Page 54 of Lightning in a Mason Jar

Thea pushed her dessert plate to the side. “If we tell you, you need to promise you won’t say a word to another soul.”

“Of course,” Bailey Rae said, pressing a hand to her chest, her heart already speeding in anticipation. This was almost too easy. “You know that you can trust me.”

Nodding, Thea glanced over her shoulder before she said, “You’re sure you want to know, even if the truth makes you uncomfortable?”

“You’re my family,” Bailey Rae answered without hesitation. “We may not be blood relatives, but you are the relatives I choose. That comes with messy parts as well as the good.”

“Family first.” Thea’s throat moved in a long swallow and a deep breath. “Winnie didn’t just help you and your mom. There were others. Lots of them.”

“Yes. And?” Bailey Rae tried not to snap in frustration at being put off with an obvious response. “I lived here. I noticed all those ‘friends’ coming through, people we didn’t see again. There’s more. I know there is.” She looked from one to the other. “June?”

The youngest of the friends, June folded her hands on top of the safe. “You’ve made Winnie proud with the way you helped Gia and Cricket. That was your aunt’s legacy, helping women and children at risk.”

Again, a nonanswer. “I’m a testament to that. Now, I need some answers, because I’m about at the end of my ‘respect your elders’ rope.”

With a final look at Thea, June continued. “I don’t think you understand what I’m saying. She didn’t just help people struggling in life. She built them a wholenewlife.”

Bailey Rae wanted to shout a great bigI knowto the heavens but settled for a calmer response. “Yes, she was so committed to that goal she packed the barn full of thrift shop finds for people to set up a new home. June, didn’t you even tell me once how she gave you an encyclopedia set when you came to town?”

“You still aren’t hearing me,” June said softly, firmly. “She created whole newidentities.”

Identities?“Like assisting the Witness Protection Program?”

Thea shook her head, leaning forward to whisper, “She worked through unofficial channels, helping those that the system failed.”

Collapsing back in her chair, Bailey Rae struggled to believe her ears. The prospect sounded right and crazy all at once. But there was a calm logic to Thea’s and June’s words. “I’m listening.”

Thea took the lead. “It wasn’t just simple word of mouth. She was a part of an organized effort. If you tell anyone about it, that could be problematic for others.”

“Why?” Bailey Rae asked. “Now that Winnie’s gone, there’s not a secret to reveal ...” Realization seeped in. “She’s not the only one here in town creating those identities. The four of you did everything together.”

Libby smiled, without looking up from her crocheting, the pale-blue blanket pooling in her lap as her fingers flew. All those confusing things Libby had been saying lately made sense. Her decline was getting worse, though, and secrets wouldn’t stay such for much longer.

June followed her gaze to Libby and nodded in silent understanding of Bailey Rae’s thoughts. “She needs one of us with her at all times. We’re handling it.”

Bailey Rae grabbed her sweet tea and gulped down half before setting her glass back on the table. “And that’s all there is to it?”

June shrugged. “What else could there be? Since Winnie’s gone, we’ve stopped our involvement and just work at keeping a low profile.”

A wry smile tugged at Bailey Rae as she gestured toward the fresh streak of sapphire added alongside the purple one in June’s hair. “For someone trying to fly under the radar, you sure do a lot of things to bring attention to yourself, changing that every month—sometimes even less.”

Laughing, June twirled the blue lock. “But I bet you can’t remember my real hair color.”

Thea clapped her gloved hands together. “Mission accomplished.”

How could they be so glib about this? “What about Gia and that cookbook? She insisted it was the key to getting help.”

Libby looped the yarn around the hook for her next stitch, chiming in without looking up. “Thea has a talent for creating codes.”

Bailey Rae gripped the seat of her chair, the world increasingly unsteady. “Like for computers?”

“No,” Thea said, winking. “Like cyphers, used to send secret messages. It began with my grandmother. She was a codebreaker during World War II. She used to play games with us as kids, teaching the grandchildren.”

Bailey Rae shuffled all the puzzle pieces in her mind. “Uncle Russell told me about a relative of his who did that for the government too ...”

“Russell and I were distant cousins,” Thea confirmed. “Annette helped me start over in Bent Oak. Creating a code for secret communications was part of my contribution.”

More confused than before, Bailey Rae asked, “So Russell’s grandmother asked you?”

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