Page 9
Iris frowned. “What does it matter?”
He was silent for a beat, sliding off his leather gloves one finger at a time and setting them on the table. “He came into the bookstore a few days ago, too. I just thought it was strange, the way he…” Gabriel gestured vaguely with a long-fingered hand, “…showed up like that.”
Iris was finding it hard to hide her impatience. She walked over to start the kettle, more for something to do than anything else. “Going to a bookstore or to the dentist is hardly strange behavior.”
“Maybe.” Gabriel’s forehead was knit in worry, though truly, Iris couldn’t understand why. He opened his mouth as if to add something, closed it, then opened it again. “You know, Iris, I have certain, um…not abilities, exactly, but…well, yes. Abilities of perception, you might say.”
His statement hovered in the chilly air like a phantom of uncertain origins. Iris crossed her arms as she leaned against the table. “You do, do you?”
Gabriel met her eyes with what seemed to be a significant struggle. He nodded.
“I see,” Iris said, though she really just thought her friend was losing his wits. She tapped her foot, her left sock catching on a dig in the natural wood.
“I only tell you this because I want you to know there was something strange about that man. I could sense it.”
“You could, huh?” Iris busied herself with the mugs, popping a circular teabag in each one and reaching for the honey jar.
“Yes. And Iris… Look at me. Please.”
Clutching the jar, Iris turned to face him, trying to mask her unease. This odd paranoia that had come over him was extremely unnerving.
Gabriel held her gaze with a serious, sober stare. “If you see him again, I forbid you from talking to him.”
This was too much. An incredulous laugh burst from her before she could help it. “You forbid me?”
The tea whistled on the stove, but neither of them paid any attention to it. Gabriel ground his jaw, looking uncomfortable. “I’m asking this of you for your own safety.”
“I wasn’t planning on going out of my way to talk to him. But I’m not just going to ignore a patient if he shows back up at work. I’d get fired.”
The two stared at each other, a perfect match of wills. Gabriel was the first to look away, the fight clearly leaving him.
A comforting steam rose up from each cup as Iris silently poured their tea before resuming her spot at the table. She rested her head on her arms, her exhausted eyelids drooping closed as though coerced by gravity.
After a long moment, a whisper came from across the table. “I’m sorry.”
Iris sighed, wrapping her bathrobe more tightly around her to block out the chill. “I’m sorry, too.”
5
I’m working late tonight.” Gabriel took a swig of grapefruit juice, averting his gaze as he fiddled with the buttons on his jacket the following morning.
“Oh.” Iris picked at her eggs, dipping her toast into the yolk and spreading it around before finally taking a bite. “Okay.”
She’d been anticipating spending at least part of their Saturday together to talk things through. She hoped he wasn’t taking on extra shifts to avoid her.
“Wendy is extending the holiday hours, so I’ll probably be working late quite a bit until New Year’s.”
“That’s fine.”
Gabriel’s jaw tensed. He’d moved on to buttoning the cuffs of his ironed white shirt.
They didn’t speak for the rest of the morning, and when Gabriel left for his shift just after noon, Iris let out a breath of relief. She felt tense, every nerve protesting her being awake and moving instead of huddled beneath the covers. At the same time, she was suddenly restless in the little house. She needed to feel fresh air on her skin, even if it was barely above freezing outside.
Peering out the front window to make sure Gabriel had pulled away, Iris grabbed her purse and reusable shopping bag, thinking vaguely about walking into town for some groceries.
The fresh, woody scent of the mountain pine trees lining the roadside filled her senses as she meandered up the driveway, her boots leaving patterned imprints in the snow. It was a relief to be out of the house, where tension clung to the air like spiderwebs, sticky and unpleasant.
Rubbing her hands together to bring feeling back into her fingers, Iris plucked her phone from her purse and sent a quick text to Audrey. Her reply came almost immediately.
