Immediately, relief filled me. “Aria, it’s Liam. Hey, listen. Has Joe told you anything else about William?” “You still haven’t heard from William or Sophia?” she asked. “No.” She made a worried hum. “No, Joe hasn’t said anything more, Liam. But I can ask him tonight when I get home.” “If
Aria’s POV After pushing the doorbell for the third time, I knocked on the door to Sophia’s house instead. “Mom…” Joe sounded nervous. Maybe we should leave. I could call the police and have them do a wellness check rather than have us out here, possibly endangering ourselves. Turning to Joe,
“All this time, he has been lying to you,” she said. She walked toward me the way a cat would towards its prey. When she was close enough, she held out the letter for me. “What’s this?” I asked. “Proof,” Sophia said, without any clarification. Reaching up, I accepted the letter and then opened
Aria’s POV Back at home, I paced back and forth in the kitchen. Joe was out in the living room, finishing his homework with the television on. I didn’t have the heart to force him to focus, not when I wanted to make certain he wouldn’t overhear this conversation. Isabella sat on one of the kitch
Aria’s POV After Liam had gone, Isabella left Joe to play in his room while she came down to talk to me. “I know you are already thinking of moving, but before you do anything drastic, why don’t you and Joe just come to stay with me for a while?” she offered. “You’d be out of the house but still
So much pain. I pulled Joe into a tight hug. “Me, too, honey,” I told him. “But some things just aren’t meant to be.” Joe lowered his head onto my shoulder, and mother and son, we clung to each other as we would to a life raft, if we were adrift out on the ocean. “It’s going to be okay,” I tol
Liam’s POV The next morning, as I walked into the office, I carried with me a confusing mixture of different feelings. It was nice to be on good terms with Sophia and William, though I still felt like they both were hiding things from me. Sophia seemed determined to act like everything was fine, a
Liam’s POV “Be serious, Sophia.” “You think I’m not serious?” Her voice carried a harsh edge, but even that, I’d heard before. She was ever the kind who cried wolf, but never actually meant it. “Just put your clothes back on and take a nap,” I said. “Maybe eat something.” “I’m not a child, L
Joe remembered all the lessons about stranger danger. He knew they shouldn’t accept things from people that they didn’t know or trust.Even accepting this pie was probably a bad idea, though Joe thought that so long as they stayed in the diner, it would be okay.He kept glancing at the door.William
Aria’s POVIn our search for the children, we traveled along the roads to the park. There, I searched the kids’ favorite play areas: behind the slide, around the swings, near the seesaws and the jungle gym.William and Joe were nowhere to be found. Likewise, I saw no evidence that they had been here
Joe’s POVWhen William told Joe he was leaving, Joe knew he couldn’t let William go alone. The world was a dangerous place, and William was far too confident about things. Plus, with how William was talking, he sounded like he wasn’t planning on coming back.Joe hoped to convince him differently.So
Aria’s POVFor most of the day, I did my best to avoid Liam, but it was difficult. He seemed to be doing the same, giving me the space I requested, yet every once in a while, we’d find ourselves entering the same room or hallway, or going the same way toward the stairs.There was an awkward moment o
Aria’s POVBitter thoughts of Markus made me feel sick, but I pushed those dark feelings away and turned off the television again. With Markus gone, he could never hurt anyone ever again. He couldn’t haunt or stalk us.Liam might have already made his choice, but at least the children and I would be
Liam’s POV“Isabelle, I just need to talk to Aria,” I said, pleadingly. “If you just tell me where she is –”“Then you’ll continue to bother her.” Isabelle, arms crossed, glared at me in open disgust and distain. “She told me what she saw. And it makes me feel a thousand times worse, for having told
Liam’s POVI took my own car to Mr. Peters’ office. Several times on the route, I nearly turned and drove home instead, desperate to talk to Aria. Once, I stopped so long at a red light that Joanna called me on the phone.“Your father is dead, Liam. You have an obligation to him now. Aria will still
“I’m so sorry,” Isabelle said, her face downtrodden, her own make staining streaks down her face. We must have looked like quite the pair. It’d be laughable if my heart wasn’t so very heavy. “I totally misread the entire situation. When I saw that ring…”“How could you think anything but what you di
Liam’s POV“I don’t care what you think, Joanna,” I said coldly. With everything going on, now she wanted to threaten me? Didn’t she realize that without Aria, I had nothing left to lose? “With Markus gone, I have no reason to stay in this relationship.”“We had an agreement,” Joanna said. Her anger