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Prologue

“ARE WE REALLY sure this is such a good idea?”

Kneeling beside a freshly dug hole in the springdaia dirt, Savannah McBride looked up at her cousins as she asked the question Inside the hole rested a randfather, Josiah McBride

Fifteen years earlier the cousins had filled the chest with personal treasures and buried it in this spot in the woods with the sole up their “time capsule” on Savannah’s thirtieth birthday They were still several weeks shy of that occasion, but they’d impulsively decided to excavate the chest today to take their ether—the funeral of Savannah’s uncle, Josiah McBride Jr

Now Savannah was having second thoughts about revisiting the past She winced as she thought of that childish letter, filled with grandiose plans that were so completely different from the way her life had actually turned out

“Maybe we should wait,” twenty-eight-year-old Tara said after a moment “It has been only fifteen years Ti after more time has passed, don’t you think?”

Eest at twenty-six, fir it up,” she said “We ht as well open it”

It was E, h which she had unselfishly taken care of him And it had been E into jeans and sneakers and following the old path into the woods behind Ee oak tree where they’d spent sosecrets

“Besides,” E around in the house with all those other people?”

That clinched it, as far as Savannah was concerned She’d rather wrestle an alligator than go back to that house full of chattering townspeople and cold greenbean casseroles, where she was constantly aware of the surreptitious glances slanted her way, the avid murmurs that stopped as soon as she approached, the carefully veiled cootten by the residents of tiny Honoria, Georgia

“Your children aren’t with you today?” several had politely inquired, even knowing that Savannah rarely brought her twins to this place where they would be eagerly studied for faossip that would only hurt them

Go back to the house? Not until she absolutely had to, Savannah thought flatly

“Okay, cousins Let’s see what’s in here,” she said, dragging the old chest out of the hole

Mud had seeped through the cracks and sealoves, Savannah plunged in and pulled out the filthy contents, while her cousins leaned close to watch

The three shoe-box-sized plastic containers protected within the bags still looked almost new Each box had a name written on the lid in faded permanent marker Savannah picked up the first one “Tara” she said, reading the childishly formed letters

Looking uncertain, Tara reached out to take the box froerly as if she’d packed it with explosives all those years ago, Savannah thought ry amusement

“Where’s mine?” Emily asked

Savannah handed her the appropriate container and E at the box with a mixture of anticipation and fear

The final container in the chest had Savannah’s nales She hesitated ait up Waves of , al her

The first ten years of her life had been almost fairytale perfect “Daddy’s little princess,” she’d been She could al hoift for her in his shirt pocket—gum, candy, a pretty ribbon, an inexpensive bracelet It didn’t matter She’d loved the her she was pretty, she was s she wanted