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I dumped the ice into the coolers and stepped back to watch.

“Daniel Palicki, thirty years old of Manchester, has been charged with one count of first-degree murder, kidnapping, misuse of a corpse, and obstruction of justice.”

“Have you recovered Gretchen Small’s body?” one of the reporters shouted.

I sank onto one of the bar stools. A mugshot of Palicki filled the screen.

“Do you recognize him?” Mina Sobel’s voice filled my head. “Take a good look.”

Hot tears filled my eyes.

“Has Mr. Palicki given a statement?” a reporter called out.

“At this time, Mr. Palicki is not cooperating with law enforcement. He is being held without bail in the Washtenaw County jail…”

I heard the back door open and clicked off the center television. PJ walked in with two bags of produce he’d picked up at the farmer’s market.

“We’re out of lemons,” I said, finding my voice again.

“Got you covered,” PJ said, setting down one of the bags.

I reached in and grabbed two bags of lemons. I found a knife under the sink and started slicing them.

“The place looks great,” PJ said.

PJ went about his chores, humming the whole time. After a few minutes, I turned the television back on. The local channels had switched to talk shows.

“PJ,” I said. My brother came out of the kitchen carrying a tray of clean Pilsner glasses. “I just wanted to tell you, you don’t have to worry about me. No matter what Sylvie told you.”

He put the glasses on the bar and started placing them in the small fridge he kept under the counter.

“I’m glad to hear that,” he said. “But if you⁠—”

“No ifs. No buts. I’m fine. I’ve got my head on straight. I promise.”

PJ stared at me for a moment. I knew my brother well enough to know he was debating how far he wanted to go with lecturing me. Finally, he let out a breath and smiled wider.

“Good. I’m glad. You know I’m here for you.”

“But I wanted to let you know, I’ll stay here until the end of the summer,” I said. “Then I’m going to find something else.”

PJ’s eyes widened. “Cor…”

“You can find someone to replace me. I need space. I need my own life.”

“Where?”

“I’ll figure all that out.”

“Cor, you don’t have to do that. Nothing has to change.”

“Everything has to change,” I said. “I need to figure some stuff out without you and Sylvie breathing down my neck all the time. I’m going to find my own place too.”

PJ pursed his lips and nodded. He had no faith I’d be able to do any of the things I said I’d do. “We can talk about all of it when the time comes. Let’s just focus on the day, okay?”

Focus on the day. I wish I could. I wish I didn’t have to constantly worry about what came next. How long before either Sylvie or PJ got angry with me? I was so tired of it.

“I need to take off for a while,” I said.