seemed to blow out the cobwebs, the seasoned scent of fallen leaves and sweet

grass reminding her of being a kid again. She had to decide whether that was good or bad, and it sobered her.

She could see white tank towers peeking over the trees.

“I suppose you come out here a lot?” she asked.

He shrugged, wheeling the car onto an access road. “Every so often. Two or

three times a year for field trips. Got one coming up in a few weeks, I think.”

The Mustang slowed as it reached the entrance to Nitrovex. The old stone-

and-brick sign was still there, but the plant now stretched down the road. They

drove past warehouses and a row of metal factory buildings with sequential numbers painted on the sides, all the way up to six.

“Wow. I think when I left there were only two plants,” she said as Peter pulled into the large front lot. She'd visited her parents here, but that was just to their offices in a building which wasn't even here anymore. Nothing looked familiar.

“Yeah, it's definitely grown. Went international about six years ago and from

what I understand, it's doing well. Some plants in Europe, one in Asia.” The car

had stopped and was idling. “Guess that's why you're here, huh?”

“Guess so.” The weight of this project was hitting her again. Not only was

this place a lot bigger than she remembered, but the piles of pill-shaped holding

tanks and a maze of tangled pipes reminded her of how out of her depth she was

with all this science stuff. She had read all their materials and almost memorized the Nitrovex website, but seeing it now…it seemed impossible.

Peter must have seen her staring. “I know, impressive, right?” He turned off

the engine and opened his door.

Kate did the same, struggling slightly to push up out of the low-slung car.

She pointed. “That building is new, right?”

“Yup. That's the new reception and office building.”

A clean, bright two-story building of aluminum and brick stood out from the

dirtier work-oriented buildings around it.

Peter touched her arm and began to walk. “C'mon. The offices are closed,

but you can at least look around.”

She glanced back at the car. “Shouldn't you lock it?”

He looked back, chuckling. “In Golden Grove? You have been gone a while.”

* * *

They spent the half hour or so walking the grounds around the office building before heading back to the car. Then they slowly drove down the row of giant steel-sided factory buildings while Peter explained the purpose of each one.

Anti-foaming agents, corn oil, chemical synthesis. All things she had read about

and was still trying to grasp. It seemed like a first language to Peter though.

She was enjoying watching him ramble on about polymer-something-or-

other and reaction chemistry. He was oblivious that she had absolutely no clue what he was talking about. He seemed as excited about chemistry as he had been

about getting some new Star Wars toy when they were kids. His eyes were flashing, his crooked smile frequent.

“Well, what do you think?” Peter asked as they walked back to the car.

“I think I'm in over my head.”

“Oh, you'll be fine. You don't need to know all of the science stuff, anyway,

right?”

She frowned. “I suppose not. I mostly need to get the feel of what direction

the company is going. Then I'll have to come up with some preliminary designs

and strategies, present them to my group back home for approval before we make the proposal to Nitrovex.”

Which she had only done before for small businesses. Never for a company

this large.

Peter reached the Mustang first and held the passenger door for her this time.

“Want to take the scenic way home? You're probably a little curious how the rest

of the town has changed.”

Was she? But he didn't wait for an answer. A minute later, the car roared back to life, and he was pulling out of the Nitrovex lot.

They took a turn on a new road, which led towards the west edge of town.

The car slowed and made another turn. It looked familiar…