Instead of going home, I rode right into Mackenzie’s garage and parked my bike beside her car.
“Do you know them?” I asked, pointing toward the road even though the car was no longer visible.
Mackenzie’s face paled. “I thought it was me.”
“Thought what was?”
“The car. I thought I was being paranoid. I keep seeing it, and no, I don’t know them,” she admitted.
“When did you first notice it?”
Her answer made my stomach drop. “The first time was a few days ago.”
I don’t know why I’d assumed this was the first time the car followed her, but I had, which was why her answer surprised me. “Days?”
“Yes,” she confirmed. “I saw it in the parking garage at the mall a few days ago. Then, later the same day, I saw it drive by my house, twice. And today at the grocery store.” She shrugged. “It’s probably a new neighbor, and I’m reading too much into it.”
“There’s nothing wrong with being aware of your surroundings,” I said and wondered if she had indeed seen me at the store.
“When did you notice it?” she asked.
“At the cemetery. They left right after you did.”
“What?” she whispered and covered her chest with her hand.
“Mommy! Buckle me out,” Brinkley sang from inside the car.
“Just a minute, sweetie,” Mackenzie said and turned her attention back to me. “I need to get her and the groceries inside. Would you like to come in for a cup of coffee or something to drink? I feel like we should talk about this car a little more.”
“Sounds good to me.” While she got Brinkley out of her car seat, I gathered her bags of groceries and carried them into the house behind her.
“Mommy, can Mr. Bear make goodies with us?” Brinkley asked again.
“We’ll see. How about you go find your apron while I put the groceries away.”
“Okay. Be right back.”
“The car was at the cemetery?” Mackenzie asked as soon as Brinkley was out of earshot.
“Yes,” I confirmed. “It arrived shortly after you did. No one got out, and they pulled out behind you when you left.”
“Is that why you were following me around the grocery store?”
I shrugged. “Pretty much. I didn’t want to alarm you if it was nothing, but I didn’t want to ignore it if it wasn’t.”
“Thank you,” she said. “I wouldn’t have stopped at the store with Brinkley if I’d seen them.”
“I got their tag number. Do you want me to find out who it is?” I asked, knowing I was going to regardless of her answer.
“Is that something you can do easily?” she returned.
“Very.”
“Then, yes, I’d like to know.”
“I’ll see what I can find out,” I told her and sent a text to Spazz with the tag number.
“Would you like a cup of coffee or something else to drink?”