Page 137 of Indigo Ridge (The Edens 1)

Briggs had moved in last week. It had been Mateo’s idea to have Briggs closer to Harrison and Anne, but since Briggs didn’t want his cabin to sit empty, they’d traded homes. Mateo was now in the mountains while Briggs was closer to family.

In the past year, he’d started on some medication that seemed to help but every now and again he’d have an episode where his mind would falter and he’d lose time and place. The worst incident had happened a month ago, prompting this move. Briggs had gone hiking and gotten lost. When Griffin and Harrison had gone out to find him, he’d gotten combative with them both, not having a clue who either of them was.

When Harrison had told Briggs later what had happened, Briggs had made us all promise that if he acted like that again, they’d put him in a home. Mateo had suggested the barn loft as an alternative. We hoped that maybe if Briggs was living closer to the place where he’d grown up as a child, it would give him more of a foundation.

None of us knew what would happen, but it was worth a try.

“Will you take your mom’s pie plate when you go?” I asked.

“It’s already loaded.”

In the background, my son whimpered.

“How’s Hudson doing?”

“He’s ready for a nap. We’ll drive around. Let him conk out in his seat. Then head to Mom’s.”

“I’ve got”—I checked the clock on the cruiser’s dash—“four hours to go. Then I’ll be home.”

“We’ll be waiting. Love you.”

“Love you too.” I ended the call and continued driving toward Main.

Technically, I was still on maternity leave. I had three weeks left. But we’d been a bit short on staff for the past few months, ever since I’d fired Tom Smith—pregnancy had zapped my patience. So even though I was supposed to be at home, I’d been covering a few shifts to lighten the load at the station until we could get another officer hired.

The tourist traffic had lessened considerably this past week now that the school year had begun. It was nice to see a few empty spaces downtown, though soon there’d be hunters and then the Christmas crowd.

Quincy during the holidays was magical.

Though I was biased. Memories of childhood Christmases here with Pops and my parents were some of my fondest. And this past year had been unforgettable.

Griffin and I had gotten married three days before Christmas. The ceremony had been a small, intimate affair at The Eloise Inn. He’d dazzled in a black suit. I’d worn my mother’s wedding dress. After Pops had walked me down the aisle and Griffin and I had exchanged vows, we’d opened the hotel’s doors for a reception that had strained the building’s seams.

Most of the guest rooms had been reserved for family, and for the first time ever, I’d stayed at The Eloise. Griffin and I had locked ourselves in the best suite for three days.

Ours was the last wedding hosted at The Eloise before the renovations had started. Harrison and Anne had bought the building next door and annexed it to the hotel for events. And the restaurant no longer resembled an open dining room, but a trendy, upscale steakhouse.

When I’d been pregnant with Hudson, Griff and I had gone down three times a week because my cravings had been out of control. Knox had been like a magician, always making exactly what I hadn’t even known I’d wanted.

We hadn’t planned to get pregnant so soon, but after the incident on Indigo Ridge, my birth control had been interrupted and we’d decided not to bother.

Life was short. Griffin and I were going to live it to the fullest, and this family we were making together was the light of my life.

My hand drifted to my belly. Maybe we’d visit the restaurant as often this time around too. My children would be less than a year apart. Hopefully, that meant they’d be close friends, if not when they were little, then when they were older.

I reached the end of Main and headed down the highway. Traffic was light and most cars I passed would do a little dip, their fenders dropping as they tapped their brakes. Ten miles later, I was about to turn around and head back to town when I spotted a gray sedan with New York plates pulled over on the side of the road.

r />

Slowing, I eased onto the shoulder and flipped on the cruiser’s light bar so other cars would give us some space. Then I made sure I had my sidearm on my hip before I got out and approached the car.

Griffin had insisted I wear a vest when I was on patrol duty. It was hot on top of my black blouse, but my husband worried. So I wore the vest.

The driver’s side window of the sedan was down, and the sound of a baby crying hit me first. That unmistakable sound twisted my heart. So did the sound of a woman sobbing as hard as the infant.

“Hello?”

The woman behind the wheel didn’t hear me.