I felt a tap on my shoulder and turned to see a different former classmate.
“Robbie Jordan!” Jason Wong said. “What a surprise. I thought you moved back east somewhere.”
I looked up at my slender friend. “Jason, it’s awesome to see you. Indiana is east of here, for sure, but nearly half the country is beyond it.” I’d had the same notion when I was growing up here on the West Coast. We all considered anywhere on the other side of the Rocky Mountains to be “back east.” “I wouldn’t miss this reunion for anything.”
He lowered his voice. “I heard about your mom, Rob. I’m so sorry.”
I smiled at the nickname he and Alana had called me by. “Thanks. It’s been two years now. I still miss her, especially being back in all the familiar places.” I blew out a breath and drew my light sweater a little closer around me. The sleeveless flowered dress I’d chosen wasn’t quite warm enough for the evening, and I was glad I’d brought the wrap. “What are you up to?”
“I’m a proud member of the SBPD.” He pushed up his glasses.
“The police department?”
“Yes. I’m kind of their tech detective. Some of the older guys, well, they’re not really up on digital anything. I investigate cybercrime, Internet forensics, the works.”
“That’s awesome. Or what did we say? That’s sick.” We’d been on math team together and had been buddies all through high school.
He snorted. “Good thing that phrase went the way of the dodo. So what do you do in Iowa?”
“Jason, it’s Indiana. You’re such a Californian. Anyway, I own a country store. I have a breakfast-and-lunch restaurant downstairs, B-and-B rooms upstairs, and an apartment at the back of the building. It’s a pretty sweet setup.”
“So the crossword queen goes all proprietor on us. I like it.”
“I do, too.” I glanced at the ID on his lanyard, which featured his senior picture. “Man, you look twelve in that photo.”
He pointed at mine. “And you don’t?”
“What can you do?” I shook my head. “Are you married? Have kids?”
“No to both. Going to college and then making it through the academy took up all my time. Still hoping to settle down, though. You?”
“I had a brief but disastrous marriage right after college. Now I’ve found a solid boyfriend, but that’s as far as we’ve gotten.”
“Glad you snagged a good man.”
I was, too. Abe O’Neill was as good as they come. I looked around. Clumps of classmates, all of us nearly thirty, stood talking, laughing, reconnecting. Sure, people were cleaned up and in nice clothes, but everybody still seemed to be in pretty good shape. I idly mused on what we would look like in forty years at our fiftieth reunion. More paunch, for sure. Plus gray, dyed, or no hair, depending.
An arm went around my shoulder. “Hey, girlfriend. Whassup?” Alana said.
I twisted to see her. “Hey, you!” I threw both arms around her for a long-overdue embrace. We pulled apart to stand grinning stupidly at each other. She’d been my puzzling friend, my biking companion, and my confidante. I’d moved east and she’d slid north to Berkeley to put her doctorate in biochemistry to good use in some high-powered lab. Despite keeping in touch online, we hadn’t seen each other in person since graduation.
“You guys need to get a room or something?” Jason elbowed me.
“Shut UP, Wong.” My petite friend exchanged fist bumps with him. “How you been? Keeping the city safe?” She wore her auburn hair in a no-nonsense ear-length cut, as usual, and tonight she’d dressed in a green silk top and loose dark pants. Alana had never been one for skirts.
“Doing what I can,” he said. “Have you figured out a cure for cancer?”
“Working on it.” Alana told him.
“Really?” I asked.
She gave a little shrug. “Robbie, you know there are all kinds of cancers. But, yes, we are micro-millimetering our way closer to—”
A fingers-in-the-mouth whistle split the air. We turned toward the side of the room where a woman stood. I looked again. It was Katherine Russom, not my favorite person from our school days. The buzz of conversation quieted.
She waved both hands in the air. “Welcome to our tenth Chumash reunion, everybody! You’ve all got your name tags, so don’t hesitate to go find your former best friend or worst enemy and tell them how much better they look now.” She paused, clearly expecting a laugh. When nothing more than a polite smattering of chuckles resulted, she flicked back shoulder-length blond hair and continued. “We did pretty well getting nearly a hundred of you here out of a class of two hundred and fifty. Who came from farthest away?”
I surveyed the room. On the other side of the crowd a man waved his hand. He was tall enough that I could see dark hair already starting to recede.
“Sydney, Australia.”
“Wow. Let’s give it up for Joe Abrams.” Katherine clapped. “Anybody from back east?”
Jason pointed to my head, so I raised a hand. “It’s only halfway back, but Indiana.”
Katherine peered. “Robbie Jordan?” Her mouth twisted like she’d tasted a moldy tortilla.
“Hi, everybody,” I called out. “It’s great to be back.” Mostly.
Katherine cleared her throat. “The buffet is all ready, so load up a plate. We have a killer entertainment lined up after dinner.”
Jason glanced at me and murmured, “If she’d ever encountered a real killer, she wouldn’t use the word so lightly.”
“No kidding,” I said. “Alana knows this, but you probably don’t. I’ve been
