Page 87 of Her Wicker Guardian

Tom waits until his tail lights disappear before saying, “That went better than I expected.”

“I agree,” I admit.

Locke turns toward the yard. “Bear.”

Tom nods. “Bear.”

They go back to work. I follow more slowly and settle into one of the folding chairs again. For the moment, no engines slow outside, and with Tom beside Locke, the yard almost feels ordinary. Locke begins shaping one of the bear’s ears while Tom sorts through the remaining willow.

My phone buzzes in my hand. I almost don’t look. Then I see the name.

DO NOT ANSWER.

My stomach drops so fast it feels like missing a step. I open the message.

DO NOT ANSWER: Rachel.

A second message appears while I’m staring at the first.

DO NOT ANSWER: What the hell is that thing in your yard?

For a few seconds, everything else drops away. The viral picture, the strangers, the deputy, all of it disappears beneath the older knowledge of what it means when Trent decides I owe him an answer.

I look across the yard.

Locke is working beside Tom with his back to me, completely unaware that anything has changed. He’s making a bear.

I read the message once more, then lock the screen.

Trent knows Locke is here.

Chapter Sixteen

Rachel

By the time Tom is ready to leave, it’s fully dark. I ate some warmed-up soup from a can and half a dozen soda crackers about an hour ago. The workshop lights throw a pale square across the yard, and Locke is still standing beside the bear, studying one ear as if another five minutes might reveal a structural failure nobody else can see. Tom shuts his toolbox and tells him to leave it alone before he starts fixing things that aren’t broken.

“It is uneven,” Locke says.

“It’s a bear,” Tom tells him. “Bears are uneven.”

Locke considers that with the seriousness he gives most things Tom says. “Tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow.”

Tom carries his tools toward the drive, and I follow him around the side of the cottage. Before he gets into the truck, he lowers his voice. “Shannon says she’s staying home unless you call.”

“I think you missed supper.”

“She has a plate in the microwave for me.”

“Tell her I love her.”

“She knows.”

“And thank her for not organizing anything.”

“That may hurt her feelings.”