Free The Repeat Year by Andrea Lochen Page A

asked.
    “He did. But I’m not sure how long it took him to get there. I cornered him at the office Christmas party and asked him to contact me on New Year’s Day, but he didn’t. I was too afraid to go back to his house, so I called him at the office. He acted like he hardly remembered me, like it had been years since we’d talked, not just days. He wouldn’t tell me for sure, but I think it
had been
years for him.”
    She turned to Olive, as if suddenly remembering her presence. “But that won’t happen to you. Gene was an anomaly. He was a pretty awful man, and you know what? They never won that trial.”
    But Olive was still trying to wrap her head around the idea of the lawyer existing in some sort of alternate reality as the rest of the world, Sherry included, had sped past him. Years of his life condensed into mere minutes for everyone else. “But didn’t you just say you had to live 2005 over twice?” she asked.
    “Don’t focus on that,” Sherry said. She tapped a spoon against her mug. The sound rang out like a chiming bell. “It will only make things worse. You have to focus on the big picture. The reason for the repeat year.”
    “So what you’re saying is that the essential idea behind reliving this year is to correct something we did wrong last year?” Perhaps Olive hadn’t been far off the mark yesterday when she’d supposed that she’d done something seriously wrong last year to deserve this fate.
    “That was my theory,” Sherry said. “But it’s not quite as simple as that. If every time someone made a mistake, they had to relive that year, we’d all be in the same boat. We’d all probably still be in the Stone Age because we wouldn’t be able to progress further than that. But as far as I can tell, there are only a few of us having these experiences.”
    “Perhaps it’s some kind of major mistake we made that affects the outcome of the world?” Olive offered, feeling sheepish immediately after the question escaped her mouth.
    Sherry’s thin, pink lips stretched into a wry smile. “That thought had crossed my mind, too. Delusions of grandeur? But I don’t think we’re here to assassinate any villains or warn anyone of meteors hurtling toward the earth. We’re not superheroes; we’re still
us
. Just with a little extra knowledge. And the things I changed—well, it’s still not obvious to me how to go about this year even though this will be my fifth go of it.”
    “Really? What have you changed?”
    “I set myself up for that one.” Sherry’s lips straightened into a stern line. “I want to help you through this, but you have to understand that this doesn’t make us instant bosom buddies.” She draped her silk shawl around her shoulders, and Olive thought she saw the return of the Sherry Witan she knew from parties: serious and aloof with an almost accusatory stare.
    “If you could just give me a ballpark idea,” Olive pressed.
    “I’m sure you’ve heard rumors about my illustrious track record.” Sherry gave her shoulders a slight shake as though awakening herself. “I’m probably the worst guide you could have through this. I obviously haven’t learned my lesson; I’ve had to do this so many times.”
    “That means you’ve had a lot of experience,” Olive said gently. “I’m just happy to have someone to confide in.”
    “So you haven’t tried to talk to anyone else about it?” Sherry asked. When Olive nodded, she continued, “That’s good. I made the mistake of trying to tell my second husband about it, and I ended up spending the whole year in therapy. Which was helpful, don’t get me wrong, but not really the issue at hand.”
    “Yeah, I think my ex-boyfriend thinks I’m a little nuts, too. I was so disoriented when I woke up at his apartment on New Year’s Day. We hadn’t seen each other in months, and then all of a sudden, we’re back together.”
    Sherry traced the mug’s rim with her fingers. She seemed to be waiting for Olive to