Page 34 of Wait for Me

Aliyah and her entourage entered the ice cream shop.

“Abdul!” Jonas waved to his new friend.

Abdul nearly came over, but his mother held his hand tightly. She didn’t smile. Her assistant was looking at a takeout menu. Behind them, Zaid stood guard.

Logan looked back to find Marie staring out of the window. There, by the roadside, were two familiar-looking men.

“Aren’t those the men from last night?” Logan asked.

Marie didn’t respond.

“Shall we thank God for the ice cream?” Jonas asked, preventing Logan’s thoughts from wandering too far off.

They said a blessing over their ice cream and sorbet.

There was nothing to talk about. Ice cream was ice cream. Logan decided to ask Marie about her work.

“I suppose being a translator has its adventures,” he said.

Instead of answering him, Marie said something odd. “When do you think the next Yukon train runs?”

“Why?” Logan asked.

“Maybe we could take Jonas on a train ride.”

“Train is fun,” Jonas said. “But not today. Today I’m a gold digger.”

“What?” Logan was losing track of the scattered conversation.

“Mrs. Ping said if I get enough gold nuggets, I can be a Junior Ranger.”

“What?”

Marie pulled out her cell phone. “I’ll text her.”

Logan finished his small scoop of ice cream. It had too much chocolate and sugar and fudge in it.

He wanted more. But the line was too long.

“Okay.” Marie read her text. “Mrs. Ping forgot to tell us that if we take the little one to the Klondike Gold Rush Historical Park, he could earn his Junior Ranger badge.”

“Where is this park?” Logan asked.

“I don’t know. She sent me a link. One sec.” Marie scrolled. “There’s an activity center down the road from here. He could get his badge there. I think that’s all it takes.”

Logan stared at Jonas. Half the time he had no idea what coursed through that five-year-old. At that age, Logan wouldn’t have given up a train ride to get a badge.

He wanted to say something to Marie, but she was looking out the window again. He followed her gaze. Out there, their new friends were walking toward a bench.

Three men, two women, and a lonely boy—not unlike Jonas. Logan wondered if the boy felt lonely sometimes, not having another kid to talk to. Maybe he and Jonas had become friends on account of that.

Logan wished he had more kids, for Jonas’s sake.

Marie’s phone vibrated on the table. She picked it up.

Logan almost said to her, “We’re on vacation.”

But when he saw her frowning at the message or email, he decided not to say anything.

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