Page 37 of Burn Point

With a bag full of tacos and soft drinks in hand, we entered the park. “Oh man, the statues are gone.” Jordan pointed to an empty pedestal. “The dancing girl was one of my favorites. Seeing her always made me smile, she looked so real and carefree with her skirts flowing in the breeze.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, sad eyes glued to where the iron piece had been. “Seeing her made me want to kick off my shoes and twirl like her.”

Emotion clogged my throat as I studied the empty pedestal. I’d been so focused on people and their homes that I hadn’t truly catalogued all the little things that had been lost in the storm. “You remember the horse sculptures?” When she nodded, I continued, “I remember when they introduced those. Different groups would paint them, each one had a theme. So many people thought they were ridiculous.” I paused, smiling at the memory. “But then everyone came downtown to see them, admiring the uniqueness of each one. And those led to the trains, and trucks, and somewhere along the way a pig showed up.” A grin tugged my lips at the memory of that brightly-painted pig.

Jordan bumped my shoulder with hers. “There’s been so much lost, it’s good to see all these people here. It’s…healing.”

Without thinking, I slipped my arm around her shoulders and drew her close, “You’re so right, Skippy.” In that moment, with the sun on her face, and her heart in her eyes, it would be nothing to lean in and kiss her forehead.

A shout from the park interrupted the moment. I looked up to find Mike waving us over to an outer corner of the park. Leah was with him sitting on a blanket, picnic-style.

“You’re a good woman,” Mike said, reaching to take the bag of tacos from Jordan.

“Touch them and die,” she warned, and Leah burst out laughing as Mike backed away, hands raised in surrender.

Passing my drink to Jordan to hold, I spread out the old quilt I’d brought with me. Jordan passed out tacos to everyone—giving Mike his last with a teasing glare—then plunked herself down on the blanket.

With a groan, I lowered myself next to her.

“What’s wrong?” she asked around a mouthful.

“My back is just tight from hose testing last shift.” I stretched out a leg and bent the other, leaning back on an elbow, just trying to get comfortable.

“Like, literally hooking up each hose and checking it?”

“Yeah, but we did the big five-inch ones. They weigh about a hundred pounds each. We hook them up, roll them out and make sure they all function properly. Inspect for holes and stuff. Then we roll them back up and put them away.”

She stared at me for a beat. “Wow, that’s impressive. All I did yesterday was prime the walls of the camper.”

I reached up and tugged a curl. “Yeah, but you did the whole van in a day. It’s looking good, by the way.”

“How is the van coming, Jordan?” Leah asked.

“It’s coming along great.” Her face lit up. “I should be able to paint tomorrow. After that, it’s building the platform for a bed, and putting in appliances and doing finishing work.”

“Wow, and you’re doing it all yourself?”

Jordan glanced quickly at me, then back to Leah. “Well, I can’t say that. Nate’s been a super big help. I’d never used a power tool before this project, so it’s good that he’s teaching me all this stuff.”

“What are your plans when you get it finished?” Leah asked.

I perked up at this, because suddenly I realized I didn’t know what her plans were beyond “go somewhere else.” A curl of unease rolled through my gut. I’d gotten so used to having her around. The thoughts of her leaving, and going back to my life-before-Jordan, were unsettling.

“I don’t know exactly, but I’m thinking about traveling around to some national parks out west. Or maybe I’ll head north. I’m not sure. It’ll have to be somewhere that has some kind of Wi-Fi, so I can stay in touch with my clients. But otherwise, my plan is pretty much wide open.” Jordan fiddled with the hem of her shorts.

“Out west?” My words came out strangled. She’d be so far away.

“It’s somewhere I’ve always wanted to explore.” Jordan was matter of fact.

And how did I not know this? I knew she planned to travel. How did I not know that she’d be on the other side of the country?

“Why now?” I croaked.

“Because she can?” Mike piped in. “Hell, it sounds pretty fucking awesome.”

“Hey, guys.” Thoren’s voice interrupted the conversation. “Is there room for us?”

Thoren and Bunny stood at the edge of our blankets, and he was already laying theirs down.

“Why’d you ask if you were going to put your stuff here anyway?” Mike argued.

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