“Ty, Ty, stop,” she yelled. She set Aiden back in his stroller and ran after Ty, panic rising as she watched him run toward the main road. “Ty, stop,” she tried again, louder. “Don’t follow the van.” This time he looked back, his face red and eyes wide. She motioned for him to come back toward her. His running slowed as he seemed to consider it. He slumped his tiny shoulders and turned around. Lotty ran to him and wrapped him in her arms.

“Sorry, Mom. I didn’t mean to get the van tooken.” Tears filled his large, brown eyes. 

“Ty, that was not your fault.” She squeezed him tighter.

A few neighbors were in their front yards to see what the commotion was about. “Somebody call the police. Please,” Lotty hollered. “Somebody just took our van.” Nikki was by Lotty’s side in an instant and their other neighbor, Jocelyn, called the police.

Nikki squeezed her hand. “We’ll find it, Lotty.”

“What’s the license plate number?” Jocelyn shouted.

Lotty gave her the number while Ty put his hands on the sides of Lotty’s face and repeated, “Mom, Mama, Mom?”

“What, bud?”

“Beary Potter was in there,” he answered as a new flood of tears ran down his face. 

“Who?” Nikki asked in Lotty’s ear.

“His stuffed bear,” she whispered. Then turning back to Ty, she said, “We’ll do our best to get him back.”

She scooped Ty into her arms and went back up the driveway toward Aiden, who was sitting in the shrub bed, shoving fistfuls of dirt into his mouth. In her hurry, she hadn’t taken the time to buckle him into the stroller and apparently the enticement of dirt was too strong for him to stay put. 

She sat down next to Aiden, with Ty on her lap, and pulled Aiden onto her free leg, covering herself in dirt in the process. Aiden stared at her, wide-eyed, before holding out his hand, offering her a fistful of his dirt. She kissed Aiden’s chubby, dirt-covered cheek and squeezed Ty. 

A police car, siren blaring, entered the cove and pulled up next to Lotty’s house. Two officers got out and said something to Jocelyn. She pointed to Lotty and the men turned in her direction. The man in the front, who looked eerily similar to Chuck Norris with his cowboy hat and beard, strode toward her in a matter of seconds. His long legs allowed him to walk up the hill in two steps. The second officer reminded her of a hamster on a wheel as he pumped his short legs to keep up. Large drops of sweat ran down his face and neck. Lotty tried to offer her most empathetic look since she was sure she’d looked exactly like him on her run earlier.

Lotty stood up and brushed the dirt off her lap.

Chuck’s twin got right down to business. He introduced himself as Officer Netley and began firing off questions. Lotty explained what had happened.

“So, you started the van and left it?” Netley asked.

“Yes, I was getting my purse,” she said.

“Hmm, I see.” He glanced down at Lotty’s running clothes. His eyes stopped on her shirt before looking away.

She peeked down at her shirt. It was covered in dirt and there was a huge sweat ring under her chest. Officer Netley moved toward the house. “It alright if we take a look inside?” he grunted.

Lotty nodded.

“And then we’ll want to talk to your son. Come on, Carlson.”

The second officer followed, but stopped after a couple of steps and turned to Lotty. He gave a weak smile. “That was Netley in a good mood,” he said with a chuckle. “He just transferred here from Spokane and so far, he seems less than thrilled with the area.” Then more seriously, “We’ll do our best to get to the bottom of this.”

She tried to say, “thank you,” but the words got lost in her throat, so she nodded. She picked up Aiden walked to the edge of the driveway where Ty was playing.

“Ty, did you see the person who took our van?”

He kept drawing in the dirt with a rock, but gave a slight nod.

“You did? What did he look like?”

“Like the man in our yard before.”

“Before?”

Ty sighed and dug his rock into the ground harder. His bottom lip quivered. “I want Beary Potter back.”

“I know, bud. That’s why I’m asking you these questions. Your answers can help us find the van and Beary Potter.”

Ty’s eyes met hers. “Before, when we were getting my bike.”

Lotty vaguely remembered Ty asking who someone was when they were getting ready to go. She’d figured it was one of their neighbors. Now his confused expression earlier made more sense.  “Right. When we were getting ready to go. Where was the man. What did he look like?”

“He was over there.” Ty pointed to the other side of the yard.

“Okay, what did he look like?”

“Um, like a man.” He was bored with the conversation and turned his attention back to his dirt drawing.

“Ty, was he big or small? What color was his hair? What did he actually look like?”

“Kind of like Dad, only scary.”

Lotty sighed. 

“And he didn’t have hair,” he answered.

Both officers walked back into the yard. Lotty grabbed Officer Carlson while Chuck Norris was busy writing. She told him that Ty had seen someone outside the house earlier and that he was bald. He relayed the info to his partner, who began peppering Ty with more questions. He had less luck than Lotty in getting answers. 

Netley continued his questions until Nikki came running toward them. “They were in my house too,” she said, pointing across the street.

“What?” Officer Netley asked, still watching Ty.

“Someone was in my house. I’m missing several items.”

“And you just realized this?” Netley turned his attention to Nikki.

“I was getting dressed when I heard Lotty yelling so I hurried out my front door. I didn’t notice anything weird until I went back inside just now.”

“Doesn’t anyone lock their doors around here?”

Nikki looked at Lotty sheepishly, so Lotty responded, “I usually do, but I was only headed out for a quick run so I guess I...” She trailed off when Officer Netley’s disgusted expression caught her eye.

He turned toward Nikki. She smiled. “It’s Walden, Montana.” She shrugged at Lotty as if living in Walden was obviously reason enough to not lock their doors. “Our worries revolve around paddle boarding competitions and huckleberry-themed cook-offs. Not robberies.” 

“Well then, it looks like things are changing,” he said.

Another police car sped up the drive. It stopped a foot from Nikki. Her husband, Brent, stepped out.

“Officer Grantham, what are you doing here?” Netley asked Brent.

“I’m here because this is my neighbor,” he said, setting a hand on Lotty’s shoulder. “And this is my wife.” He grabbed Nikki. The two hugged and spoke in hushed tones for several seconds. A pang of jealousy shot through Lotty. She longed for her husband to wrap his arms around her and whisper to see if she was alright.

The officers and Nikki filled Brent in on all the details of the robbery and her missing van. Aiden began fidgeting, trying to get out of Lotty’s arms, but she couldn’t bring herself to set him down yet. She wanted to keep him and Ty right next to her, safe. “Is it almost lunch time, Mom?” Ty asked.

“We can go inside soon, guys. Why don’t we get some popsicles to hold us over?” Both boys perked up. She walked to the garage and got three popsicles out of the deep freeze.

“What happened?” a familiar, deep voice asked from behind them. Lotty’s heart picked up its pace. Even now, after more than a year of barely speaking to each other and speaking kindly even less, her stomach still flip-flopped when he came home. It’s like it hadn’t quite gotten the message that things weren’t the same, that he didn’t love her like he had.

“Dad,” Ty shouted. Lotty turned around as Ty ran toward Jason. Her gaze landed on him and his face lit up for half a second before he resumed his cool expression. She must have imagined the warmth in his walnut-brown eyes that used to be a permanent fixture. Still, relief washed over her at having him home. He absorbed some of her worry by merely being there.

“Our car got tooken,” Ty shouted while hugging Jason.

After several seconds, Jason let go of him and moved closer to Lotty. As he opened his arms, she leaned forward. His obvious concern for her caused tears to form in the corners of her eyes. She needed him right now and he must understand that. She could already imagine the feeling of being in his arms, of her tension dissolving.

He was close enough she could smell the woody scent of his shampoo and picture herself touching his dark hair when she saw the confused expression on his face and realized his arms were reaching toward Aiden. She jerked back, wiping her face with her shoulder. As rejection and hurt twisted her stomach into a familiar knot, she tried to mask her emotions with a neutral, distant expression.

Jason raised his eyebrows and reached for Aiden once more. Again, she pulled back. Jason’s rebuff mixed with all the emotion from the morning made it seem impossible to let go of Aiden. Without him nestled against her, she was afraid the fear from earlier or the suffocating anxiety which often accompanied rejection might return. Jason stared at her, eyes wide.

“I – I can’t,” she stammered. “I need to hold him.”

Jason held up his arms in defeat.

“What are you doing home so early?” Lotty asked. Aiden whined, and she realized she’d tightened her grip.

Jason’s broad shoulders tightened. “Brent called me and told me he was on his way home because there’d been a robbery in the neighborhood and he thought I might want to know. At least someone thought to call me.”

His words hurt. He thought so little of her. Her eyes stung. She was afraid if she tried to speak, her voice would crack and betray her, so she just shook her head.

“Did someone really take the van?”

She nodded.

“And what’s going on in the house?”

“We were robbed,” she said, working hard to keep her voice steady. “So were Granthams.”

“Mom turned on the car and the bad guy took it. I tried to chase him.”

Jason looked to Lotty for confirmation, but she could see the disappointment in his eyes. He didn’t need to say any more. She knew what he was thinking. Why would you let him chase the van? Why can’t you be a good mother? She looked away and guilt settled like a brick in her stomach. 

“I’ll be talking with Brent,” he said after a long silence. He grabbed Ty’s hand and turned around. 

“Oh, and you left the lawnmower out, so it’s gone too,” she yelled. Her mind searched for anything else she could blame on him. 

“No, I didn’t,” he said through clenched teeth.

“You did.” She spoke so quietly she wasn’t sure if he’d heard her or not.

Her eyes stung and her hands began to shake. She leaned against the freezer for extra support since she ached from the weight of Aiden. A deep breath helped dissipate her desire to roll into the fetal position and cry. Her family was safe. Jason was home and could help with the chaos. Still, her nerves were frayed and now she was allowing Jason to grab every loose thread and unravel them beyond repair. Her marriage wasn’t supposed to be like this. She let her mind wander for just a moment, picturing how the last five minutes should have gone.

She leaned against Jason as he listened to her talk about the horror she’d felt when she was chasing Ty. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. Then he told her about the surprise vacation he’d just booked in Italy.

She shook her head, as if the motion could get rid of the thoughts. What was this new obsession with Italy about? She needed to get herself a big slice of tiramisu and stop wallowing in what-ifs.

Still holding Aiden, she made her way across the street to Nikki’s, opened the gate, and found Nikki lying on the back deck in a lounge chair. The view from Nikki’s house was much better than the view from Lotty and Jason’s. There were no houses or roads between the Grantham’s house and the lake—just beautiful, perfectly-manicured grass and flowers leading to the water’s edge. It was the picture of serenity back here. It seemed even more so after the stressful mood at Lotty’s house.

“Hey,” Nikki said, her eyes shut. “Are there still people in my house?”

“I think so. There are still plenty of strangers in mine.” Lotty pulled a chair up next to Nikki and sat down. “You look awfully relaxed for a person who was just robbed.”

“Yeah, well, there’s nothing I can do about it so why stew?” She opened her eyes. “Where’s Ty?”

“He’s with Jason.”

“Oh, good.” Nikki set her hand on top of Lotty’s and squeezed. She took a deep breath and sighed. “What a day, huh?”

Lotty nodded while she rubbed Aiden’s hair out of his eyes. She gave him another hug.

“How’s Jason?” Nikki asked.

“Mad,” Lotty answered. “Mad that Brent had to call him because I forgot, mad that I let the van get stolen and Ty run after it, and mad that he married me.”

Nikki breathed out louder than necessary. “You two have got to stop this.”

“I wish I knew how, but it keeps getting worse.” Lotty grabbed a slice of cheese and a cracker off the plate next to Nikki. She wasn’t hungry, but it gave her something to do with her hands. She hoped it made the shaking less noticeable.

“You need to talk to him, Lotty.”

“That’s what makes it worse.”

“No, I mean really talk to him. Not about bills or parenting. Tell him how much you still love him. You need to talk about everything that happened last year; get to the bottom of it. You need to be direct. Ask him why h—”

“I tell you too much,” Lotty cut her off. She didn’t want to think about it right now. She’d let it fade into the distance enough that it didn’t hurt so badly anymore. Why bring up the past now? “Revisiting painful times isn’t going to help.”

“Yes, it is if you—,” Nikki said and Lotty shoved a cracker in Nikki’s mouth.

“You looked hungry,” Lotty said with her sweetest smile. Nikki glared, but chewed on her cracker and stopped talking.

Brent slid the glass door from the kitchen open and joined them on the deck. “They’ve finished up at your place, Lotty. And they’re wrapping things up in here as well.”

“Oh, good, okay,” Lotty said, standing up.

“I’m not trying to rush you off. I just wanted you to know,” Brent said, sitting next to Nikki. “I don’t like this.” He shook his head.

“What?” Nikki asked.

Brent tipped his head and watched her. “What? This.” He pointed toward the kitchen. “Not feeling safe anymore. What’s happening to our neighborhood?”

“Oh, Brent. Stop,” Nikki said. “It’s only a robbery. We all have insurance. It will be fine.”

“This shouldn’t happen in Walden.”

Lotty stood up. “I better get home. I’ll see you two later.” 

Nikki stood and wrapped her arms around Lotty and Aiden. “Lots of deep breaths, sweetie. You’ll be okay.”  Lotty flashed her best attempt at a smile and took the stairs leading off the deck, slowly making her way across the street. This morning she’d been upset over squishy legs and pastries, but now that all seemed inconsequential. She thought of Nikki’s words, “It’s only a robbery,” but Lotty felt different. She couldn’t shake the feeling of foreboding as she looked up at the gray clouds. They seemed to tell her it was more than only a robbery. It was significant.