Nick couldn’t stop beating himself up as they sat in the truck, still parked on County Road 12.
- “Daisy, I’m so sorry, kiddo. This is on me,” he said, his voice thick with regret. “If I’d listened to you, none of this would’ve happened. Who’d have thought bandits would hit us here in Maple Creek?”
- “Grandpa, stop. You didn’t know. And that pendant… it spooked that guy. Where’d it come from?” Daisy asked, touching the silver bat family heirloom on her neck.
Nick’s face clouded over, caught off guard.
- “Your mom gave it to you when you were born. Said it was a charm for freedom and happiness, that it’d keep you safe. Guess it did today, but it didn’t save her,” he said, his voice breaking.
Daisy’s mind raced. Why did the bandit have the same pendant? Was it just a fluke? She dreaded telling Alex, knowing her fiancé, a deputy in Ithaca, would lose it. He worried about her more than she did herself.
- “I can’t tell Alex yet. He’ll freak, and I’ve had enough stress for one day,” she thought.
That evening, Alex called.
- “Hey, babe, wanna hit up a diner? I’m off early,” he said, upbeat.
- “Alex, I’ve got a splitting headache. Can we do tomorrow?” Daisy replied, hating herself for dodging him.
The next morning, Alex showed up at Maple Creek unannounced. When Daisy and Nick, tears streaming, told him about the robbery, he went pale.
- “Daisy, Nick, why didn’t you call me? If that car hadn’t driven by, it could’ve been so much worse!” Alex said, his voice shaking as he gripped Daisy’s hand.
- “Those scumbags!” Nick fumed. “How many more people will they rob?”
Alex’s eyes lit up.
- “They’re done. We’ve been tracking those guys for months. Caught ‘em yesterday after they hit another car on NY-96. A red-light camera nailed them. Nick, your $20,000 is safe. But you and Daisy need to come to the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office to ID them.”
Daisy and Nick exchanged nervous glances.
- “Do we have to?” they asked in unison.
- “Yeah, it’s gotta be done. Nick, you stared down those thugs on the road. You’re not scared of a lineup, are you?” Alex teased.
At the Tompkins County Sheriff’s Office, the air smelled of stale coffee and disinfectant. The bandit leader, the one with the bat pendant, locked eyes with Nick. His cold brown stare hit Nick like a shockwave, but he held it together.
- “That’s him,” Nick said, steady.
Daisy felt the same burning gaze. Her stomach churned, but she nodded.
- “Yeah, that’s him.”
Later, over coffee with Alex, Daisy couldn’t let it go.
- “Alex, that guy’s pendant—it’s like mine. It’s not just jewelry. It’s a family heirloom, from my mom. I need to know who he is.”
Alex frowned, confused.
- “Daisy, why dig into this? They’re locked up. So what if he’s got a pendant? There’s tons out there.”
- “No, Alex, it’s not just that. I feel it,” she insisted.
Daisy was about to uncover a secret that would change her life.