Page 139 of Trust No One

“How do you know?”

“We saw Amy at the store. Mommy said hi to her.”

Over the child’s head, I met Judson’s gaze. If he was surprised, he didn’t show it. “I didn’t know that.”

Her feet swung back and forth. “Mommy invited Amy here.”

“To Hale House?” I tore a bagel in half as if I weren’t totally focused on her answers.

“Yeah.”

I bit into the bagel. Chewed. “Was that before or after the zoo?”

Her brow knotted. “Last week.”

“Really?” he said.

“We had tea and cookies.”

My smile was forced. “You remember everything.”

“It’s amazing,” Judson said.

“Can I watch TV?” Molly asked.

“Sure. For a little while,” I said. “Then we’ll go out?”

“Where?”

I had no idea. But I knew sitting in this house in front of a television wasn’t super healthy.

Molly hopped off her stool and dashed into the living room.

“Do you need help with the TV?” I asked.

“Noooo. It’s easy.”

When the TV clicked on, I said, “I’ve been told a lot of screen time isn’t good.”

“One step at a time,” Judson said.

I lowered my voice. “Where did you get that picture of Amy, Gabe, and Molly?”

“On Amy’s nightstand. Framed.”

“She saw them as her family.” Angry, I took a deep breath. “Maria would’ve fought it all the way.”

“Why bring Amy here? Amy suspected Maria was stalking her.”

“Tea and cookies.” I shook my head. “A real invitation to Hale House might’ve been hard to resist.”

We stood in silence. How could people we’d known so well have ended up strangers? “How did Amy die?”

He drew in a breath. “Possible ingestion of cyanide.”

“All three? The same poison?”

“Yeah.”