Free Shifting Dreams by Elizabeth Hunter Page A

sometimes Low watches me at home.”
    Was it sneaky or just friendly to talk to the kid of a woman you were interested in? He wasn’t exactly grilling the little guy. He was just curious. “How old is Low?”
    “He’s almost twelve. Is that your hat?” The boy talked with his mouth full, but Caleb could still understand him. He glanced over at the simple straw Stetson that lay on the stool next to him.
    “Yep. That’s mine.”
    “That’s a cool hat.”
    “Thanks. Keeps the sun off.”
    Aaron glanced down the counter at his mother and leaned toward Caleb. “You better make sure you pay for your lunch.”
    Caleb’s eyes darted between Aaron and an old hat nailed up on the wall behind the cash register. Suddenly, one mystery seemed a little more clear. Tempestuous relationship with hats, huh? He nodded at Aaron. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks for the tip.”
    He heard the bell to the door chiming in the background, but his eyes were locked on the kid, who was staring at him with an odd expression. Aaron narrowed his green eyes and tilted his head to the side.
    Caleb said, “Bear?”
    A tentative hand reached over to his arm and Caleb could feel the warm palm resting on his forearm as Aaron continued to stare. Just then, a sweet smile crossed the boy’s face. “You’re like us.”
    For a second, a strange instinct tickled the back of his mind, as if there was something Caleb had forgotten that he was on the verge of remembering. “What do you—?”
    “Come on, Bear.” Another hand pulled Aaron’s arm away and Caleb looked over his shoulder, annoyed to have been interrupted. “We need to go home. Now.”
    This was definitely Jena’s other son. The dark suspicious eyes that watched him with intelligent caution. The thick, dark hair and angled planes of a face that was distinctly boyish, but familiar, nonetheless.  
    Caleb held out a hand. “Hi, I’m Chief Gilbert.”
    The older boy—who must have been Low, the eleven-year-old—ignored his hand and nodded. “I know. Come on, Bear. Dev’s going to take us home.”
    Caleb hadn’t even noticed Devin standing behind the boys. The deputy called out to Jena, “Is that cool, Jena? I can drop them off on my way out.”
    Jena smiled as she slid two plates over the pass. “Thanks, Dev. Appreciate it. Low, you have your key?”
    “Yeah, Mom.”
    “I’ll call Nana McCann to check on you in a little while.”
    Low gave a distinctly adolescent sigh. “It’s fine, Mom.”
    There was a moment then, a quick, heated moment with mother and son staring at each other across the room. A tumbleweed might have rolled between the booths. The tension held for a moment before a slight flush crossed the older boy’s cheeks and he said, “I’ll make sure to look for her.”
    Jena said, “Good. Make sure you guys do any homework for the weekend before I get home. You can ask Nana for help if you need it.”
    “Okay.”  
    Jena crooked a finger at the boy and he walked behind the counter. She bent down, whispered in his ear, and Low’s face flushed with pleasure.
    “Promise?” he said.
    “Promise. Now go take care of your brother. I’ll see you a little later.”
    She was tough, but not harsh. The affection in the boys’ faces was clear and she watched them with an expression that reminded him a little of his cousin Stephanie, who was a single mom of three back in Albuquerque. Steph and her kids were one of the few reasons he’d had a hard time leaving, but he knew she understood.
    Low and Aaron rushed out the door followed by Devin, already talking on the phone. Caleb turned back to Jena, who was filling three drink orders. “You’re a good mom.”
    The corner of her mouth turned up. “Get that from a five-minute conversation, Chief?”
    “Didn’t even take that long. I’m a trained investigator.”
    “Ha!” Jena passed the drinks to a girl who was serving the booths and took the ticket she handed her and passed it to the cook. “I’m a busy mom,