Page 12 of The Lonely Hearts Guide

“I know where the library is, silly.” Beau took one hand off the steering wheel and pointed at a tall building in the distance, and as it came into view, Elliot knew they found their destination.

Elliot nodded emphatically. “Yes! That’s the place! I was there a day or week or month ago.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “Or have I even been here at all? Honestly, I’m not sure. He may have just sent me a postcard. Sorry, my mind’s been foggy lately. I can’t seem to keep my timeline straight.” He cocked his head to the side.

Beau snorted. “Well, I can’t keep anything straight, if you know what I mean.”

He didn’t. Elliot hadn’t the slightest idea what Beau was talking about, but his training included bridging conversational gaps created by awkward exchanges. Mother taught him to nod with a smile—his teeth not touching—never letting the other men in the room feel inferior when they told a joke that didn’t land.

“I understand completely,” Elliot lied. Better to lie than embarrass the mayor.

“As for your disjointed timeline,” Beau said as he rounded a corner marked at Main Street. “Unless you’ve got a strong stomach, I don’t think it could have been in the last few months, considering your condition. You look like you should be in bed with your feet up.”

His condition? Could Beau tell Elliot was bruised and nearly broken? Was he implying Elliot couldn’t make long trips because of the pain Jared had inflicted? Because he proved that claim false by traveling from Dallas to Genevieve on his own, and he did just fine.

Beau parked the golf cart next to Genevieve’s public library. Elliot reached for his suitcase on the floor, but Beau grabbed it before he had the chance. They walked to the door together, and the mayor pressed the doorbell. They waited silently for over a minute before Beau began knock-knock-knocking over and over. Even as someone on the other side of the door struggled with the deadbolts, Mayor River continued banging, flashing Elliot a cheeky grin. “He’s going to be furious with me. I can’t wait.” As the man continued banging, Arthur Price’s familiar grumpy voice bellowed out, “I’m trying, dang it!”

Beau and Elliot shared a glance, chuckling.

The door swung open, and there stood Arthur Price, eyes bulging as he looked Elliot up and down. “Elliot?” His husband, Periwinkle, was standing behind him, staring, seemingly speechless.

“Master Price,” Elliot greeted, giving him the same customary nod he’d given Arthur every other time their paths crossed—usually when Jared would spring an impromptu visit to his little brother’s home. He always claimed it to be a spur-of-the-moment decision, when in reality, the man simply liked to keep Arthur on his toes. Ever the bully, even to his family.

Arthur turned his head to Beau and stared at him, seemingly stupefied. “Mayor Rivera?”

Beau Rivera gave Arthur a ridiculous salute. “At your service.” He wrapped an arm around Elliot’s shoulder and beamed at Arthur. “I met Elliot on the square. He got lost trying to find you and Peri. So I told him I’d take him to you.” Beau’s cheeks flushed red. “I hope that’s okay. Silly me, I didn’t even think to call and ask first. For all I know, this man could be a raging murderer.” He turned to Elliot and gave him a stern expression before dramatically walking a circle around the automaton. He paused behind Elliot, mumbling something to himself, then continued his circle. When he was once again looking into Elliot’s eyes, Beau’s jaw clenched. “Are you a deranged stalker, Elliot? Because if I’ve just led you to a potential victim, I’ll probably get recalled.”

Elliot looked to Arthur for guidance in managing the confusing and charming man at their side, only to receive a dumbfounded look in return. Typical, Elliot thought. While Arthur had always been a bit of a pushover, Elliot didn’t particularly mind.

“It’s very nice to see you again, Master Price. I was hoping you might be willing to hide me.”

Arthur stared at Elliot. “Hide you?”

“Just for twelve days. Or, perhaps, twelve weeks.” He chewed his cheek. “Or was it twelve years?” Elliot shook his head, trying to remember how long he needed to be away from Jared. Twelve days sounded right, but he thought that couldn’t be the case, because that would be far sooner than the date Elliot had to be hidden on. “Twelve weeks,” he finally said, sounding far from certain.

“Just twelve weeks?” Mayor Beau Rivera asked.

Elliot nodded, then looked at the mayor. “Maybe longer, maybe shorter, if all goes according to plan.” He smiled warmly at his potential new friend. “As lovely as this journey has been, I’m afraid I’ll have to tackle this next portion on my own, my potential new friend.” He patted Beau’s arm the way the mayor had done with him earlier.

Beau chuckled. “I hope you stick around, Elliot. If you need anything—”Beau reached into his pocket and handed him a business card—”my number’s on there and you can use it any time. I’m always happy to help.”

With that, Mayor Beau Rivera returned to his golf cart and gave Elliot a parting glance before speeding off into the darkening streets of Genevieve, Georgia. Well, he drove as fast as a standard golf cart could drive, Elliot supposed.

When Elliot turned around, Arthur still had the same dumbfounded look on his face, his eyes pointed at Elliot’s lower half. Sadness encapsulated Arthur Price, and the man breathed shakily, coming to terms with Elliot’s less-than-ideal situation.

“What did he do to you?” Arthur asked, though Elliot didn’t think Arthur was really asking as much as he was simply voicing his concern. Elliot wasn’t surprised. He was sure he had the same shell-shocked look on his face when Jared advised him of the procedure he planned without Elliot’s consent.

Elliot had always been the first of his kind. He was the first of the i-Series automatons. The first househusband officially constructed for a sadist. The first of Mother’s children to guess the secret ingredient of her world-famous lemon meringue pie, though cinnamon sugar didn’t sound like much of a secret ingredient at the time. Now, he was the first to experience—

“Oh, my God.”

Elliot looked up. Unlike Arthur, who was wearing a silly sweater vest with festive kittens on the fabric, and an untamed garden of unkempt brown weeds atop his head, Periwinkle was the picture of domestic bliss. He wore a lovely light-purple shirt with skin-tight banana-yellow shorts that rested only inches above his knees. Not a single brown hair on his head was out of the place, neatly parted at the side and styled with quite a bit of product.

“Hello, Periwinkle,” Elliot greeted with a smile. “I need your help.” Then Elliot placed a hand on the baby bump poking out of his tummy and sighed. “As you can see, I’m in a state.”

“Oh, Elliot,” Periwinkle whispered, his voice small and filled with sympathy.

“I can’t go home.” His jaw trembled, but Elliot silently praised himself for maintaining his composure. Then, bringing his voice to a whisper, he added, “I don’t think I can ever go home again.”

Mr. Alexander Davenport of Dallas, Texas, was down in the dumps. He just got back from visiting his mother on Sugarplum Island, and, as usual, there was no sign of Elliot. He even checked the dock on the mainland, because Alexander’s mother had told him Elliot no longer ventured to the island. Elliot had been purchasing them directly from the bakery for ages, but Elliot’s partner contacted her, stating Elliot would collect them at the dock on the mainland instead. A small part of Alexander was holding out hope Elliot would finally return to Sugarplum Island, searching for him. It had been so very long since their night spent walking beneath the stars, and still, Alexander waited.

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