It was her favorite place to stretch before setting off on a morning run—when it wasn’t covered with snow. Thanks to the warmer temperatures over the last two days, most of the snow had melted into slushy piles. Since the early morning February sun was fairly weak, those slush piles were ice-covered now and would be until noon. She stretched one long leg behind her as she leaned against the post. A flash of movement across the driveway caught her attention, and Kelly saw Pete race down the café’s back steps and through the outside patio behind the shop. “What’s up, Pete?” she yelled as she stretched her other leg. “I thought I was the only one who went running this early.” Pete came to a stop as he rounded the corner of the patio and spotted Kelly. He quickly changed direction and headed her way. Kelly wondered why Pete was outside on a busy Saturday morning, until she glanced toward the parking lot. No cars were in sight except Pete’s old beige Volvo and Eduardo’s new green pickup.
