Page 72 of The Roads We Follow

Micah follows Dottie into the kitchen, but not before he sends a pleading look in my direction.

I situate myself next to Mama and waggle my eyebrows at him.Good luck, I mouth an instant before he disappears into Oz.

I’ve never bought into the superstition that bad news comes in threes ... until today. Not only did our bus break down in themiddle of nowhere, forcing Cheyenne to miss her second flight back to California, but after hours of waiting to hear from Micah after he left for town with a man who could be Harrison Ford’s twin brother, the part we need replaced on the bus will take a minimum of twenty-four hours to get to Billy’s shop. And that’s with paying all the expedited fees to rush it. Bottom line: without transportation and working phones, we’re stuck in Scarecrow, Kansas, for at least a full day.

Thankfully, good news also seems to come in threes, or at least that’s how I’m choosing to look at it. After feeding us all generous slices of French silk pie, Dottie kindly offered us lodging in her six-bedroom inn for however long we need. And to no one’s surprise, Dottie’s impressive Oz collection doesn’t stop downstairs. Nope, each of the six rooms is themed. According to our host, the inn has fallen on hard times due to the economy, but with some minimal dusting and a few quick linen changes, I’m happy to report our group managed to reset the place for guests in no time at all.

We set Mama up in the Glinda the Good Witch room, which is everything tulle and sparkly and pink, like Mama. Adele and Cheyenne—despite the unresolved issues between them—agreed to take the lofted Tin Man Suite that holds two queen beds and hosts a large en suite bathroom. Hattie took the Wizard’s room, decorated in an elaborate landscape of the Emerald City. She’s documented every square inch of the inn to show her kids once she’s able to find WiFi. And I set up camp in the Cowardly Lion’s quarters, the only room with a desk suitable for working on a secret writing project.

I made sure to save the best accommodations for Micah, though.

Sometime after seven, he pounds on my door and steps inside with horror-filled eyes. “Do you happen to know why there are creepy, oversize bats hanging from my ceiling?”

I lean back in my chair and stifle a laugh behind my hand. “Those aren’t bats; they’re flying monkeys.”

He stares at me as if I’m a flying monkey. “Raegan, I realize we didn’t grow up in the same part of the country, but I’ve never seenanything close to that in a zoo.” He slips off the backpack he’s wearing and opens it to reveal his mother’s journals for me to reference in my writing endeavors. It was beyond considerate of him to anticipate my need for them. Lynn’s date-keeping will come in handy in these early chapters.

“Micah, thank you, that was incredibly nice of you to—”

But Micah is not ready to move on yet. “What is with all the weird stuff in this house? Did you see the stuffed dog in the dining room?” He drops his voice. “I’ve never been so disturbed while eating pie in my life. I kept waiting for him to leap up on the table and rip out my throat.”

“Relax,” I laugh. “Dottie’s allergic to animals. That Toto dog was never a real dog. She found a perfect replica in Japan and had it shipped.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better about the mental state of our hostess? Do you forget what I do for a living?”

“She’s an avid collector,” I defend.

“Of what?” He throws up his arms. “The things night terrors are made of?”

“No, ofThe Wizard of Oz.” I narrow my eyes at him. “Wait—have you never seen it?”

“No, and I have to admit, she’s not really selling me on it, either.”

I gape at him. “You’ve never seen Judy Garland sing ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ or skip down the yellow brick road with Tin Man, Scarecrow, and the Cowardly Lion?”

“If I didn’t know you better, I’d request a drug test.”

“Micah, that movie is considered an Americanclassic.”

“Technically speaking, my first car was also considered an American classic,” he deadpans, “and the heater only worked when the radio was tuned to AM.”

I laugh like I haven’t laughed in years, and it feels so undeniably good after the last few days we’ve survived together.

He waits till I’ve recovered from wiping my eyes before asking, “How’s your mom doing tonight?”

“She seems back to her normal spunky self—which you know is hardly normal at all.”

“That’s good.” His chuckle falls flat, and I see the tension on his face for the first time.

“Hey,” I say gently. “You alright?”

“Yeah, I’ve just been worried about her.”

And it’s then I realize how close to home my mama’s fainting spell must have hit for him. “Oh, Micah, I’m sorry. She’s okay now, really.”

He nods and clears his throat, then points to the open document on my laptop. “And how’s that going?”

“Slow, but having your mom’s journals to reference for the timeline of events will be so helpful. Thanks for bringing them. I have to figure out a way to send this off to Chip tomorrow morning somehow. I’m already late on it.”

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