference in the world.”

Shit, did she have dreams, too? Or maybe this is just the beginning of dementia.

But I couldn’t shut her out. Mike was worried about her. Was it because of this? Was he worried that she was losing her mind? Damn. She was so sweet and welcoming. No wonder he was worried.

“Well, let me take you back to a place I like to call the library. There are a couple of others who still have awhile to wait. Some of them are like you. They’re injured and need some peace and quiet.”

She got out from behind the desk and took my arm. She definitely had that Southern charm I had always experienced in North Carolina. I just hated the fact that I had to give Mike bad news.

“Before we go, I have to do one last thing,” I said.

“What’s that?”

“Mike wanted me to give you a hug.”

“Well, isn’t that about the nicest thing that’s happened all week?”

I bent down and wrapped my arms around her. She had a delicate perfume, not overwhelming. Yeah. A really gracious lady. Mike was right.

I looked around ‘the library’ and saw three men and a woman.

“The recliner is open,” Blessing said. “That would probably be best for your back.” I put my rucksack beside it, then frowned at Blessing.

“I never said I had a back injury.”

“Didn’t you? Well, how else would I have known about it?” She patted my arm. “Just let Kate know if you need anything. She’s been here before and knows the lay of the land.”

As soon as I sat down, the pretty woman offered me a piece of candy.

“Don’t do it, man. That shit is a silent killer.” A brown-haired man said to me.

I shook my head at the woman. She popped one of the gummies in her mouth and squinted. They were obviously sour. I was glad I’d passed.

“So, where are you headed?” she asked.

“Tennessee. I have some things to do out there.”

Yeah, like find out if I’ve lost my damned mind.

I lifted the leg rest of the recliner and sighed in relief as some of the pressure was let off my back and neck.

“Man, I feel that to my bones,” a guy said in a New York accent. I watched as he tossed back either one or two pills from the bottle he was holding. “Anti-inflammatory pills only go so far,” he said as he looked at me.

“Truth,” I nodded stiffly.

I reached down to my rucksack and pulled out my pink neck pillow and placed it around my neck. I looked around the room. I saw each and every one of them struggling not to laugh.

“What? Pink’s my favorite color.”