Here We Come (Aggie's Inheritance) (136 page)

“Mibs—”

Without
a
word,
Agg
ie
gave
him
ha
lf
a
smile
and
dragged
herself
up
the
stairs.
At
the
top
of
the
stairs
she
called
down,
“Mom
and
Dad
will
be
here
in
about
an
hour.
I
should
be
back
by
then.”

“You’ve
got
your
phone,
right?”

She
called
back
to
him
before
the
door
shut
behind
her,
“Yep.
Call
if
they
get
here
before
I
do.”

She
didn’t
wait
to
hear
more.
Grabbing
her
coat
,
she
carried
it
with
her
out
the
door
and
to
Tina’s
car.
As
usual,
she
cranked
the
engine
too
hard,
not
having
heard
it
turnover.
Silent
cars
weren’t
part
of
her
experience,
and
each
time
she
drove
Tina’
s
car,
she
proved
it.
She
waved
at
Tina
, who stood at the window,
and
rolled
down
the
driveway,
dodging
reporters
who
rushed
at
the
car.

Once
on
the
highway,
she
just
drove.
Her
mind
wanted
to
sing,
but
her
voice
choked
with
every
attempt.
Aggie
punched
the
CD
button,
but
at
the
blare
of
Metallica
through
the
speakers,
she
hit
it
again.
Tina’s
eclectic
tastes
were
rarely
Aggie’s
preferred
options.

She
tried
praying.
Her
mind
couldn’
t
formulate
the
words.
She
couldn’t
sing,
she
couldn’t
cry.
Her
heart
was
heavier
than
it
had
ever
been.
Even
losing
Allie
and
Doug
hadn’t
caused
such
unbelievable
pain.
Twice
,
black
spots
seemed
to
float
in
front
of
her
eyes,
blinding
her
for
a
second
or
two.
Terrified,
she
pulled
over
onto
the
side
of
the
road,
shut
the
car
off,
and
closed
her
eyes.
The
black
spots
were
still
there—even
behind
shut
eyelids.

Where
it
came
from,
she
didn’t
know,
but
Aggie
exploded
in
a
primal
scream
that
nearly
deafened
her
as
it
bounced
against
glass
and
metal,
filling
the
car.
The
tears
that
eluded
her
earlier
now
overtook
her.
Her
chest
squeezed,
her
hands
tingled
from
gripping
the
steering
wheel,
and
the
black
spots
floated
through
her
vision
until
the
last
tear
fell.
Then,
as
if
the
Apostle
Paul’s
scales,
they
dropped
from
view
,
leaving
both
her
eyes
and
mind
clearer
than
she’d
felt
since
she’d
answered
Vannie’s
panicked
call
two—no
it
was
three—
days
earlier.

The
clock
taunted
her.
Her
parents
would
arrive
soon.
She
should
return
home.
Aggie
started
the
engine,
put
the
car
in
gear,
and
made
a
U-turn,
heading
back
toward
Brant’s
Corners.
The
sheriff’s
s
tation
outside
Brunswick
beckoned
to
her.
She
pulled
into
the
gravel
parking
lot
and
hurried
out
of
Tina’s
car
and
into
the
station.

“William?”
The
empty
room
confused
her.
His
crui
ser
and
corvette
were
outside,
but
although
the
door
was
open,
no
one
was
inside
the
station.