More Than Memories Read Free Page A

his. It felt so nice to be
laughing and talking with someone like him. They sat again and he told her
about Mark Stone, his friend and fellow cop, who was a few years older than him
but single as well, so they hung out often and had things in common. He told
her, “We’re the only single guys on the force in this one horse town, so we
stick together.”
    There was a hint of loneliness in his voice that
made her want to reach out to him. She didn’t feel so alone anymore with him
sitting by her. This time, it was her that reached for his hand. Their gazes
met and held until he cleared his throat.
    “I came here meaning to tell you something
important.” His tone scared her, so she reminded herself she’d come to Ridge
City to discover who she was. “The department is reopening the case now that
you’re back. It’s strange anyway, but it’s even more complicated now that we
know your parents died. This could possibly be a double murder.”
    The uneasiness she noticed when he had first
arrived returned, and she had to say, “I don’t know why we left.” She didn’t
add that it could be her fault. Or maybe she did something awful that forced
them to leave. She felt in her heart it couldn’t be true, but she didn’t
remember. One look at Trent’s eyes told her he didn’t know, either.
    “We don’t know much at this point, but I’d like to
answer these questions for all of us.”
    Did he trust her? And could she trust him? Her
words were about to gush out, when he said, “I’ll let you go to bed now, but
I’ll come back tomorrow.”
    They rose in unison and slowly walked to the door.
    “Goodnight, Molly, and welcome home.”
     
     

Chapter Two
     
     
     
    Molly couldn’t help the grin on her face as her
brown and tan horse trotted beside Thunder, Trent’s charcoal colored stallion.
They rode side by side at the edge of the pasture, next to the tree line. “I
know how to do this. I still can’t believe it!”
    Trent had told her how
much they used to ride together and she’d been intrigued. The experience felt
new and yet familiar when she placed her foot and swung up on Galaxy like she’d
been riding for years.
    She was too afraid to
venture away from her parent’s home in California, but riding through the
countryside took her mind off her problems and new worries that coming
to Ridge City had brought. Sitting atop the horse, sh e
felt free and happy, and she wondered, even hoped, the feeling was a
memory of how she felt years ago when she rode.
    “This sure beats yesterday,” she said with a
giggle and then realized her slip. “I mean, this is a lot more fun than
visiting the police station.”
    She had been thinking about how nervous she was at
first. Now Trent wore casual clothes and they laughed with ease.
    “Galaxy sure was happy to see you,” he said. “And
you hopped up there before I showed you how, so you must remember some things.”
    He had noticed. Molly tingled with pride in
herself. It felt so good knowing she could do something. She smiled at him.
“Things like walking, riding a bike, and I guess riding a horse.”
    While Trent smiled back, it wasn’t a sure smile as
he searched her face. He seemed to shake himself and look away. Maybe, when
she’d felt so comfortable about mounting the horse, he thought she remembered
everything. If only she could.
    Molly looked down at Galax y’s
shaking tan mane as they rode. When she first saw the horses and how
majestic they looked dancing around each other, she knew she loved to ride.
Maybe she didn’t remember, but she felt it. The horse had whinnied and danced
when Tr ent b rought her from the pasture to see
Molly.
    “Did I tell you that Alicia let you help name
him?”
    “Really?” Molly loo ked f orward
to meeting his sister, sometime. That name still didn’t bring any emotion back
except anxiety about meeting someone who had known her so well.
    She patted her horse and breathed in a deep breath
of moist forest smell. She