"Let's see," she skimmed down the first page, " you're Aunt, Claire Halbert, has had us all excited this past week. We hardly ever get new students, y...u see." I nodded but didn't smile; I certainly didn't feel honored. "I'd say you are the latest addition to Harpers Roe since John Old and his wife arrived fifteen years ago! Here's your schedule and a map." She handed me a hand-written list and hand-drawn map. "Come along, let's get you a locker."By now, it was 8:20 am and the halls were filling. It’s far off the beaten track, partly for legal reasons, and few people ever pass by accidentally, they are normally responding to advertisements on the internet.For avid biker Brian Fielding nowhere was out of the way. He’d crossed the Andes, the Sahara Desert and the Russian Tundra on his bike and so a trip through the semi-arid desert of Nevada was c***d’s play. Or so he thought.Temperatures were hovering around 120 degrees the day he rode towards the Bald Oasis and he was beginning to feel. ‘Most people think I am pretty strange living out here all alone,’ I pointed out. ‘Most people don’t know real pain,’ she said. She raised her cup to her lips, her eyes never leaving mine. She saw something in me. Something I thought was well hidden. Things I would prefer forgotten. I had to look away for a moment and see the green in the trees. I let my mind drift to the glass I would choose to duplicate the scene in front of me. I looked back after a moment to find her still watching me. If. Everything was moving along as expected and there was nothing I needed to approve so I went to my office and answered e-mail, returned phone calls, and reviewed reports. I longed for the day I could have my sister do this part of the job, but that was still years in the future.“Ready for lunch?” Jeri asked at 11:45am.“Yes,” I said. “Anything to get me away from all this paperwork!”We left the office and headed to the diner where Crystal had worked during the school year and sat at one of the.