There was a wicker couch and chair with some upholstered cushions, and a little table where she’d set out the tea, a whole pitcher of it: hibiscus, which I liked, with a separate tall glass of ice cubes. There was also a plate of small sandwiches, cream cheese and brown bread. I hadn’t eaten any lunch. I sat in the path of the whispering electric fan and scarfed it all down.

I should have eaten standing up. Because of course between the food and the dimness and the cool breeze, I closed my eyes and fell asleep. I woke all of a sudden, knowing exactly what had happened and that I’d made trouble for myself. The light outside was sloping into late afternoon. The sweat had dried on me and I felt unwell.

Back outside, I calculated what I might get done before the light failed, which up here on a hill was likely to be early. I’d water and mulch everything I’d already put in the ground and clean up so that everything was tidy and looking good. There was no way I could avoid coming back tomorrow. Rick would have to be told something, but I hadn’t yet figured out what.

I texted Aaron to tell him to get home early enough to feed and walk Batman. Then I got to work watering, raking, sweeping up after myself. I spread the mulch around and dumped an extra wheelbarrow-load of it on a tarp to one side. I set the unplanted items together in a place where they’d be out of the morning sun.

When I was done, I carried the iced tea and the empty plate up to the back door of the house. It stood open. I knocked, then called. “Mrs. Boone?”

There was no answer. I took a step inside, to a pantry area with a kitchen beyond. I walked in just far enough to put the pitcher, glass, and plate next to the sink. I was nervous about being there and anxious to get back outside. I couldn’t tell much about the room; it was big and dark and there were layers of smells within it, of cooking but also of something dense and muddy, spices or incense, maybe.

“Mrs. Boone? I’m sorry, I didn’t quite get finished but I’ll be back first thing tomorrow if that’s all right. It won’t take me real long.”

No answer.

I wasn’t quite awake yet, and I had a moment of true weirdness, as if everyone in the world had disappeared while I slept. Like Rip Van Winkle, but nuttier.