“I don’t think it’ll be a surprise to you that Emma doesn’t seem to have deep, dark secrets,” Gwen revealed. “What you see is what you get. She doesn’t seem to be adversely affected by this man’s—Deke Girard’s—death. I can’t even completely say she’s relieved. It’s just in the past for her.”
Jamie nodded. “I think that’s good.”
“She did say he smelled bad.”
They both chuckled softly, then immediately sobered. After a moment, Gwen said, “A lot of people were traumatized by what happened to her. It has tentacles that still reach into a lot of River Glen families.”
“Are you thinking of any in particular?”
She gave Jamie a you-know-better look. “I can’t really say.” She seemed to contemplate something, then added, “Emma said you and Cooper Haynes are looking into the past.”
Jamie was surprised Emma even knew that. “Cooper was here on Monday. He’s also trying to learn who broke into the Ryerson house and scared his stepdaughter.”
“Tell him to be careful,” Gwen said seriously.
“I will.”
“And be careful yourself,” she added, clearly choosing her words. “I applaud you and Cooper for reexamining what happened to Emma, and for searching out who came after Marissa. The truth needs to emerge.”
“But . . . ?” Jamie asked, recognizing Gwen was trying to say something without really saying it.
“It’s always dangerous when revelations come to light that someone’s trying hard to hide or suppress.”
“You know something about Emma’s attacker?” Jamie asked, feeling her way.
She shook her head. “No. I’m just saying that people have different hot buttons, maybe even different realities, and you have to be careful how far you push them. Tread on their reality, try to dissuade them from it, and you might be in for a battle royal you didn’t even know was lurking there.”
“What do you know?”
“Nothing. Just remind Cooper to be careful, too.”
“Is there someone in particular I should look out for?” she couldn’t help asking as Gwen turned back toward the house.
She hesitated a moment, fiddling with the scarf tossed artfully around her neck.
“I don’t think so.”
“You’re scaring me a little.”
“I don’t mean to. All I’m saying is that you never completely know what’s in another human’s mind. Perceptions are hard to change. Like, for instance, you and I know Emma doesn’t have any deep secrets, but we’re the only ones who really know that.”
“Someone might think Emma knows something about them?”
“I’m using her as an example.” She shook her head and half laughed. “Stay safe, Jamie,” she said as she headed out, her usual sign off. Jamie had walked her to the front porch and watched as she opened her driver’s door. Another vehicle, a black SUV, cruised by the house slowly, and Gwen glanced back at it sharply. Jamie glanced at the SUV again as it turned the corner at the end of the block, then back at Gwen, who’d shut her door and started her engine. She drove away in the opposite direction from the black SUV.
Jamie had involuntarily shivered. Gwen’s “I don’t think so” when Jamie’d asked if she should be afraid of someone in particular wasn’t quite a denial, and she seemed on edge . . . as if she wasn’t quite certain everyone in River Glen was on the up and up.
Or are you just being paranoid? Jamie asked herself now. She was back at the house after a trip to Gold Appliances, having picked out a medium-grade dishwasher, which would be installed the following week. She hoped no further extraordinary expenses cropped up.
She decided to head to the grocery store again and try to find some of the items Emma had said she needed to make what she wanted to do next, another pasta dish: lasagna roll-ups. Jamie had been planning to get the fixings for a taco bar, but figured maybe she should get both. As she drove to the closest market, she thought over Gwen’s warning again. Had she possibly been referring to Emma when she referenced an “own reality”? That didn’t make sense, because Emma didn’t seem to harbor deep-seated fears and memories. Emma had been sanguine upon learning of Deke Girard’s death, so maybe with the homeless man’s death one of her worst fears or worries had ended. With Emma, it was hard to say.
She was just finishing up at the cash register when she saw Teddy Ryerson enter the store. He seemed to be looking around, and then his gaze fell on her. She lifted a hand in greeting and smiled, though she didn’t want to engage. She just wanted to head home, and not do another meet and greet.
Or maybe it was that she felt bad about Teddy and Serena. It was an uncomfortable memory, her last babysitting duty and how it had turned out for them and, of course, for her sister.
“Hi, Jamie,” he said with a smile. “Just the person I wanted to see.”
“Oh, hi,” she said as she handed the checker her empty grocery bags to fill.
His expression sobered. “I’ve tried to reach out to Marissa, but her mother has blocked me.”
“Well, the police are looking into everything that happened. How are Oliver and Anika? Are they okay? I’ve been thinking about them.” She looked at him as she finished paying and the checker placed her bags in her cart.
“Echoes of the past, huh?”
“Yes indeed.” She started pushing the cart toward the door and Teddy followed after her.
“The twins are pretty good, I think. They didn’t see anything that happened. They were scared because Marissa was. They knew someone had come in, but they didn’t actually see the intruder. As long as Marissa’s okay, they’re okay. We’ve called Marissa a couple of times. She’s been great, allaying their fears, but I haven’t been able to really talk to her. I just want to make sure she’s all
