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Chapter One

Rye

After sixteen hours of driving and a , Rye Janssen was exhausted and slap-happy, but hopeful

Around hour three, his cat, Marmot, had realized she could squeeze between the headrest and Rye’s neck and bat at his hair as he drove By hour nine, Rye had consu and Marmot had exhausted herself and curled up on the dashboard, snoozing in the sun

As the road spooled out behind him and before him, Rye felt like he could breathe for the first time in years He used to love Seattle As a child, the city had felt like a world of possibility When had it become claustrophobic?

His car stereo had broken ages ago, so Rye hu words he hadn’t thought of in years, letting the wind rushing by his open s snatch the sound away

When Marmot crawled onto his lap and looked up at hi Marmot licked at his chin and he smiled

“Best decision I everyou out of that oil can,” he told her fondly

And it was

Rye only hoped the decision he was currentlyturned out anywhere near as well

When Rye had gotten the call three days before, inforrandfather he’d neverup, irritated it hadn’t been so about one of the many job applications he had sub and internet research, eventually Rye believed it