Piston Bound
On a grey Rusthollow morning, a compact with a dying transmission rolls into the forecourt of Kint and Sons garage, the first arrival of twenty that will change everything Mara Kint thought she understood about her family's failing business. Gus, the circuit clerk, has been sitting on an overturned bucket since before dawn, nursing cold tea from a tin cup, waiting for the world to bring him something he can fix. But the broken compact that crests Mill Road is only the beginning. Across twenty chapters and twenty arrivals, a tow truck named Sally who knows every backroad in the county; a VW Rabbit with something to prove; Dunlo carrying a quiet grief; Barnaby's stubborn return; Rico Fassel running from a debt he can't name; Yuki Tanaka searching for a second chance she hasn't earned; and Dara Vantaren, finally driving back to the town she swore she'd escaped, Mara must decide whether a single garage can hold more than engines. Each customer brings more than a malfunction. Each repair costs something no invoice can cover. And when the last engine of the season finally turns over, Kint and Sons, and Rusthollow itself, will either run again or fall silent. Mara can keep the wrench in her hand or set it down. Either way, the door will open again tomorrow.