Hannah Hayes

“What? What d’you mean not you? Karaoke was made for people who can’t sing.” But he finds the loophole, so he grins. “Alright, can I get you a drink then? It’s on me.”

“I mean, I’d kill something, probably. But in a few more drinks I’ll be easily persuaded up there to sing “Come on Eileen” or “Mr. Brightside”. That’s a warning, by the way.”

“Yeah, except I don’t want to be responsible for having to pay for every shattered glass in this establishment,” she laughed, “But I admire your confidence.” Hannah had planned on leaving shortly but thought it rude to turn down Morgan’s offer. “Okay- one drink. But only if you get up on stage before I have to go so I can witness your epic performance.”

“My folks were the same way about Harper, loved her more than me and anything else that we had,” he told her with a bit of a smile as he tried and failed yet again to somehow unlock the door to her old truck. Sometimes they unlocked with the right amount of pressure or pure, dumb luck before he turned back to her with a slightly sheepish look on his face. “It’s been something to do to pass the time.” There was too much time on his hands, too many memories that he was trying to ignore too, and the house was a pet project that kept him busy. “You should come by, tell me how I need to not be doing so much like Harper does. It’s her favorite pastime.” Indy nodded, eyes averted for a moment before he schooled his features into something a bit more passive. “Yeah, I’ve missed her too. It’s been a long time since I’ve been back this long.”

“I don’t know about that. They loved you both equally,” she said reassuringly. Hannah saw he wasn’t having much luck with getting the truck door unlocked and frankly, was unbothered by it. Hannah was taken aback by Indy’s invite. Self betrayal came in the form of raised brows and a delayed response, “Yeah, absolutely!” Hannah said almost a little too eagerly, “No way I’d pass up the opportunity to team up with Harper in telling you what not to do,” she grinned, “And maybe you can teach me a thing or two while I’m there. I have a few repairs at my own house that I’ve put off for far too long and lord knows I’m anything but handy.” Between running the vet clinic and raising Molly on her own, Hannah’s personal to do list was ever growing. She took a step away from the truck and turned to face Indy; she didn’t want him to waste anymore time trying to unlock the door. “For what it’s worth, I hope you stay,” she met his gaze and continued on in the same breath, “And I think it’s time we try the locksmith. I can make the call on the way Sunrise Brew. I’m a woman of my word and I owe you a treat.”

Karaoke night at High Tide never disappoints. Morgan is already a little bit buzzed when he spots someone else.

“Oh shit, hey! Are you going up tonight?” He gestures toward the stage, where someone is currently singing their best rendition of Africa’s “Toto”. “Please be going up tonight.”

“Hey Morgan!” Hannah embraced him in a quick hug, “Oh god, no. Not me,” she smiled brightly but waved him off, “For the sake of everyone’s ear drums, I will not be singing karaoke. I’m not nearly enough drunk for that,” she teased, “But what about you? You’d kill it up there on stage.”

Indy was grateful for the change of conversation, because it was everything that he’d been trying to avoid by skirting around as many people as possible but even Harper was staring through him as if waiting for him to say something, say anything about what had happened. Instead he held onto it all and tried to work through it silently, but it was leaving him exasperated and avoiding anyone that he might run into including people that he had grown up with like Hannah. “You’re more than welcome to doubt me, considering how long it’s been since I’ve had to try this but sometimes it’s just a bit of dumb luck that helps.” Or so he hoped, because he wasn’t out to make himself look the fool in front of Hannah of all people, then he’d never hear the end of it when it got back to Harper as he followed her towards the truck and peered through the cracked window to see the keys and phone in plain view. “Too much ‘cause this thing should have been retired out to a pasture somewhere ten years ago.” But then again, it wouldn’t have forced Indy out of his self contained isolation to speak to her. 

“Doubt you?” she was a taken about by his lack of confidence. It saddened Hannah to see how much of a toll the divorce had taken on him. “Never,” she said simply, with a sweet smile. Hannah watched Indy intently as he worked to try and unlock the car door. “You’re tellin’ me. Sometimes I think Dad loves this thing more than us kids,” she said with a light laugh. “So, Harper told me you’ve been busy fixing up the house since you moved back in,” Hannah had kept her distance since learning he was back in town. She’d wanted to visit him much earlier on, but didn’t want to overwhelm him after such a trying time. “She’s super happy to have you back, y’know.” And so am I, Hannah thought to herself.

“So you’re saying you did–what?” When Harper had gotten up that morning, she hadn’t expected to walk into a conversation like this. “You know that’s bordering on illegal, right? And that I’m a cop? And own handcuffs?”

“What?!” Hannah snorted a laugh, “Telling one of my clients that dyeing their dog’s fur pink, so long as they were using the correct products, is not borderline on illegal,” she shook hear head, “Sure, it’s crazy but--” Hannah shrugged and laughed again, “I wouldn’t blame you for wanting to slap some cuffs on them.”

“You’re definitely not the only one. I mean, that’s probably what John is doing now. Driving all over Marigold, rescuing keys from inside locked cars. You’re just in queue.” Sofia smiles, hoping to cheer Hannah up over the situation.

“Oh no. I’d be happy to run home real quick and grab my car, if you still want to finish some of those errands before John gets here? It’s like — ten minutes.” And it’s not like she’s out here doing anything other than errands herself. “Not at all! I’m planning my sister’s friend’s baby shower, so I’ve been around town, gathering up what I need. It won’t even take me off track.”

“Well, at least we’re keeping the man in business,” she laughed, trying to find the positive in the situation like she always did. “Ah, no, that’s okay. Very sweet of you to offer but I really don’t want to inconvenience you like that,” she waved off Sofia’s offer. “Besides, I could use some caffeine to get me through the rest of the day. Everything happens for a reason, right?” At least that’s what she told herself every night. “Oh! Really? Do you need any help with planning it? I’ve planned quite a few for my own friends. How’d you get put in charge of planning if it’s for your sister’s friend?”

“Not the Leprechauns? Isn’t that sooner? My calendar’s about as dependable as the handymen are around here.” Dante’s just glad he knows his way around a hammer and nail. Replacing a lightbulb, whatever. “Yeah, she’s into it. I blame the 10, PG minutes of 13 going on 30 she caught before bedtime last week.” 

“Molly is terrified of leprechauns right now,” she laughed, though it was no laughing matter when her daughter was around. “She doesn’t even like looking at the one on the Lucky Charms cereal box,” Hannah shrugged. “So we’re skipping St. Patrick’s Day and focusing on Easter,” she explained, “Ah, I see. Great movie but yeah, probably not appropriate for a seven year old,” she laughed.

Catarina recognizes Hannah’s voice in the instant she hears it. “Hannah!” She clasps her hands, assessing the situation a moment later. “Don’t worry about buying me anything. Of course you can use it–do you want me to call my mom? She’s really good with cars.” 

“It’s not a bother really, and the least I can do for you helping me out,” Hannah insisted, “Oh? Does your mom break into cars on the regular?” she joked. “I totally locked my keys and my phone in the truck,” she admitted embarrassingly, “So definitely call your mom if you think she can help. Otherwise I was just going to hit up the locksmith.”

   Gwen looked from the cat to Hannah and then back to the cat again. “Oh! I thought he looked kind of familiar but I wasn’t sure where I’d seen him before. I think he likes to hang out in her window sometimes right? Probably looking to escape,” she said with a small chuckle. She watched as the other woman made her way over and scooped up the cat. “Oh yeah? Huh, I’ll have to remember that then.” She said as she mused it over a moment before she noticed Hannah was on her own. “No little one with you today?”

“Yep, you’re exactly right on that. So you know, if you’re in the market for a new cat, putting out a small bowl of milk is a sure way to keep him comin’ round. Honestly, I don’t think Mrs. Kelly would miss him all that much given how she won’t take my advice,” Hannah said honestly. It wasn’t much like her to advocate for such a thing but the cat clearly wasn’t loving his current living conditions. “Nah, Molly’s at school until one o’clock today. I took the morning off from work to try and get some things done while I don’t have Molly attached to the hip,” she said with a laugh.

“You’re an angel, Hannah. I can always count on you.” He grins right back at her before starting in on his burger.

Morgan shrugs, thinking her question over while he swallows. “This lunch was all I had planned for today, but stuffing my face for a few hours is always how I prefer to spend my time. What about you? Free now that the kiddo is at school?”

“I try my best,” she smiled sweetly and laughed. Hannah knew what it was like to get shit from older siblings so she had Morgan’s back when he needed it. “Yeah, Molly’s with my parents for the day so the plan was to get as many errands done as possible,” she took another bite of food, “Which you might have just derailed but again, I’m not complaining. I don’t typically eat this kind of food around Molly or else french fries is all she’ll want to eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”

“In hindsight, I probably should’ve.” Harper had thought about her veterinarian best friend, but she figured it would’ve been too easy to go to her first. Or too improbable, because if someone found a wandering swan wouldn’t they have called the precinct first? “I…actually don’t know.” She’d have to make sure to check with the Meyers, but she was guessing since she was only sent on the hunt for one, that they were going to have an even bigger problem on their hands. “I’ll have to mention to them that when we find the fowl fiend.” Harper gestured for Hannah to follow her as she headed to her next stop on the hunt. “You had to have a ceremony and cremate the tail? …What do you even say during a ceremony like that?”

“I can totally get them all the information they need if they’re actually serious about wanting to keep swans on their property,” Hannah offered, locking her front door behind her as she stepped of the porch to join her best friend in the hunt. “Yeah, and it was strange as hell,” Hannah laughed, thinking back to earlier that morning, “I don’t know, I just said a few nice words, said the Our Father and boxed it up for them to take home,” she said, cringing slightly at the memory. “God only knows what they’re going to do with the ashes,” she shook her head at the thought. “Do you have a plan on where we’re going next? I would recommend checking out any ponds or small lakes in the area. It couldn’t have gone too far.”

“Last… Thanksgiving,” Indy murmured with a shake of his head. Of course, how could he have forgotten? Well, it wasn’t that hard when things had been going from bad to worse in his marriage and any thought outside of it only blended into the next when he tried to picture at least not being miserable every second of the end. “Yeah, no, last Thanksgiving might have been the last time I was here before… you know, moving back.” And for good. Things made sure of that happening as he watched her with a faint smile, hoping that she didn’t hold it against him that he’d forgotten. “I can’t make any promises but you do have my phone in case of emergency.”

Hannah’s gaze dropped and she nipped at her bottom lip. Instantly, she felt horrible for even bringing it up. “Well, Marigold Valley certainly welcomes you back with open arms,” she said looking back up at Indy, hoping she hadn’t made him feel too uncomfortable. He had expressed his sentiments to her when her husband had passed but at least that was standard human decency. What did one say to another who had just gotten divorced; Congratulations? My deepest sympathies? “Uh, yeah, give it a go and if you can’t get it unlocked, I’ll just call the locksmith,” Hannah said, trying to bring some normalcy back to the conversation. She stepped off the curb and leaned back against the bed of the truck, “Just know you’ll have my father to answer to if you break somethin’,” she teased, “I’m sure you remember how much he cherishes this hunk a’ junk.”

“Oh, man. I’ve been there.” A couple times too many, which makes her overly-diligent not to force John to her rescue for the thirtieth time.

Sofia waits patiently as Hannah gets a hold of him on the phone, but it doesn’t look like great news when she returns. “Three or four hours? Yikes. Must be a busy day.” Then again, there aren’t a ton of locksmiths in Marigold. “I’d be happy to kill some time with you! I was just on my way to Sunrise.”

“Thanks for sayin’ that,” Hannah smirked, “Makes me feel a little better that I’m not the only one.” She joined Sofia on the sidewalk and walked alongside her as they made their way to Sunrise Brew. “I’ve got a bunch of errands that I was going to take care of while my parents watch Molly for the day but go figure, I wrote down everything I need in the notes on my phone and, well... given that it’s locked in the truck,” she sucked her teeth, “I hope I’m not throwing a wrench in any of your plans for the day.”

“Aw, not Mol! I wouldn’t want to get her all riled up again. But Gracie picked out some scrunchies at the store the other day. She was telling me about how three were for her, and three were for Molly. That okay? They’re pretty 80′s. Super cute, though.” 

“It’s all good. With Easter coming up, all she’s focused on is setting up some contraption to try and catch the Easter bunny,” Hannah snorted at the thought. “Really?” Hannah’s heart nearly melted at the thought, “Of course that’s okay. And so sweet of Gracie to think of her! Shocked that she chose something so old school, though,” Hannah smirked, “But I’m not complaining. I prefer it compared to half the crap they sell in kid’s stores now a days.”

Indy hadn’t thought twice about it, offering up his phone as he glanced back through the store windows with a furrowed brow because it seemed as if it wouldn’t empty out enough for him to be comfortable. It wasn’t impossible, but it did leave him uncomfortable before he gazed back at the woman talking to him with a look of recognition dawning over his features. “Hannah.” Her name softened on the tip of his tongue, bringing more of a smile to his lips at the familiarity of her. “Yeah, it has been what, god… almost two years?” Maybe not quite but things had gotten bad by the end of his marriage that he knew he’d lost track of time and everything else. “I’d ask how you’ve been except that you seem to be locked out of your car. Do you want me to look at it?”

“More like last Thanksgiving but, ya know, who has the time or energy to keep track of things like that,” Hannah teased, not intending to make him feel bad about being so far off. Awkwardly, she cleared her throat and took a deep breath in, “Yeah- it’s been quite a day so far,” she ruffled a hand through her hair and looked back towards her dad’s old truck, “I was goin’ to just call the locksmith but you’re welcome to give it a shot. Just do me a favor and don’t tell Harper I did this. She’ll never let me hear the end of it.”

Somehow Harper had talked him into reaching town, give it a chance or something like that had been what she told him with a small list of errands and things to pick up for dinner in his pocket as he did his best to avoid seeing anyone he might know. Or so he tried, but it seemed that everywhere he looked was someone familiar. It left him standing awkwardly on the sidewalk while waiting for the store to empty out before he went inside, when he heard someone call out to him. “Me?” He questioned as he turned slowly, not recognizing the person at first before he replied. “You can borrow it, but I don’t need a coffee,” he told them while fishing the phone from his pocket.

“Yes, thank you!” Hannah replied excitedly, her hand raised up to prevent the sun from blinding her as she approached the sidewalk. “Stupid me locked my keys and my phone in the--” she paused once she finally caught sight of Indy’s face, her hand dropping to her side as the buildings behind him blocked the sun, “--it’s you.” Harper had mentioned that he was moving back to town and given the reasoning as to why, Hannah hadn’t wanted to appear too eager to see him. “Hey,” she smiled softly, momentarily forgetting about the need to borrow his phone, “Long time no see.”

“You know, you’re the first person today who I’ve asked that has offered to help me search?” Harper had been on the hunt nearly the entire day and hadn’t seen even so much as a feather of the wayward swan. “The Meyers decided to get a swan attraction for their vineyard. Saw some famous person on TV with one, and decided they needed one right now.”

“Wait, how is that not the weirdest thing you’ve been asked today. What did you get sent?”

“I’m shocked you didn’t come to me first,” Hannah said honestly. “Figures. Do you happen to know if they purchased only one swan? They should really be bought in pairs. I read a study once that a single swan can die from heartbreak without a partner. If they got just the one, it’s probably wandered off in search of a mate.” Being a veterinarian, Hannah was full of random animal facts. “If you really want to know, I had to amputate a cat’s tail today. The owner asked me to perform a private cremation ceremony for the tail... so, like I said, not the weirdest thing I’ve been asked today.”