"hi, shaw," she said, doing her best to hide her misery.

her classmate moved uncomfortably close and stared at her.

in that instant allison knew. "you heard from him?" she kept her voice low and didn't dare say anson's name aloud.

shaw gave the slightest nod of his head.

"is he all right?" she breathed.

he shrugged one shoulder. "not if you ask me. he says otherwise."

allison bit her lip for fear she'd cry out. "he phoned you?"

again he nodded, glaring at her as if she were a traitor. "he wanted to tell you more but he couldn't because he knows you'll tell the sheriff. i told him you can't trust a girl. at least he listened to me about that much."

"does he need anything?" after her graduation announcements had gone out, allison had received gifts of money from family friends and relatives she'd barely even met. if he needed it, allison would send anson every penny.

"he says not."

"he hasn't phoned me." allison knew why, too. she'd lost her faith in him. still, she waited every single day, worrying endlessly about where he was and how he was living. he didn't have any relatives who could help him, and even his mother didn't know where he'd gone.

shaw held up his hand, stopping her. "don't ask me anything, because i can't tell you."

"how can i help?" that was all she really wanted to do. innocent or guilty, she still loved him.

"you don't really care what happens to him." shaw's eyes burned into hers.

"i do!" she wanted to shout the words. she cared so much that she was near tears.

glancing around, obviously afraid people might be watching them, shaw whispered something unintelligible in her ear.

frowning, she looked up at him. "pardon?"

"sul," he said. "those are the first three letters of the license plate belonging to the person he saw that night." shaw kept his head down and spoke in a voice so low she could hardly hear. "he didn't get a good look at the car, but from the back it seemed to be dark. midsize. a sedan. pretty common, in other words."

hope, faith, love, all three came to her in a blinding flash. perhaps there had been someone else there that night-and that someone was responsible for the fire. almost immediately this flicker of hope was extinguished by doubt.

"why didn't he tell me this earlier?" she asked. if anson could trust anyone, it should be her. not shaw. she was the one who'd stood up for him, defending him to her classmates and anyone who'd listen. she was the one who'd believed.

he sighed loudly. "anson wanted to keep you out of this. i checked around, but i couldn't come up with anything. he said i should tell you now."

"thank you," she said gratefully. she hugged shaw, who backed away in surprise.

desperate for hope, she asked, "is he coming?" her voice rose excitedly. "he's here, isn't he?"

shaw's demeanor changed as he shook his head. "no way, man. he isn't stupid enough to do that, not even for you. just remember-see you later."

"see you later," she repeated, not understanding.

"it's how i remember the letters."

the music started and everyone scrambled to get into their assigned positions. before shaw could leave, she grabbed his arm. "is there anything else you can tell me?"

"no." he shook his head more emphatically than before.

"is there anything else you're not telling me?"

his eyes narrowed, then he slowly nodded. "he swore me to secrecy. i can't tell you, so don't ask. later, you're going to get something from him. when you do, make sure the sheriff knows i was the one who arranged it for anson. me. you understand?" with that he left her, disappearing into the throng of students.

allison didn't know what he meant and didn't have time to question him further. already the line of graduates had begun to move and allison, shaking from the inside out, searched frantically for her cap before joining her friends as they filed into the pavilion.

the graduation went smoothly. when her name was announced, allison rose cox crossed the stage to accept her diploma. clutching it in her hand, she descended the steps and reclaimed her chair. she sat through all the speeches and awards, but her mind wasn't on any of them. she was thinking about anson. he'd sent shaw to her in an attempt to prove his innocence. he needed her to have faith in him and she'd faltered, but she wouldn't let him down again.

after the ceremony allison wandered through the crowd until she found her family. her mother held a damp, crumpled tissue. "it's so hard to believe you're eighteen. an adult," rosie cox said, dabbing her eyes. she hugged allison and her father did, too. eddie shifted from foot to foot, looking bored. her brother's turn was coming; next year he'd be in high school, too.

allison was ushered home, where her grandparents and aunts and uncles had gathered for a big family party. everyone seemed so pleased for her and so excited. there was lots of talk about the future and the fact that she'd be leaving for college in september. none of it seemed real.

as soon as she could, allison broke away from her relatives and sought out her father. "i need to talk to sheriff davis," she told him. she trusted her dad beyond anyone else. her mother, too, of course, but her father was the more approachable, at least about something like this.

zach quietly pulled her into his den. "you heard from anson again?"

"not directly. this has to do with the fire, though. it's important, dad. i have some information that might help identify the arsonist."

"okay." he nodded solemnly. "i'll contact sheriff davis first thing in the morning. we'll go in and see him together."

"thank you." she was glad he'd simply taken her word, without insisting on details. placing her hands on his shoulders, she kissed his cheek. it'd been a long time since she'd done that and she wasn't sure why she did it now. perhaps it was to show her gratitude. not just for this but for everything.

"what about grad party?" her father asked. she suspected he'd purposely steered the conversation away from anything too emotional.

"i'll go in a little while. wake me in the morning, okay?" grad party, with nearly her entire graduation class, was scheduled for later that evening. it was the last time this senior class would be together. from this point forward, they would go their separate ways.

"okay, good." her father left the den to attend to their guests.

allison returned to her bedroom for a moment's solitude-and hoped she'd made the right decision.

"allison," her mother called from out in the hallway.

"i'm in here, mom," she said, forcing herself to smile. "i needed to change my shoes," she said, offering a convenient excuse.

"here." rosie handed her a single red rose in a crystal vase. "this came for you. it was delivered just now, and there's a card with it, too. who would do something so sweet?"

allison didn't need to guess; she knew. anson. he hadn't come himself, but he'd done the next best thing.

taking the rose and the card, she looked up at her mother, and the expression in her eyes must have conveyed the truth.

"anson?" her mother whispered.

"i think so."

"rosie, we're out of punch," zach announced from the hall.

allison could have kissed him. her mother turned around and spoke briefly to her father as she walked past.

"that's from anson?" her father asked.

allison shrugged. "i think so," she said again.

he hesitated for only an instant before he left her to open the card in privacy. inside was a simple message. i will always love you. anson.

allison closed her eyes and, leaning against the wall, whispered back, "i will always love you, too. always, always, always."

thirty-one

the only person teri could talk to about this was rachel pendergast and rather than spill her heart out over the phone, she drove to her friend's rental. by the time she arrived at rachel's, her eyes had flooded with tears and she was an emotional wreck, shaking from head to foot. she'd almost expected to get a speeding ticket on her way here.

rachel answered her door, and immediately grabbed teri's arm and pulled her inside. "good grief, what's wrong?"

collapsing onto her friend's sofa, teri covered her face and burst into tears. she doubled over, leaning her forehead against her knees. rachel sat down next to her, placing one arm around teri's shoulders, and made soft, comforting sounds.

"i've done something really stupid," teri bellowed out between sobs. all at once she was so furious she couldn't contain her anger.

"you'd better tell me," rachel said in a soothing voice as she continued to rub her back.

teri pounded her foot against the carpet. "i am so stupid, i can't believe this. i just can't believe it!"

"teri." rachel was beginning to sound frustrated with her.

"it's his fault," she cried. "it's all bobby's fault."

"what is?" rachel asked.

teri held out her hand. as she'd expected, rachel gasped when she saw the huge diamond engagement ring.

"i'm in love," teri shouted. "i said i'd marry him." she wept noisily. "it's never going to work. bobby is...bobby." she stamped her foot some more. "he loves me! at first i didn't think it was possible. he doesn't even know me, the real me, but he says it doesn't matter."

"he phones you every day, doesn't he?"

"three times a day." no matter where he was in the world, he managed to reach her, and the sad part was, teri lived for his calls. they never lasted long, but he made her laugh without even trying. and his innocent expressions of love brought her to tears.

he claimed he didn't "do" emotion and that he didn't "get" romance, but he was about the most romantic man she'd ever met. he loved her. she didn't understand why, and yet he loved her. no man had ever cared about her the way bobby polgar did. he was constantly proving it. if she made even the most casual comment, some silly remark like she enjoyed pickles, then he had a case delivered to her doorstep. he showered her with gifts, half of which she refused. the only thing he'd ever asked of her was to marry him. he'd asked over and over, and in a moment of weakness she'd said yes. but a chess genius shouldn't be married to someone like her. bobby needed a wife who was his intellectual equal. she wasn't even close. she had to back out of this ridiculous engagement.

"he phones three times a day?" rachel repeated.

teri sniffled. "before i go to work in the morning, at noon and then before i go to bed." bobby's chess-playing had never been better, and he was convinced it was all due to her. he wasn't talking about the haircuts she'd given him, either.