“What did he say?”
“He said I could talk to him about anything.
He was checking whether I’d told her.” Ava nodded toward me.
“He does that.
He asks soft questions and watches your face.”
“Then we move tonight.” Patricia stood.
“Go home.
Make dinner.
I’ll call you by eight.”Food & Drink
We drove home in near silence.
Ava stared out the passenger window.
I kept both hands on the wheel and thought about the first year after Chloe’s passing — how Daniel had held me while I cried, how he had spoken at her memorial, how he had said her name like it cost him something.
All of it performance.Self-Help & Motivational
Every tear a calculation.
Daniel was home when we arrived, earlier than usual.
He was in the kitchen, and he had already started dinner.
Pasta.pasta
He was stirring the sauce when we walked in.Dictionaries & Encyclopedias
“Thought I’d cook tonight,” he said.
He smiled at me.
Then he looked at Ava.
“How was your day?”
“Fine,” she said.
“I went for a drive.Dry Pasta & Noodles
Cleared my head.”
“Good.” He turned back to the stove.
“That’s good.”
I set my bag down and went upstairs to change.
In the bedroom, I checked my phone.Communications Equipment
No message from Patricia yet.
I changed my clothes and went back down.
We ate dinner.
Daniel talked about the news, about a road closure near his office, about whether we should repaint the back fence before winter.
I answered everything.Communications & Media Studies
Ava answered everything.
The pasta was good.
I told him so.
After dinner, he poured himself a whiskey and settled into his chair.
At 8:12, my phone buzzed in my pocket.Food & Drink
I stood up and said I was going to check on the laundry.
In the hallway, I read Patricia’s message.
*Detective Reyes will be at your home tomorrow at 10 a.m.
Do not tell Daniel.
If he leaves the house before then, call me immediately.*Dry Pasta & Noodles
I put the phone back in my pocket and walked back into the living room.
Daniel looked up.
“Everything okay?”
“Laundry’s done,” I said, and sat back down.
He looked at me for just a moment longer than necessary.Communications Equipment
Then he looked back at the television.
