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If only Hunter had never come back to South Port.
When she pulled up to her house and parked, she angrily wiped away her tears. If only things were different. If only she had her friend back, not this person she didn’t even know anymore.
Chapter 13
The next couple weeks passed in a semi-blur. Hunter did the bare minimum to get by with his brothers. He got up, went to work, drank, and went home. He was drifting, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. Every day, it felt like he was dragging around a cement bar that got heavier and heavier.
Kensi stopped by the bike shop a few times to talk to him about a “life’s purpose,” and he constantly told her he didn’t care. Pastor Henry did the same thing, and Hunter finally told him he would never be a pastor. Wasn’t. Gonna. Happen.
One night, Ava walked into the library where he sat on the couch and stared out at the sunset. “I have something I thought you might be interested in.”
“Hey.” Hunter sat up. Ava was one person he did care about.
She leaned in so their shoulders touched. “I was looking through that box of Trent’s things, and this is his notebook. I was surprised at how detailed his notes were about ‘possible things the key opens.’”
Hunter gingerly took the notebook and opened it to the middle. The writing inside might seem like scribbled nonsense to most people, but Hunter knew the exact code Trent had used. He laughed. “We were twelve when we created this. It was our secret code when we wanted to leave messages on the little chalkboard Mom had in the kitchen. Every number is a substitution for a letter.”
“Really?” Ava bumped against his shoulder. “I always wondered why you and Trent would leave a bunch of numbers on the chalkboard. That’s funny.”
Hunter found himself consumed by the notebook. He launched himself over to the little desk, where he opened the drawer and pulled out a pen. He seated himself at the desk and began deciphering all the numbers. It was strange, but he was fueled by purpose, and it felt like Trent was with him, encouraging him as he deciphered each word.
He didn’t know how long he sat there, but when he looked up, Ava was gone. It was dark except for the lamp next to the desk. He remembered Ava turning it on, but he didn’t remember her leaving. When he tugged out his phone, he discovered it was two in the morning. He got up and stood over the notebook for a moment.
A stupid grin washed over his face, and he laughed. “Brother, only you would make it incredibly hard for anyone else to figure this out.”
Too bad the only thing he could decipher were coordinates. And … he had no idea what they meant.
* * *
The next day,Hunter found he was excited to get off work and decode more of Trent’s notebook. The decoding process took little mental effort, so he could still slog back a few beers at the sports bar while he worked. He didn’t realize how long he’d been sitting there until the bartender signaled last call.
He walked out of the bar and climbed onto Marshall’s old motorcycle. His brain was pleasantly buzzed and still consumed by Trent’s notebook when he started the engine. He pulled the throttle and turned the corner from the sports bar to Main Street.
Thump!
A woman screamed.
Panic jolted Hunter to alertness, and he jumped off the bike, put the kickstand down, and rushed toward the person.
The woman on the ground… it was Reese.
“Oh my gosh,” she gasped, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I think it’s broken. Oh my gosh.”
Confusion sent his head spinning. “Reese?” Blood smeared across her cheek from where she’d fallen, and she was gripping her ankle. He carefully touched the injured area. It felt like there was a bone out of place.
“Oh my gosh, Hunter.” Her breaths came in short bursts, her nostrils flaring. “Oh my gosh.”
Right then, it didn’t matter that so much crap had gone down between them. All he wanted to do was save this woman. Save his friend. Be the hero he should be.
“I’m calling 911.” He whipped his phone out and dialed. He gave them the details, then dropped his phone to the pavement and gathered Cheryse into his arms.
Tears streamed down her face. “I think it’s broken.”
“It’s gonna be okay. It will be okay. I promise. I promise.”
What had he done?
Chapter 14
