“Elle n’est pas morte,” said the man.

He didn’t know that Lara spoke perfect French. “I can understand you, you know. I’m definitely not dead.”

“Well, a smart one too.” He flashed a smile.

Before the pair’s arrival, Lara had been standing out in the field, feeding a carrot to her favorite horse, which her mother had allowed her to name Gomez Addams. She changed the horses’ names quite frequently. Whatever his moniker that day, the horse chomped loudly, exposing his teeth, causing Lara to laugh. It was then she spied them—an odd duo, walking toward her in the middle of the field.

They were completely out of place in the country. At first, Lara thought they were old performers from Le Cirque Margot. In the summer, performers often got nostalgic for the old days and visited her great- grandmother. She scrutinized the two in front of her. Usually, the old circus folk didn’t arrive in their costumes, but you never knew; they were a strange lot. As the couple got closer to inspect her, Lara could see that they were too young to have performed in Le Cirque Margot.

He was a tall, slight man, handsome, wearing a white flowing shirt and light-brown pants. Beside him, a blond woman carried a parasol. Lara could hear a slight Southern drawl, and the woman wore a pink sequined costume. She had long legs, like a Las Vegas showgirl. Lara had just seen a Starsky & Hutch rerun on TV where they were in Las Vegas, and this woman definitely looked like those women. Her costume was the most beautiful thing Lara had ever seen. They appeared to be squabbling, because Lara could hear the woman’s voice rise.

The next logical thought Lara had was that they must be some musician friends of her father’s. Drummers were always coming and going. The man’s hair fell in waves to the top of his shoulders like the men on the album covers in her father’s record collection, but he walked toward her with purpose. And why not use the road? When they got closer, Lara couldn’t see their eyes behind their matching round mirrored sunglasses. The man stopped walking and leaned toward the grade in the hill. He seemed winded.

“Are you looking for my father?” Lara shaded her eyes so she could get a better look at them.

“No, silly,” he said. “I’m looking for you, Miss Lara Barnes.”

“Lara Margot Barnes,” she said, correcting him and folding her arms in front of her like she meant business.

“Oh, how delightful!” The lady turned to the man. “Did you hear that?”

“Of course I heard it, Margot. I’m standing here, aren’t I?”

The woman snorted loud enough for Gomez Addams to raise his head.