Page 35 of Veil of Silence

Nora blinked.

Then there was nothing. Only trees shifting in the wind.

She blinked again.

Exhaustion must be playing tricks on her. That was all. She didn’t mention it. Wren already had enough reasons to be afraid without Nora frightening her over a shadow.

But the unsettled feeling remained in her stomach.

Ghosts from the past were materializing . . . she could feel the unanswered questions as if they represented danger itself.

But how could she protect her family from what she didn’t know?

Chapter

Twelve

NINE YEARS AGO

The boy had learned not to ask what day it was.

Days didn’t matter here. Morning meant the man sang in the hallway before unlocking their door. A bell marked meals and work periods. Night came when the hallway lights dimmed and someone checked every lock.

That was how time worked now.

He sat cross-legged on the floor beside Christian, both of them leaning against the cold wall between the two narrow beds. The room had no windows. Only a dresser, a lamp, and a thin strip of light beneath the door.

Christian picked at a loose thread on his sleeve. Dark hair fell into his eyes, and a yellowing bruise marked one cheek from where he’d hit the ground during their last work detail. He’d stumbled beneath the weight of a rock, and the man had ordered him to get back up.

“Do you think anyone is still looking for us?” Christian asked.

“For you.”

Christian glanced at him. “For both of us.”

“You don’t know that.”

“You don’t know they’re not.” Christian twisted the thread around one finger. “People have to be looking. It’s what they do.”

The boy wished Christian sounded as if he believed the words.

The lock turned, and both of them went quiet.

A man stepped inside carrying two plastic cups of water. He wore the same reassuring smile he always did, and the boy had come to resent it. There was nothing to smile about.

“How are my boys today?”

Neither answered as the man set the cups on the dresser and crouched in front of them.

“Still waiting for someone to rescue you, huh?” His gaze moved between them. “After all this time. How many times do I have to tell you? Everyone is okay with you being here. It’s a rite of passage.”

Christian stared at the floor.

“You don’t believe me yet,” the man continued. “But things would be easier if you stopped fighting your circumstances and just accepted them.”

Christian finally looked up. “I want to go home.”

The man’s face tightened. “We’ve discussed this.”