“Arrested? Are you sure?”
Her eyes were glazed. “Ashford was notified by military police from where Grayden’s stationed. They say Grayden killed another soldier in a bar fight on the base. That’s all we know so far.” She choked out the words, “But he confessed.”
I was shocked speechless.
This couldn’t be real.
“There might’ve been some mistake,” I said, my pulse racing. “Or there’s a reason. Like self defense. Teller probably knows important people as a Green Beret. Maybe he can help.”
But if Grayden had confessed, did that mean he was guilty?
Something vicious clamped around my chest and squeezed.
Grace put her head on my shoulder. “What if he doesn’t ever come back to us? Why does this keep happening? Everyone leaves, and they don’t come back. My mom, my dad…”
“I don’t know why, G,” I murmured, hugging her again. “But we have to stay positive. It could all turn out okay.”
Yet even as I said them, my words rang hollow.
I thought of Grayden’s sad, serious dark eyes. The brave tilt of his chin in that photo of him in uniform.
Grayden was a good man. I knew it down to my bones. But what if that wasn’t enough?
Maybe a good man could still fall so far he wouldn’t make it home.
ONE
Piper
Now
I steppedout of the warmth of my house and into the chill, not bothering with a coat. Outside, the air held the kind of quiet that comes only before a heavy snowfall or on a winter holiday.
Today, it was both. But Ollie was out here, and usually the wordquietwasn’t found anywhere near my nine-year-old.
Two legs dangled from the hole in the treehouse platform. “Ollie-bear?”
No answer.
The wooden ladder creaked as I climbed. The sky hung white and heavy above our heads, and the air smelled of wood smoke. It was going to snow again later. I could feel it in my chest, the way the cold seemed to press down on everything.
Yet it was a comfortable feeling. Familiar and nostalgic, making me think of hot cocoa and a roaring fire.
My head popped up through the opening in the platform, and I rested my arms on the weathered wood. “Hey, bud.”
Ollie looked at me with those big hazel eyes. “Mom, I don’t think he’s coming.”
Ugh, my heart.
Reaching over, I playfully tugged at his jacket. He’d been sitting out here for two hours, and the thing wasn’t even zipped up. Usually, Ollie would be moving too fast for me to worry about him getting cold. The kid had energy that could power half the town.
It was disconcerting to see him sitting so still.
“That means you get to come to Thanksgiving at Aunt Grace’s house with me. We’re going to eat so much. You know how delicious her gravy is. I’m going to have thirds. You’ll have to roll me out the door.”
He shrugged, no sign of a smile yet.
“Uncle Callum said he and Zandra are making a special pumpkin pie. If you’re really nice, Imightbe able to convince him to sneak you a slice before dinner.”
