Three honks in rapid sequence signaled Derek's arrival. Jordan looked outside to see a lime-green Volkswagen Beetle pull up by the mailbox. Of course, that's what Derek drove. It made perfect sense.

Quickly, Jordan grabbed his backpack—containing laptop, notepad, and recorder—which he'd put in the hallway to be ready to leave as soon as Derek got there. His mom had arrived home since the call and he worried that if Derek entered the house she would insist on inviting him for coffee and chitchat. Which would take away from valuable interview time. He also was scared his mom's well-meaning but sometimes intrusive demeanor would frighten Derek, even if his friend didn't seem to shy away from socialization.

"That's my friend," Jordan announced toward the kitchen where his mom was prepping dinner. Kiki was probably in there as well, plotting another food-stealing scheme. "I'm heading out to do a podcast thing with him. I'm not sure when I will be back."

While Jordan pulled on his shoes, his mom peaked into the hallway, bearing an expression that was a mix of jubilant "Yay, my awkward son has a friend!" and suspicious "What kind of shenanigans are you up to, kid?".

"So you won't eat dinner with us then?" she asked, summarizing her emotions in a simple practical question. "Won't you get hungry?"

"No, I had some pizza pockets earlier," Jordan explained. "Oh by the way... there is one under Dad's recliner. Kiki stole it from my plate."

His mom sighed. "And neither you nor Chase could get it out of there?"

"We forgot..." Jordan mumbled. "We were gaming and wanted to finish this one level before I left."

"It would only take you a few seconds to reach under the recliner." His mom shook her head, probably wondering which kind of heathens she was raising. "Anyway, I'll deal with that, or rather, I'll make Chase clean it up. But you can't just live on pizza pockets, Jordan."

"Me and Derek will probably stop somewhere to grab food," Jordan tried, even though he and Derek hadn't discussed such a thing. "Like a burger or something."

His mom nodded, seemingly approving of the plan. "I'll still put away some leftovers if you're hungry when you get back," she concluded. "I hope you have a nice time with your friend." She patted her son's hair before returning to dinner preparations. Jordan quickly re-messed his bangs before hurrying out the door. Discovering Derek smiling at him from the front seat of the ridiculous car swept away any lingering annoyance about parental concern.

"Jordy!" Derek exclaimed, exuberant as ever, when Jordan opened the passenger door. "I was just about to go knock on the door to see if you were coming."

"I just had to exchange some words with my mom before leaving," Jordan explained while folding himself into the passenger seat. "You know... parent stuff."

"I know all about it... my mom was worried I wouldn't eat, so she packed a damn lunchbox for me." Derek nodded toward the backseat, where a Tupperware box filled with sandwiches was stashed. There was even a pack of juice boxes beside it.

"I think our moms would get along," Jordan surmised with a snicker. "Because mine was on me about not forgetting dinner."

"Well, she'd be glad to know we got sandwiches to eat!" Derek put the car in reverse to back out from the parking spot, veering precariously close to the car parked behind them. "Now let's get on the road!"

Accompanied by the soothing voice of Ira Glass—because Derek, just like Jordan, seemed to be in a habit of listening to NPR on repeat while driving—they set off on winding forest roads. Jordan held onto the ceiling handle as it turned out Derek was a... creative driver, finding openings to pass where there seemingly were none and considering the speed signs mere suggestions. It reminded Jordan of Chase's driving style in the video game they'd just played.

"So how did you find Jane?" Jordan asked, trying to distract his anxiety into productivity, and hoping perhaps Derek would drive a bit calmer if engaged in conversation. "There was no last name in the article we found."

"I decided to go through the censuses for your town again, looking for any girl of the right age called Jane. I found about twenty or so, seeing that Jane is a rather common name. If everyone was called Araminta, things would be a lot easier..." Derek released the gas pedal as he spoke, landing at a comfortable speed right above the limit. Jordan exhaled.

"So how did you narrow that list down?" Jordan asked, relieved that his theory about distracting Derek had succeeded.

"I found an old map of the town," Derek explained, pushing his glasses up. "I used that to find each address where the Janes lived, checking if it was close to the barracks where Esmeralda and Araminta resided. Since it was told in the article that they played together every day, I figured Jane had to live nearby. That method left me with three Janes remaining."

"And how do you know the one we're going to now is the right one?"

"Because I found them all in current archives. It was a bit tricky, as two of them had changed their last name upon marriage but the research only took me a few hours tops."

"You shouldn't spend so much time on my project..." Jordan protested meekly.

Derek shrugged. "I enjoy the work," he assured Jordan. "I'm kind of bored with butterflies at this point and it's more fun to work on stuff together anyway. Like maybe we could cooperate on stuff in the future. To share the burden of research and editing. Create a podcast together or something. You already got the listeners and I..." Derek hesitated, perhaps unsure of what he brought to the equation.

"You got the enthusiasm," Jordan assured him. "And a hell of a lot more research skills than I do."

"I guess I've found my superpower! Archive Man to the rescue!" Derek held his hand in the air in a Superman pose, making the car drift dangerously close to the curb.

"Watch out!" Jordan exclaimed, gesturing toward the side of the road.

Derek put his hands back on the steering wheel, guiding the car back to between the white lines. "See, we already work well together," he noted.

"We do make a good team," Jordan agreed, wondering if it would be rude to ask if he could drive on the way back. But any concerns about Derek's recklessness behind the wheel disappeared when Derek looked over with a cheeky smile on his lips. Jordan's insides erupted into a flurry of butterflies. His hold on the handle above tightened, and this time it wasn't because of Derek's mad driving but rather an attempt to center himself.

"Well, I hope I can prove my worth for our partnership today," Derek continued, turning his eyes back on the road. The butterflies settled, for now. "As to how I found Jane. Well, I simply called the different Janes. One of them had passed away a few years ago but the other two were still alive. After talking to the first one, I could rule her out quite quickly since it became clear her family had already moved out of state when the two girls were found. So that only left me with one Jane..."

"How do you know she is the one though?"

"I talked to her daughter. I actually called today to verify. Because I know ruling everyone else out doesn't automatically make her the right girl. But the daughter confirmed the story. She said her mother used to tell her kids tales of two girls magically springing from the woods. Although she didn't realize until now how much truth there was to those stories until I called."

"So why was it so urgent for us to talk to Jane today?"

Derek looked toward Jordan, the low sunlight twinkling in his eyes. "Perhaps I just wanted to see you as soon as possible..."

Jordan wasn't quite sure what to reply. His heart was beating too rapidly for him to focus.

"I'm kidding," Derek assured Jordan, although the twinkle remained in his eyes. "Well mostly at least. I do like seeing you, of course, but there is another reason too. Jane's daughter told me she isn't in the best of health. She forgets stuff and her vision is poor. So that's why her daughter is up here, helping her pack her stuff to move down south to be closer to family. They're leaving in a few days, so I wanted to make sure we talked to Jane before then."

"If her memory is faltering, do you think she will remember what happened eighty years ago?"

"Hopefully. The daughter said her mother still likes to talk about her childhood. Jane may not remember where she put her keys but she remembers exactly what all her friends while growing up were called. So I think that's promising at least."

Jordan nodded, hoping that Derek was right. Because if Jane didn't remember, no one would. And then, he may never find Araminta. Peering out the window, Jordan allowed himself to consider the possibility that all his work had been for naught. So far, he'd been running from one clue to the next, but what happened once the clues ran out? He may find himself standing at a dead end, with no paths left to wander, and with Araminta still beyond reach.

The journey continued on winding roads surrounded by misty forests and shimmering lakes. They weren't far from Jordan's hometown but he had never visited this neck of the woods before. The forest appeared to get thicker and thicker the further they ventured, creating a cove of lush green that made the rest of the world disappear. There and then, there was only Jordan and Derek, caught in a bubble of greenery and birdsong. The evening bore a golden tone, prompted by descending darker clouds upon a low sun, which brought out the mischievous twinkle in Derek's eyes.

A soft brush against his hand made a jolt of heat cascade through Jordan's body. Was that Derek's hand? All air escaped Jordan's lungs as he braved to look down at the space between them... only to realize that Derek had just applied the parking brake, accidentally touching Jordan's hand in the process.

"I guess we're here," Derek said, nodding toward the windscreen.

Jordan looked up, only now noticing that the car had stopped. In front of them was an old ornate gate with rusty twirling metal bars overgrown with ivy.

"Are you sure this is the right place?" Jordan asked, moving his hand from beside the parking brake to cover for his overblown reaction to the light touch. "The gate looks locked so I'm not sure we can continue further."

"According to the directions I received from Jane's daughter, this is it," Derek replied, seemingly not noticing Jordan's flustered state. "Let me see if she sent any information about the gate."

Before Derek was able to unlock his phone, the gate creaked and then swung open. Jordan surveyed the high brick walls beside it, looking unsuccessfully for a camera that may have alerted someone of our arrival. Although it could be lurking beneath the vines of ivy climbing the crumbling bricks.

"Looks like that problem solved itself!" Derek exclaimed, reaching for the parking brake and putting the car into gear.

A churning sensation of unease took hold in Jordan's belly as they traveled up a driveway with overgrown bushes and colorful wildflowers on both sides. The garden was probably orderly once upon a time but nature had reclaimed it at this point.

The gate closed behind them with a loud metallic klonk, doing nothing to alleviate Jordan's brewing dread. It was as if he knew that what he was about to find out would change everything.