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“As soon as the doctors give us the go-ahead. But you’re getting better every day. I promise.” Compassionate lying. God forgive me.

“Okay.” He let me hug him and then he kissed my cheek, his stubble scratching my delicate skin. James came back out. I told my father I loved him. He didn’t say it back.

I passed by Char’s office on the way back to the parking lot. She was on the phone but held a finger up, gesturing for me to wait. Char wrapped up her call and folded her hands in front of her.

“Thanks for stopping. Did you have an update on your dad’s account?”

I stiffened. He was almost maxed out on his long-term care insurance benefits. I was about to owe them three thousand dollars a month. She read my body language before I could think of a reply.

“Did you speak to your siblings?” she said. “I can put together some options in case we get to that point.”

Char smiled. She wouldn’t comment on my family dynamics, but we both knew the truth. I was the only one who showed up here.

“Thanks,” I said, rising.

I got to my car and slid into the driver’s seat. Rolling up my window, I screamed into the steering wheel. A few yards away, two women turned to gawk at me. I raised a middle finger and they hustled away.

I took my phone out of my purse, intending to call Sylvie and rip into her. But my phone rang with an incoming call. It was a Benton County government number. Feeling acid in my lungs, I answered.

“Ms. Egan? This is Detective Roy Dennison. Do you have a minute to talk?”

I swallowed hard. “I do.”

“Great. I won’t keep you. We’re making some progress in the investigation. I just wanted to know what your availability is for the next week or so.”

“I’m… uh… I’m not going anywhere.”

“Okay. I’m hoping to have you come in to look at a photo array.”

“What is that?”

“We have some pictures. Possible suspects. If you’d be willing to take a look and see if any of them look familiar to you.”

“You found him? You found Matt Woodson?” I wondered if I’d overdone it in my surprise. But I swallowed my concerns, knowing this was the only way.

TEN

MINA

“Defendant’s motion to suppress is denied.” Judge Elena Clarke banged her gavel and gathered her paperwork. Before she left the bench, she gave me a wide-eyed glare. I knew what it meant. I had won today, but only by the skin of my teeth. At thirty-two, Elena was one of the youngest judges in the state. Like Lock, her last name carried weight in this county. Her father had served as Chief Judge for thirty years before retiring two years ago, making way for Elena’s appointment. Last November, she won her seat outright in a hotly contested election that still garnered hard feelings from her opponent, Vic Jaffe, whose client, Shawn Cummings, was now whispering obscenities to him in anger.

“Mr. Cummings?” Judge Clarke said. “Would you like me to add contempt of court to your list?”

“No, Your Honor,” Jaffe said. He curled his fingers around Cummings’s upper arm and dragged him out of the courtroom.

When Cummings and Jaffe were safely gone, Elena caught my eye. “May I see you in chambers, Ms. Sobel?”

I gathered my things and followed her through the door to her chambers. Elena tore off her robes and hung them on a coat rack beside her desk. She wore a red-and-white polka-dot sleeveless dress. Her fashion choices were bold for this county. But I respected her style.

“Have a seat,” she said. She had a mass of thick red hair, which she wore piled on top of her head. Rumor had it her father had suggested she put some gray streaks in it to give her more gravitas. She wisely ignored him and let her judicial talent speak for her. I’d found her fair, efficient, and in complete command of her courtroom.

“You wanna talk about it?” she asked me.

I smiled. “Is it that obvious?”

“You’re preoccupied with something.”

“Did I do something wrong in there?” Her observation took me off guard. She wasn’t wrong, but I didn’t want to tell her everything that had been swimming in my mind since I put down the negative pregnancy test and kissed Lock goodnight.