Page 72 of Veil of Silence

Wren tried to hide her smile and failed. “Nash is coming home today.”

“There it is.” Marlowe leaned back in her chair. “You’ve been annoyingly cheerful ever since he texted.”

“I’m allowed to be happy my boyfriend is coming home.”

“Of course, you are.” Marlowe took a sip through her straw. “Just don’t become one of those people who mentions him every four minutes.”

“I don’t do that.”

Nora exchanged a look with Marlowe. “You do it a little.”

Wren pointed at both of them. “You two are terrible.”

The teasing loosened something inside Nora. She hadn’t realized how badly she needed a few minutes in which none of them talked about missing boys, dead investigators, or Christian.

Wren told them how Bo had stolen her orange search vest that morning and dragged it beneath Mason’s bed. Marlowe followed with a story about a customer at the restaurant who had sent back his pancakes because they were too round.

Nora laughed harder than either story deserved.

Then Wren stirred the whipped cream into her drink. “You should have seen Mom and Dad yesterday.”

Marlowe groaned. “Not this again.”

Nora glanced between them. “What did I miss?”

“I stopped by to check on Christian,” Wren said. “Mom and Dad were standing at the kitchen sink giggling.”

“Actually giggling,” Marlowe added, as if she had witnessed it herself.

Wren gave her a look. “You weren’t even there!”

“I’ve heard enough to be disturbed,” she said dryly.

Wren ignored her. “Anyway, Dad said something to Mom, and she smacked his arm. Then he kissed her cheek.”

Nora soaked in all that information. Were her parents . . . getting back together? She wasn’t sure how she’d feel about that if it happened.

Everyone seemed to be moving forward too quickly when there were still so many uncertainties . . .

Marlowe shuddered, apparently still stuck on the image of her mom and dad giggling. “I’m glad I missed it.”

“You’re both ridiculous.” Nora smiled into her coffee, grateful—despite everything—for the moment of levity.

“Maybe.” Wren’s expression softened. “But they seem happy.”

That quieted all three of them. After everything their parents had been through, happiness still felt fragile enough that no one wanted to examine it too closely.

Nora ran her thumb over the handle of her mug. She could have let the silence last. Part of her wanted to, but she’d promised Wren she would stop deciding what her sisters could or couldn’t handle.

She cleared her throat. “Before we leave, there are some things I need to tell you.”

Marlowe’s gaze sharpened. “That sounds ominous.”

“I know.” Nora held her sister’s eyes. “There are some things I probably should have told you sooner.”

Some of the edge left Marlowe’s expression, though it didn’t disappear entirely. “Okay . . .”

Nora told them that other touring groups had received the same unexplained payments their family had.