Faith nodded and left through the kitchen. The room fell quiet.
Amy smiled. “Wow. She’s a ball of energy, isn’t she? I’m not sure if I’ll ever get used to her enthusiasm. She’s such a sweetheart, though. She was a lifesaver for me when I first came to Providence. The girls love her.”
“How long have you lived in Providence?”
“About ten months. My car broke down as I passed through in the middle of the night last August.”
Passed through?This wasn’t Amy’s home.
“Why were you driving in the middle of the night?”
Amy chewed on her bottom lip. “I was... running away... from a bad situation.”
Emily noted Amy’s reticence to talk about herself. Was she shy? Or did she not want to talk about the situation she’d run from?
“I guess we kind of have that in common.” Emily frowned, and her brow creased. “Except I don’t know what I was running from. Technically, I wasn’t running... by choice.”
“I wasn’t running from anything as serious as what you are going through.” Amy bit her bottom lip again.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I was only trying to make conversation. I’m afraid I can’t share much information about myself, so it makes the conversation one-sided.” Emily gave her an apologetic smile.
“It’s okay.” Amy shrugged. “I don’t really like talking about myself. I didn’t exactly have a normal, happy childhood.” Amy paused then seemed to shift gears. “Kallie’s father was... unfaithful and abusive when he drank.” Amy fingered the hem of her shirt and gave what looked like a forced smile. “I left with Kallie in the middle of the night after catching him with—” Amy bit off her words. “When I decided I’d had enough.”
“It takes a lot of courage to leave an abusive relationship.”
“If I’d truly been courageous, I would have left a lot sooner.”
“The important thing is you got out.” Emily gave her a confused look. “You took only Kallie? Aren’t both girls yours?”
“No, Cassey is Ben’s daughter from his first marriage.”
Again, Amy bit her lip, as though reluctant to share information about Ben’s first wife.
Curiosity got the better of Emily. “Is Ben divorced?”
“No, his wife died in a car accident a little over a year and a half ago.”
Died in a car accident.
The words echoed in Emily’s mind. Icy fingers gripped her heart as she remembered opening her door to find two police officers on her doorstep. “Oh no.”
Her heart sank. She knew why they were there. She didn’t know what had happened, or to whom, but she knew they had bad news. It was always bad news. That’s the only reason police officers show up on doorsteps late at night.
“Are you Emily Anderson?” the older officer asked. Emily nodded. “The daughter of Adam Anderson?”
Something had happened to her father. But how? She’d seen him last night when she’d gone out to dinner with him and her brother to celebrate Cameron’s birthday.
“What happened?” she choked out.
“I’m afraid he died in a car accident,” the officer said, his eyes full of sympathy. “He fell asleep at the wheel and drove off the road, down a steep embankment. I’m sorry.”
“You’re sure it was my father?” Emily’s voice caught on a sob. “And you’re sure he’s dead?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m terribly sorry.”
The officers’ faces swam in front of her as her legs gave way. She would have sunk to the floor if it hadn’t been for the officers’ quick reflexes. They caught her and guided her to the sofa.
“Emily.” A hand touched her arm. “Are you okay?”
