“It got to the point where I had a hard time telling the good guys from the bad guys.”

“I know the feeling. Would it have hurt you to drop me a line?”

“I didn’t think you wanted to hear from me. And I didn’t know where you were.”

“Poor excuses for excuses. You could have written my mum in Rotherfield.”

“How long have you been in the U.S.?”

Melody sat on the edge of the bed beside Drake and appeared to deflate, like a balloon.

“Two years. Our little island became too small for me. I knew where too many bodies were buried, literally and figuratively. So I came to the land of the free and the home of the brave. I may even become a citizen someday.”

“Where are you living?”

“Denver. Running at high altitude is great conditioning for running at sea level. I’m working at a Jack LaLanne health club as a fitness instructor and running the occasional marathon, when I can find one that accepts women. What about you? Tell me your recent history in two sentences or less.”

Nonstop physical activity. That sounded like the Melody he knew. If anybody were in shape for this race, she was.

“I resigned four years ago. I’ve been living with my sister and brother-in-law in Idyllwild, which is about a hundred miles from here. It’s also in the mountains, a mile high, same as Denver. I’ve been selling real estate and working out. I ran Boston last spring.”

“Fancy that. We’re both running marathons. I’m planning to run Boston next year. We might have run into each other, sometime, if you’ll excuse the little joke. Except for your face, you look fit. Well, I guess the first thing we have to decide is whether we’re going to quit while we’re behind or have a go at this.”

“What did they tell you about the collision?”