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“Oh, come on. I take perfect care of my vehicle. Someone slashed the tires, and I bet you ten bucks when Eddie the mechanic over there gets the hood open, there will be something else damaged, too.”

He narrows his eyes. “I don’t gamble.”

“Is there a car rental in town? You do have all the amenities.”

“No, there isn’t. Closest one’s in Bristol. Let’s just see what’s up with the Jeep first.”

“I don’t feel safe in Brockville,” she says. “Obviously.”

“You’re safer in Brockville than out here alone in the woods, looking for phantom children.”

“That boy was no phantom. He was as real as you or me.”

He squints toward the woods. “Whatever you say. Like you said, having a youngster on their own in these woods is pretty unlikely. Now, let’s go back to town. I’ll buy you a cup of coffee. Since I know you already had breakfast.”

“Oh, we’re busted, huh?”

“Noah is ... impetuous. And you’re just as reckless as him, tearing out of here like this without letting me know. People are dying, Miss James. A killer is on the loose. I take that rather seriously.”

They’re back to the road now. Eddie is hooking the Jeep to his wrecker. He wears a classic mechanic’s jumpsuit like he’s in a 1950s movie, blue-and-white stripes, with a rag in his hand, grease stains along his thigh, and a white cap on his head. He is good looking in a devil-may-care way, lots of scruff and muscles. “Fan belt’s worn straight through. You’re lucky you weren’t farther away, you’d be stuck with no reception waiting for a stranger to come by. I can fix it, but I’ll have to order the part. Your tires, well, that is going to be a few days at least to get the replacements here.”

“A fewdays?”

“Yep. You have these fancy Firestone all-terrain tires, and I don’t have them in stock. Unless you want to change out the whole set, which will run you a couple thousand, and all I have is more of a performance truck tire rather than rugged off-roaders. Your gas mileage must suck.”

She nods. It does. But the bigger tires are cool, so she splurges. Replacing the whole set, though ... it’s not like she has money to spare. She’ll have to wait it out.

He continues scolding her. “If you’d broken down before the winter it would have been different, but it’s spring now. Everyone’s shifted outof the snow tires, so that’s what I have ready. As for the belt, well, you’d be better off with the factory-made than a generic replacement on this particular vehicle. Your call, of course.”

“Let me guess. A few days for it to come in?”

“Yep.”

She’s stuck, and they all know it. “Fine. Order the tire, and the belt. I’ll figure something out.”

He nods. “Yes, ma’am.”

“And Eddie? Thank you,” she adds, turning on the wattage, and he gives her a shy smile back. She needs to keep as many people on her side as possible.

“Sure thing. I’ll be in touch when I have exact times, okay?”

“Thank you. My number—do you have something to write on?”

“Don’t need it.” He gives her a look, and inside, she squirms. “I’ll be able to find you. Town’s not that big.”

Chapter Thirty-Three

Halley retrieves her overnight bag and backpack from the Jeep, calculating what she has and what she’ll need to supplement for a few days. Surely they have a laundromat in their perfect little town. And as much as she wants to leave, maybe the universe—as Tammy Boone suggested—is giving her a chance to figure out who needs her help.

She joins the sheriff in his Escalade. He’s talking to someone on the phone and furtively ends the call when she opens the door.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“It’s fine. The Inn will be booked up starting tonight. There’s a wedding this weekend, and they’re all arriving today, so I was arranging a place for you. It’s a little more rustic, but I figured you wouldn’t mind.”

More rustic than the weird inn. Great.

He reads the question on her face. “We have short-term rentals for folks who come here for vacations and don’t want the fancy spa treatment. It comes with a golf cart, so you don’t have to be totally isolated if you’d like to get to know the town a bit better. Walking paths to the lake, too.” He glances at her overnight bag. “If you need anything, the shops open at ten. They’re all grouped on Main Street in Avalon. Near where you came in, the bookstore and the General Store, that area.”