Page 26 of Fire Peak

“We don’t have to stay here,” Nick assured the mercurial teenager in the passenger seat of his car. He’d traded in the sedan that looked like a cop car for something more likely to appeal to a fifteen-year-old girl. He’d actually Googled “most popular cars for teenage girls,” then wandered down a TikTok rabbit hole that had him eyeing a Land Rover, and eventually wound up with a black Jeep Wrangler. Only to get a mild lecture from Hailey about why he should’ve gone for an electric car.

“I know there’s a gas station, but I have no idea if there’s a charging station,” he’d told her. “But we’ll look into it. If we stay.”

“Why do you keep saying that?” Hailey asked. She’d rolled down the window and was resting her chin on the frame as she absorbed each woodshed and rusty car and mossy rooftop and four-wheeler they passed. “So far I love it here.”

“There’s not much going on.”

“What do you mean? I just saw a dog riding on the back of a four-wheeler! Did you see that?”

“Yeah.” He didn’t like sharing the road with four-wheelers, but out here, obviously the rules went out the window. “I mean, there’s no mall out here.”

“You think teenage girls just like to shop?”

“No. No,” he said quickly. “Of course not. That would be relying on stereotypes and I know how much you hate those.”

“I do, because they’re limiting and harmful.”

“So harmful. So limiting.”

She tilted her head to eye him suspiciously. “Are you patronizing me?”

“Fuck no. Oops. Sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize. That’s actually kind of patronizing if you think about it. Like I’m a delicate wildflower who can’t handle a swear word.” At least she was smiling as she made her point. Sometimes her fierceness took him by surprise, but he respected it.

He changed the subject. “The other thing Firelight Ridge is low on is good cell service.”

“You think all teenage girls are on their phones all the time?”

“Well…yeah. A lot of the time.”

“You’re right,” she conceded. Phew. “That’s why my friends and I decided we’re going to have a summer where we just write letters. Screens are evil.” She sat back in the seat and shook out her wavy brown hair, then began braiding it into a side-braid. “We’re all doing our own thing this summer, and we’re not going to get distracted by fucking social media drama. Every week, we’re going to send a postcard or a letter or a care package, it’s going to be like, a very organic and authentic and stripped-down summer. Old school.”

Okay. He hoped that “stripped-down” part was metaphorical. Jill had given him strict instructions about contact with boys.

They passed the old yellow school bus that proclaimed itself the Magic Breakfast Bus. “Best pancakes in town,” he told Hailey.

“In a school bus? Dope.”

The general store came next. Since the last time he’d been in Firelight Ridge, Kathy had installed ornate clay planters on either side of the door. The pots overflowed with brilliant nasturtiums in neon shades of red and orange.

“If you get desperate for Wi-Fi, that’s where to go,” he told Hailey.

“I won’t.”

Would it be unsupportive to make a private bet with himself as to how long that would last? Yes, he decided.

“That’s fine, but you need to stay in touch with your mom. She wants a call every week.”

“I know, I know.” Hailey rolled her eyes, then gestured toward a charming cedar-planked building with a bay window storefront made from old leaded glass. “What’s that place?”

“That used to be the hardware store, back when this was a mining town. Now someone lives there.”

And by someone, he meant Lila Romanoff. He couldn’t help scanning for any sign of a tall rebel wild woman with long blond hair and a hip-swinging stride. But there was no sign of Charlie Santa Lucia. No doubt she was long gone. Why would she stay in the one place where he’d nearly had her cornered?

Then again, why did Charlie do anything? She was spectacularly unpredictable.

At any rate, it wasn’t his problem anymore. As he’d predicted, Hobbs Financial Services had taken him off the job. He’d tried to find out if they planned to hire someone else in his place, but they’d given him no hint about that. They’d also asked for a complete report on everything related to Charlie Santa Lucia. He’d passed along a report, but by no means was it complete.

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