“Well, hi there, Andy,” Boomer said, sticking his head out the car window. “Cat got your tongue?” Amy had always been the leader of the twins. It was obvious she was still playing that role.

“Amy’s right. We all need to get together and talk,” Andy mumbled.

“With or without Cady?”

“Cady went to the grove and got a ticket for trespassing. She paid it, too. Now why would Cady go to the grove after all these years? Let me tell you why. It’s one of two things. One, she still doesn’t have her memory, or two, she got her memory back and went there to play it over in her mind before she comes after us. We left her there to die, for God’s sake. We all thought she was as dead as Jeff.” Boomer reared back at the snarl in Amy’s voice.

“Maybe you left her there to die, but I didn’t. I didn’t turn tail and run like you three. I was so damn scared, but I made myself go back down the embankment. Cady was alive. I knew Jeff was dead because I could see his brains. I pulled them both out of the water. I ran home and called the police. If Cady regained her memory, she knows I pulled her to the edge and knows I told her I was going for help. If she hasn’t regained her memory, she will, and then she’ll remember. So, you see, there’s no reason to meet or to talk.”

Damn, hadn’t he just suggested to Pete that they should all get together? He couldn’t think straight anymore.

“Oh, no, Boomer Ward, it doesn’t work like that. You were there just like we were there. You’re as responsible as we are,” Amy sputtered angrily.

“Have it your own way, Amy. I can make my own case, thank you very much. I am a cop, remember?”

Boomer put the car in gear and backed it out, knowing Amy’s and Andy’s eyes were boring into him.

Back in his apartment, he called the station to see what was going on. He was told crime was at a standstill in Indigo Valley for the night. He kicked off his sneakers, popped a beer, and settled himself in front of the television.

He thought about the Hollister twins. He hadn’t liked them very much back in the old days. He’d liked Pete and Cady, though. Hell, he’d become a cop because of that day in the Judas Grove. His parents could never understand why he wanted to major in criminal justice. When he tried to explain without giving explicit details, they just shook their heads and said they couldn’t imagine having a cop in the family.

He leaned back in his favorite recliner and closed his eyes. A vision of Cady Jordan in see-through underwear attacked his eyelids. He bolted upright. Little Cady Jordan was all grown-up.

There was no point in thinking about Cady Jordan. His dog had just taken care of that.