been out of town, visiting my grandchildren for a few weeks,” Mrs. Hammond went on. “I just heard about your accident at choir practice last night.”
Accident.
The word boiled inside Aiden. He struggled to clamp down the lid on his emotions, but it didn’t stop the memories from rushing back.
He’d been on his way home just after dusk. Window rolled down. Radio cranked up. Tired but exhilarated from a day spent clearing brush for River Quest, an event that Castle Falls Outfitters would be hosting for the first time during the Fall Festival in October.
Aiden’s event. His baby.
He’d spent hours plotting the course and planning a variety of land and water challenges guaranteed to stir up some friendly competition. Brendan and Liam, who’d been cautious when Aiden had approached them with the idea, were surprised at the number of teams that had already registered after Lily posted the information to their website.
That was another reason he wanted the event to succeed. The money from the entry fees would bump up the numbers in Castle Falls Outfitters’ bank account, proving he was a valuable asset to the family business.
The chance to say “I told you so” was always a bonus, too.
The thought had made Aiden grin. And he’d been grinning when a set of headlights rounded the corner up ahead. In his lane...
Aiden had regained consciousness in a sterile hospital room connected to more wires and plastic tubing than a car battery, fire streaking through his veins instead of blood. And his head. It had taken every ounce of Aiden’s energy to focus on the shadowy silhouettes of the people in the room.
His mother, Sunni, had been sitting in the chair closest to Aiden, head bowed, lips moving in silent prayer. She’d been praying for him for sixteen years, and Aiden doubted that would ever change. His brother Brendan and his wife, Lily, were engaged in quiet conversation at the foot of the bed, and his brother Liam stood near the window, his hands knotted at his sides. The only ones unaccounted for were Anna Leighton, Liam’s fiancée, and her eight-year-old daughters, Cassie and Chloe.
An image of the twins’ bright smiles had dredged up a wave of fresh pain. What if he wasn’t the only one who’d been injured that night?
“Is everybody...okay?”
Aiden’s voice—barely more than a croak—had brought everyone to his side in an instant.
“We will be, bro, now that you’re awake.” Brendan had changed since he’d met the former Lily Michaels, but he still wasn’t what you’d call a touchy-feely kind of guy. So the husky rattle in his oldest brother’s voice was as unexpected—and unsettling—as the tears glistening in his eyes.
“I meant the people—” Aiden had swallowed and tried again “—in the other car.”
Brendan and Liam had exchanged a look.
“Aiden...according to the county deputy, your vehicle was the only one involved,” Liam had finally said. “A trucker spotted your pickup in the ditch and called 911. You were unconscious, so he sat with you until the ambulance arrived.”
“The deputy thought the load of lumber in the bed of the truck must have shifted when you rounded the corner,” Brendan added. “You tried to overcorrect and ended up in the ditch.”
“That’s not what happened.” Aiden’s vehicle had ended up in the ditch because he’d swerved to avoid a head-on collision with the one barreling toward him. “I saw...lights.”
Sunni had leaned forward and squeezed his hand. “You have a mild concussion, sweetheart. The doctor warned us that things might be a little fuzzy for a few weeks.”
“No—” Aiden had struggled to sit up, but Liam’s palm, rimmed with calluses from the hours he spent in the shop, had gently pressed him into the mattress again.
“We can talk about it later. Right now you need to rest.”
As if on cue, a nurse had slipped into the room and put something in Aiden’s IV that made sure he took his brother’s advice.
Over the next forty-eight hours, the fuzziness subsided, but Aiden could still see those lights coming toward him...
“I’m sure Sunni has been worried sick about you.”
Aiden blinked and the lights disappeared. Regrettably, Mrs. Hammond was still there, glowering down at him.
“I would think you’ve caused that poor woman enough sleepless nights.”
The meaning was clear. His former teacher, like everyone else in Castle Falls, assumed the accident was Aiden’s fault. Because apparently it was easier for people to believe he’d taken the corner too fast than it was to believe someone in their close-knit community had forced him off the road and kept on going.
But the worst part?
Aiden was pretty sure his family believed it, too.
“You’re all set, Mrs. Hammond.” Maddie tapped the send key. “The book should be here by the end of the week.”
“Thank you so much, Madeline.” Beverly Hammond was the only person in Castle Falls who refused to call Maddie by her nickname. The fifth-grade attendance sheet had recorded one Madeline Rose Montgomery, so Madeline she’d remained. “I’ll stop by and pick it up first thing Monday morning.”
“You’ve been waiting a year for it to come out, so why don’t I bring it to church on Sunday?” Maddie offered.
“That would be wonderful!” Mrs. Hammond leaned closer. “But we have to make a trade. The book for a batch of pecan turtles?”
“Deal!” Her former teacher had a weakness for suspense novels, while Maddie’s happened to be chocolate in any shape or form.
It was one of the reasons Maddie had loved growing up in Castle Falls.
People knew each other.
Her gaze slid toward the reading nook, something that had been happening way too often over the past half hour.
Judging from the expression on Aiden’s face, he wouldn’t put that particular trait on the “pro” column of living in a small town.
Maddie hadn’t heard what Mrs. Hammond said to him, but whatever it was had stripped the smile from Aiden’s face the moment the woman had walked away. He’d picked up one of the magazines, but Maddie suspected it was a barrier meant to hold people at bay rather than a way to pass the time.
The cell phone in her pocket vibrated, a reminder that the historical society’s monthly meeting was scheduled to start in ten minutes.
Encouraging members of the community to see the library as a gathering place had been at the top of Maddie’s goals when she’d moved into a full-time position. She’d extended the evening hours two days a week, talked local clubs into holding their meetings in the conference room and hosted special events on the weekends.
Change had taken place slowly—another characteristic of small-town life—but Maddie persevered. Things began to turn around when she showed the mayor’s wife how to unlock the secrets of social media. The woman had told a friend...who’d told a friend...who’d told a friend...and suddenly Maddie found herself teaching classes on everything from résumé writing to basic web design. For the last two years, at the request of the high school principal, Maddie had even helped some members of the graduating class with the research for their senior projects.
Her parents had expressed concern over how much time and energy she poured into her job, but Maddie loved every minute of it. And since there was very little chance she’d be blessed with a family of her own someday, Maddie had decided to bloom in the place God had planted her, and