Page 124 of Cold Case, Warm Hearts

Maybe that was the most she could ask for out of life.

“I’ll take online classes.” Though at the moment, the thought of it exhausted her. “I’ll figure something out. Right now, I just want to get out of New Hampshire.” And never look back.

“I wish I could be there with you.”

Aspen wished that too. She wished so many things that could never be. She needed a friend. She liked Grace and Tabby and the other women she’d met in Coventry, but they were Garrett’s friends first. They’d choose him.

Aspen didn’t have a soul in the world who would always choose her.

Before Aspen pulled awayfrom the curb, a text came in. It was from Garrett.

I’m outside Grace’s condo, and I’m not leaving until you talk to me.

She responded,I hope you’re dressed warmly.

We need to talk. I wasn’t spying on you. I didn’t tell my uncle anything.

He’d already admitted to having passed on information about her, so that was a lie.

She’d shifted into drive when another text came in.

I care about you. Please can we talk?

She ignored him, flipping on her blinker to pull away from the curb. But a line of traffic was coming through the light behind her.

Her phone dinged again.I can wait here all day. You have to come out sometime.

She sighed. She was angry with him, but she didn’t want him to waste his time or freeze his toes off.Go home, Garrett. I’m not there. I’ll leave your handgun and a key to the house with Grace before I leave so you can get your tools.

Come on, traffic.Where were all these cars coming from? Probably people hurrying to get their errands done before the snow started. Would they worry in New Hampshire, though?Maybe a snowstorm was just another day at the office for these weird people.

Where are you?Garrett texted.

It was none of his business where she was or what she was doing.

Finally, she merged into traffic and continued to Rattlesnake Road.

She was just passing the condominium complex when her phone rang. Probably Garrett. She glanced at the number. It was Mr. Barnett calling her back from the nursing home.

She doubted he’d have any helpful information, but she’d still like to talk to him to confirm. Somehow, Dad had known about the house. Maybe he’d chosen it randomly. Maybe he’d known work was being done there.

A fresh thought occurred to her. Maybe the Barnetts had been having landscaping work done. Freshly turned dirt wouldn’t be out of place if that were the case. Was Jane Kincaid buried under one of the many trees in the yard?

The thought made Aspen ill.

In any event, when Cote got the ground-penetrating radar, if Aspen’s mother was buried there, he’d find her.

Aspen let the call go to voicemail. This high up the mountain, it would drop anyway.

She made the long, winding drive up to her house, growing more unsettled the higher she climbed. Those clouds overhead looked ominous. She needed to get her things and get off the mountain before snow started falling. She considered all the items she’d purchased to make the house livable. Should she try to box everything up and have it shipped?

Right. The cost to get it all to Hawaii would be higher than the value. Instead, she’d contact Trudy at the thrift store, ask her to coordinate with Garrett to pick up everything Aspen leftbehind and donate it to the poor. She could trust Trudy with that job, and the woman’s son had that truck.

There might be a few things she’d like to take with her. She’d go through everything, toss what she wanted to keep in the rental car, and box it up when she got to Manchester. That was her destination tonight. She’d find a hotel. Tomorrow, she’d get a flight home.

The house was quiet when she walked inside. Everything was in order, nothing out of place. Nobody’d been there. Maybe she would have been safe staying there the previous two nights. She didn’t mind that she hadn’t, though. She’d felt more comfortable in Grace’s little extra bedroom after fifteen minutes than she’d felt in this giant, secluded place after a week.

She started to head up the stairs, then remembered the call she’d gotten and veered toward the kitchen, where the cordless phone was charging on its cradle. Reading the number from her cell, she dialed the Barnetts’ room at the nursing home.

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