“I’m not so sure that’s a good idea,” I call back through the door. Now that I know who she is, I can see some of Steven’s features in his mother’s face, as well as their behavior. Mrs. Hayes seems demure and quiet. Though she is raising her voice to speak with me through the door, that does not s
“I can make some coffee? Or some tea?” I ask. “Oh. Tea, please. What kind do you have?” I tell her my list. Albeit it’s a shorter list, but I think I have a nice variety. Yet the more I talk, the more her nose wrinkles up. “I’m afraid to ask what kind of coffee you have.” I feel like, whatev
Looking at Mrs. Hayes as she makes vague threats against her sons, the men that I’ve come to think of as friends, my most immediate feeling is confusion. She should hate her husband. She should cherish the life she has brought into the world. Everything seems so absolutely irreconcilably ass-backw
My question meets with silence on the other end of the phone. “Beau?” I say again. My heart hammers against my ribcage. Surely someone they trust is watching Mia right now. As Beau’s silence drags on, I’m beginning to suspect that might not be the case, and my stomach feels very much like it’s g
Beau parks at the bottom of the stairs. I jump from the motorcycle before it’s even finished moving. I rush up the stairs with my helmet still on. Inside, I toss the helmet onto the couch as I run to Mia’s room. Familiar footsteps are following mine. Beau is right behind me. In the nursery, Arch
With the urgency waylaid for now, we move into the living room to be more comfortable. I have many questions, want many answers, but I’m struggling to know where even to start. It’s been a long night already, and I feel like it’s just getting started. First things first though, I ask to hold Mia.
“Eventually, we caught wise to her games. I tried to stay longest,” Neil says, because of course it’s him that did his best to appease his parents. “But eventually her behavior became so erratic, I couldn’t be sure, even if she personally called for me, that she actually wanted to see me.” The bea
After handing Mia to Steven, I chase Neil down the hallway to the front door. “You can’t mean to go out there,” I say. “These people aren’t your allies.” “Some of them are,” Neil says. “Our candidate has supporters here too.” No wonder a fight was about to break out then. “Neil.” “I apprec