Before the police arrived.
He said Daniel told him there’d been an accident and to keep his mouth shut.” Ava’s voice was flat.
“Marcus hung up on him.
But he never came forward either.”
I sat back down at the table.
Marcus.
I had known Marcus for fifteen years.
He came to Christmas dinner.
He’d stood at Chloe’s graveside with his hat in his hands and wept.
And he had known.
“Do you still have his number?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t call him yet.” I pressed my fingers to my temple.
“If Daniel suspects something, the first thing he’ll do is call Marcus.
We can’t warn him that we’re coming.”
Ava nodded slowly.
“So what do we do?”
“Tonight, nothing.
We act normal.
You help me clean up the glass.
We eat dinner.
When Daniel comes home, we are fine.
Both of us.” I looked at her directly.
“Can you do that?”
Her jaw was tight.
“I’ve been doing it for five years.”
The words landed like a stone in still water.
