him at the gas station in about an hour, by the way. He’s a slow starter when he opens.”
“I guess it’s good your memory is intact.” I flicked my eyes to the front of the restaurant. The front door was still locked, but somebody stood outside. “Do the customers line up before the doors open?”
“No. Why?”
“Because someone is out there.” I squinted for a better look. “I think it’s Hunter.”
Grandpa straightened. “He’s here?”
I nodded. “Maybe he has more questions about Roy’s death. Speaking of that, do you know who would want to kill him? According to just about everybody who works here, that list is long and sundry.”
I waited for Grandpa to answer. When he didn’t, I turned back ... and found the spot in front of the grill deserted.
“No way.” He’d bolted. He knew Hunter was there to question him, so he took off and left me to handle the situation. “Ugh. Men.”
I stomped to the front of the restaurant, struggling with the lock. It had always been tough. When I finally managed to open it, Hunter looked sheepish.
“Sorry I’m here so early,” he started.
“It’s okay.” I locked the door behind him and motioned for him to follow. I had no idea where my grandfather had decided to hide — odds were he was up in my apartment — but I had no intention of leaving Hunter hanging. “Coffee?”
“Is it ready?”
I nodded. “I’m hungover. I spent the night hanging with Alice and we drank way more than was smart. There’s definitely coffee.”
He smirked at my answer. “Coffee’s good.” He sat at the counter and waited for me to deliver the cup, appreciatively inhaling the intoxicating aroma before sipping. “Still as good as I remember.”
“You don’t even come in here for coffee?” I felt bad, as if I’d somehow cut him off from something great. “You know, you don’t have to avoid this place. You can come here whenever you want. Just because I wasn’t here ... .”
“That’s not the only reason,” he said hurriedly.
“Okay, well ... you’re still welcome.”
“I know. It’s just weird because it’s your family. They’re not my family, even though there were times they felt like it. Losing them, on top of losing you ... .” He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t have to.
“I’m sorry.”
“About what?” He looked genuinely confused.
I thought about what my grandfather had said. Could he be right? Was I closed off? If so, was it something I could fix? Heck, did I even want to fix it?
“I’m sorry about all of it,” I said finally. “I knew that the distance would be the end of us and yet I held on too tight. I couldn’t help myself. Then, when you couldn’t move down state with me, I told myself it was because you didn’t care. I knew that wasn’t true.”
“It definitely wasn’t true.” His green eyes clouded over. “I wanted to be with you. I just couldn’t. There was no way I could make it work financially.”
“And I was too self-involved to see that.”
“I wouldn’t say you were self-involved.”
“No?” I arched a dubious eyebrow. “Most everyone I know says I’m self-involved. There’s no reason to lie and spare my feelings.”
“Yeah, well ... .” He pursed his lips, and then changed the subject. “Is your grandfather here? I need to question him. He disappeared yesterday afternoon even though he knew I was looking for him.”
That was news to me. “You haven’t talked to him at all?”
He shook his head and sipped again. “Nope. He took off and when I stopped at his house your grandmother said he wasn’t home, but his truck was parked in the garage.”
That didn’t sound like my grandfather. Usually he tackled a problem immediately — unless it was a minor annoyance and then he foisted the irritation off on us. “I ... um ... .” I glanced over my shoulder, over the swinging doors, and found the spot in front of the grill still empty. “I don’t know where he is.” That wasn’t exactly a lie. Of course, it wasn’t the complete truth either.
“Was he here earlier?”
I didn’t know what I was supposed to say. Lying to a cop seemed a bad idea. Still, I would’ve done it if I thought it was necessary. Lying to Hunter was different.
“He was here,” Hunter surmised, shaking his head. “Did he leave when I showed up at the door?”
“I’m not sure when he left. All of a sudden, he was just gone.”
“Uh-huh.” Hunter looked dubious. “He doesn’t think that hiding from