“Not a problem,” Dr. Grant said.

I hung up, but before I could stick my phone in my pocket, it buzzed.

Karter: I found some more field guides. Thought you might want them.

Bri: How much?

Karter: It’s on me. Can I drop them off for you?

Bri: Sure. 307 Old Post Rd. GPS doesn’t really work out here so be careful.

Little dots appeared, then disappeared a few times before another text came through.

Karter: Ok. See you in 15?

Bri: Yup

I locked the main gate to the secret garden and watched as the trees hid the entrance, making it nearly impossible to see. The entire walk back to the house, tangles of poisonous plants undulated along the ground, a shallow wave of green and black leaves and gleaming thorns. At the tree line they hung back, twisting over on themselves. The vines parted, and I slipped out.

Glancing back, I felt eyes on me, like someone or something was watching. That had been true before—a man with a machete had been waiting, watching me. That should have been enough to keep me from returning to the garden, but what had happened to him, the way the forest had come alive to attack him and protect me, made me feel safe in a situation that was obviously . . . ​ not. The vines closed behind me and I quickly walked up the sloping lawn toward the house.

Before I got up the hill, Mo came strolling across the grass with a big smile plastered on her face. Karter bobbed along behind her.

“Look who came to visit,” Mo said.

“Hey,” I said.

Karter looked me over. “Hey. Uh, what were you doing?”

The question caught me off guard. I looked at my clothes and realized I’d sweated out the pits of my T-shirt and was wearing flowers like other people wore jewelry. “Exploring. But listen, I gotta change real quick. Wanna come in?”

“Yes, he does,” Mo said. She ushered him inside and I ran upstairs. I set the flower bracelet and the calla lily on the bathroom counter and showered. I pulled on a pair of jeans and a semi-clean T-shirt I had in my bag, threw my hair in a yellow headscarf, and went back downstairs to find Karter in the front room, laughing himself to death with Mom and Mo.

Mom wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. “She used to take off her shirt and run around the shop like nobody would notice! I’ve never seen a kid who wanted to be naked as much as Briseis.”

I cleared my throat. “Wanna go?” I slipped my arm under Karter’s and pulled him toward the door before my parents said anything else. “We can lose them if we run,” I whispered.

Karter grinned.

“Where are y’all headed off to?” Mo asked as we walked out to the front porch.

A beat-up old truck sat in the driveway. The front bumper was gone and the once-red paint had aged into a patchwork of rust.

“We’re going for a drive,” I said.

“We are?” Karter asked. I gripped his arm. “Oh, right. Yeah. Goin’ for a drive.”

“Okay, well, wear your seat belts,” said Mo. “And keep your phone on so you can check in.”

“Yes, ma’am.” I climbed into the passenger side as Karter slid into the driver’s seat.

Mo made sure that we could see her eyeing the front of the truck. “I got your license plate, Karter.”

Karter looked nervously to me. “Is she serious?”

“Yes.”

“Did I miss something?” he asked. “We were laughing and joking a minute ago.” The entire vehicle rumbled as the engine turned on.

“My parents like to joke, but they play zero games when it comes to me. Especially Mo.” I shooed her away from the truck. She walked backward to the house, keeping eye contact with Karter until he looked away to adjust his rearview mirror.

He pressed his lips into a line. “She doesn’t have to worry. Really.” He seemed concerned and I felt bad for him.

“Mo’s pretty harmless,” I said. “I think you’ll be okay.”

Karter handled the truck like it was trying get away from him, roughly pulling at the steering wheel to keep it in line. Every bump we hit made the cab shimmy and creak. It felt like there was nothing between me and the road, and if we hit a pothole it was gonna be over for my tailbone.

He glanced at me, his eyes kind. “Sorry. The truck is old.”

“It’s fine,” I said. “My spine might need to be realigned when we get out but it’s cool.”

He laughed and the tension eased.

“Sorry again about Mo. This is all new to us too so she’s feeling extra protective right now.”

“You call your mom Mo—mind if I ask why?”

“I mean, they’re both ‘mom,’ ” I said. “I call them both ‘mom’ depending on the situation, but Mo is short for Mom. It works for us.”

“That makes sense. I thought maybe it was her first name or something.”

“Yeah, no.” I laughed. “Call her by her first name? Never in my Black-ass life.”

“Got it,” said Karter, nodding. “So where are we going?”

“Can you take me to the hospital?”

He looked me over, his brow furrowed. “You good?”

“I’m fine, but there was this man—” I stopped short. I wasn’t sure how much to tell him. “There was a guy on the property earlier. He was hurt pretty badly, and I wanna check on him.”

Karter stared ahead as we drove. “Some random guy?”

“Yeah,” I said. “He got into something poisonous and we had to call an ambulance.”

He grimaced. “Wow, welcome to town, right? Weird guy in the woods on what, day two? The hospital’s not too far. I’ll take you if you think it’s a good idea.”

“I don’t know if it’s a good idea or not, but I wanna go.” That part was the whole truth.

A paper bag sat on the seat between us and Karter nudged it toward me. “I think there’s four or five in there.”

The field guides were in perfect shape, just like the ones he’d given me before. “You sure you don’t wanna sell these? I can pay you.”

“They’re just sitting on a shelf. Think of it as a housewarming gift.”

“Thanks,” I said.

“Have you had a chance to look around?” Karter asked as he turned onto the main road.

“Not really,” I said. “Coming into your shop and eating at Ginger’s was our first trip to explore.”