Claire’s POV

The following day finds me en route to my hometown. Yes!! I have to go home and see my mom, and it’s been weeks since I left in that cab anyway so a weekend at my mom’s wouldn’t be so horrible.

I sit on the bus, which rattles down the highway, the engine rumbling softly, lapping like waves on the shore, bringing the peace of the countryside. It’s 9:27 on a Saturday morning and I can smell dust and leather as the seat squeaks beneath me and I gaze out the window at the ...