Not because he was worried about her.
Because he was starting to worry about himself.
Dugan twisted halfway in his seat.
“You gonna tell us what you do for work?”
Claire said nothing.
He smirked, but it looked forced.
“Thought so.”
The car rolled through downtown.
Past the dark hardware store. Past the diner with one neon sign still glowing. Past the old courthouse square where the town put a Christmas tree every winter whether the lights worked or not.
Kessler turned onto Main and muttered, almost too low to hear, “Something’s off.”
Dugan answered just as quietly.
“You think she heard anything?”
Kessler’s eyes flicked to the mirror.
“Heard what?”
Dugan didn’t answer right away.
That pause was louder than words.
Claire turned her face toward the window so they wouldn’t see the change in her eyes.
There it is, she thought.
There it is.
