The destination of the path remained a burning mystery, but Tammy innocently tossed fuel on the flames with a chance comment one day while they were watching television. The topic on Sesame Street was professions, which was the perfect opportunity for Lisa to ask her what Giddon did to earn a living.
Tammy eyed her suspiciously. "Gramma doesn't want I tell."
Lisa's heart lurched painfully. "Why not?"
Tammy shrugged her tiny shoulders, the large blue eyes imploring her not to pry.
It was one thing to ask casual questions of Giddon's daughter. It was quite another to trick her into betraying her father. Lisa let the matter drop, but she began to pay more attention to the activities around the house - like the shiny black car that sometimes came up the driveway and followed the path back into the woods without stopping at the house. About thirty minutes later it would return and leave the way it had come. When Lisa questioned Sarah about the car, she passed it off as a friend of Giddon's, and quickly changed the subject.
What was down that path that no one wanted to talk about, and why did Giddon insist that his houseguest should not wander around alone? What did Giddon do to afford such finery? And most important of all, was she or Giddon's family in any danger?
The questions plagued her until one evening when the black car returned. Sarah and Tammy were putting up groceries when Lisa announced she was going to take a walk. Sarah apparently hadn't noticed the car. She smiled and waved a hand in dismissal. "Go ahead. We can handle this job by ourselves."
Lisa started down the driveway as if heading for the road, but once she was out of sight of the house, she circled around through the woods and made her way back to the path. She stayed in the brush beside the trail, as she had done in her dream. Only this time the path remained clear. As the path turned, the broad side of a metal building came into view, nestled at the foot of a cliff. She squatted behind a screen of brush and watched.
The black car sat outside the building with its trunk open. After a while Giddon and the driver emerged from the building. Giddon was carrying a wooden box, which he carefully placed in the trunk. The driver handed him an envelope and hopped into the car. Lisa drew further back into the brush as the car drove by.
Giddon went back into the building and Lisa made her way through the darkening woods to the spot in the drive where she had entered. She brushed leaves from her clothes and slowly walked up the drive. There might be a thousand explanations for what she had witnessed, but only one came to mind. Was Giddon involved in a drug ring? Why else would he be so concerned about her excursions in the woods? Had Allen been here to make a drug deal with Giddon? Was that why Giddon had been so angry? What other reason would there be for telling his daughter not to discuss his occupation? Surely Sarah and Tammy weren't involved, but did they know? She caught her breath as another thought struck her. What would Giddon do if he found out she had witnessed his connection?