“Well, we’re both single and over twenty-one. And we’re good friends.”

“Yeah, but she’s my mom,” he said.

Lola winced inside. Trace was a great big kid, as tall as Tom and almost as broad in the shoulders, but he was her baby.

Tom put a firm hand on Trace’s shoulder and gave it a little shake. “Well, kiddo, she’s not going to stop being your mom, so relax. Let’s put the tree over there by the end of the porch. It’s gonna look so nice there.”

“You gonna plant it?” Trace asked him.

“Not tonight. Tomorrow. I have chores tonight. It’ll keep till tomorrow. And you’ll survive this crisis.”

* * *

Sierra wanted a little fluff-up before traveling to Michigan. She thought it might help her in the confidence department. Maggie confessed that she liked to get her hair done by a favorite, pricey hairdresser in Denver, but in a pinch she’d been known to drop into the local beauty shop and they did a fine job at half the cost. She recalled a woman named Rhonda had done her hair.

“I could do that, but I don’t know... Connie’s ex-fiancée works in there,” Sierra said.

Maggie got an impish grin on her face. “You don’t want to get a look at her?”

“I’ve seen her! She’s incredibly pretty.”

“Well, you could spend an hour in the shop and see what she’s like. But I don’t think you should let her cut your hair!”

“She probably won’t even know who I am. Connie hasn’t mentioned telling her about me.”

“Then do it,” Maggie said, a little gleefully. “And report back.”

She made an appointment for the afternoon with Rhonda. She asked for a few blond streaks and a trim of her ends. She was a little nervous about this bit of sneakiness. But she never could have prepared herself for what she found. Rhonda’s chair was beside Alyssa’s. And in Alyssa’s chair was Neely.

“Well, hello stranger,” Sierra said.

“Sierra! What a coincidence! I was just going to give you a call!”

“I guess you’ve been pretty busy lately,” Sierra said. She was not nearly over being brushed off after that whole friendship seduction.

“I have, but I’m afraid it’s been a real nightmare,” Neely said. “A good friend’s teenage son was in a terrible accident on 24. She lives in a little town south of Vail and it wasn’t far from her house. He was just seventeen and was critical, taken to Denver by helicopter to the trauma center. Brandon barely hung on for two weeks before he died and I’ve spent almost all that time sitting by his bedside. I didn’t think I’d ever recover!”

“I didn’t hear a word about it,” Alyssa said.

“Oh, you know small towns,” Neely said. “They were barely aware.”

“That’s not what I’m used to,” Sierra said. “I spent half my life in a really small town in Iowa and if there was a flat tire, everyone heard about it. A fatality would have been front page news!”

“Oh, there was an article, but it was small. He was the only injury and he was taken to Denver. And my friend, his mother, wasn’t from that little town—she was just visiting friends. So—it wasn’t like it was one of their own.”

“But it was a horrible accident! If a helicopter rescue lands anywhere around here, we’re all asking for details,” Alyssa said.

“Well, it was the middle of the night,” Neely said. “It was just so horrible, I’m happy it’s over. But I did want to explain my long silence. I know I promised to call...”

“God, that’s all right,” Sierra said. “I’m so sorry you went through all that. By the way, what brings you to Timberlake? Do you come all this way to get your hair done?”

“No.” She laughed. “I’m a walk-in today. I was in town looking at some property. There’s a shop at the end of the street—Daisy’s Menagerie. She’s looking at selling. I just wanted to look it over, talk to the owner. I think I told you—I’m contemplating a specialty shop.”

“What kind of shop?” Alyssa asked.

God bless her, Sierra thought. Was she going to get that I’m-not-ready-to-talk-about-it line?

“Possibly local art, not on a grand scale. But I must admit, I’m beginning to be seduced by the new marijuana trade.”

Sierra almost choked and Neely laughed merrily.

“I wouldn’t work with the product,” Neely said. “I’d hire someone with experience in the industry. It’s just that it’s making so much money! Of all the privately owned small businesses in Colorado, marijuana is quickly leading the pack. Anyone with an interest in small business has to take that seriously.” She turned in her chair to look at Sierra. “So, you live here?”

“Sort of. I live outside of town. So does my brother and his wife. I’m new in the area but I work part-time at the diner. And if everything works out, I’d like to stay. My brother’s wife is expecting.”

“Hey, what’s the town where the accident happened?” Alyssa asked.

“I think it was Fairplay. Or it was a town right near Fairplay. I don’t know—I never went there,” Neely said. “When my friend called I went straight to Denver to the hospital.” Neely turned to Sierra again. “So, do you have time to grab a cup of coffee after you get finished here?”

Sierra nearly shook herself in surprise. She did, in fact. But she said, “I’m sorry, I don’t. I’m on the run today.”

“And let’s put you under the dryer for a few minutes to speed up this color,” Rhonda said. “Girl, you do have the prettiest hair! And healthy! Want me to take off about an inch? Or less?”

“An inch is fine,” Sierra said.

She got under the dryer and considered Neely. What a lot of drama, she thought. Then she felt guilty—after all, the woman had just been through what must have been a terrible experience. But Sierra had the worst feeling about her...

Ten minutes later she was being shampooed and when she got back in the chair, Neely was gone. “She said to tell you goodbye and she’ll give you a call. She had to run,” Alyssa said.

“Thanks,” she said. Neely wanted to have coffee, but didn’t even have time to say goodbye?

“Have you been friends for a long time?” Alyssa asked while she was sweeping up the clippings on the floor.

“No,” Sierra said. “I just met her a month ago.”

“Really? She said you wanted her to make a trip to Santa Fe with you but she wasn’t sure how she’d find the time.”

“She said that?” Sierra asked, dumbfounded.

“She sure did. Why? Was it a secret?”

“No, it was...” Sierra stopped herself. Better to not make this any more complicated. “No, not a secret. I don’t think I can find the time, either.”

“She seems like a lot of fun,” Alyssa said. “Weird about that accident, though.”

“What’s weird?”

Alyssa leaned on her broom. “I’ve lived here almost my whole life. There were a couple of vacationers from somewhere back East killed on 289 a few years ago. A young couple. Their car was obliterated by a big rig. There were pictures in the paper and on the internet, it was on the evening news. Complete strangers put so many wreaths and crosses and stuffed toys by the side of the road it looked like a monument. Things like that just don’t usually go unnoticed.”

“Interesting,” was all she said.

After her haircut she found herself walking across the street to the fire department. She was in a bit of a daze. This was only the second time she’d gone looking for Connie, and this time she found him. He had a rag in his hand and was polishing up the chrome on the fire engine.

“Well, what a beautiful surprise,” he said, coming out of the open garage doors to meet her. He gave her a little kiss on the forehead. “I didn’t expect to see you today.”

“I was just getting my hair trimmed and the strangest thing happened.” She told him the story.

Connie frowned. “She made that whole thing up,” he said. “She know your boyfriend is a paramedic?”

“I told her I was seeing a fireman...”

“If there’s a fatality anywhere near my territory, don’t you think I’d know?”

“Well, I don’t know.”

“Rescue Flight was called out, Sierra. Sixty miles from here.”

“Maybe she got the location wrong?”

“I’ll check the logs on the computer. In fact, you can do that. It’s a matter of public record and the Colorado State Patrol can confirm. What do you know about it?”

“Seventeen-year-old boy driving, his first name was Brandon, the car was supposedly hit by a truck, he lay critical in a hospital in Denver for two weeks before he passed away. A few weeks ago. And she said it happened on 24. Is that a highway?”

“Yep, the one most of us take to Denver. Come on in, have a water or soda or something. I’ll look it up. It won’t take two minutes.”

“I’ll just wait,” she said. “I’m going to go pick up my clothes and get organized so I can be ready to go in the early morning.”

“But I’ll see you tonight?”

“Of course.”

Rafe came out to the front of the firehouse after Connie left and said hi. “Connie said he’s looking up something for you. How you doing?”

“Great. And how are Lisa and the kids?”

“Excellent. Grandma’s coming for a visit before summer’s over. They’ll shop for school clothes, she loves to do that. My mom likes to get in on some of that, too. I’ll probably take ’em all out on the lake a few times.”

They made small talk for a few minutes before Connie was back. “Will you give us a minute, Rafe?” Connie asked.