Page 249 - My FlipBook

T R A I L O F C R U M B S

her and Elgin’s chairs, then felt a thin stab. Was it so impos-
sible that Elgin—and Ash, Nate and Alice—might come to
Roger’s house sometime? A new path, a new gathering place?
A wall separated the dining room and kitchen, although
a small table would fit in the kitchen too. “No dishwasher
yet,” Roger said, pointing to the gap in the cupboards. Greta
noted the standard-sized oven, electric. Roger, as if reading
her mind, added, “The furnace is new.”

Greta trailed behind Roger through three bedrooms, all
with laminate flooring and small rectangular windows. “You
or Ash can have this one,” he said, pointing to the largest of
the three. “It’s just me now.”
“Let’s give it to Ash,” Greta answered, a little too easily.
“If he…if we come,” she added, stepping out of the room.
Roger closed the door behind them, as if preserving it.

“Yes, Ash’s room.” He checked a text on his phone. “My buddies
will be here in five.”
They wandered back to the living room. Greta pressed
her hands against the window, leaving the shape of her print.
She resisted the urge to press her nose against the glass, too,
some forgotten habit. She inspected the mud-brown grass,
the remnants of the last snow still lumped randomly across
the lawn.
“Dad”—Greta heard him move behind her—“didn’t we

live in a house like this when I was little?”
Roger gave a laugh of surprise. “You remember? I think
that’s why I liked this one, actually. They’re very similar.
You were probably three or four.”

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