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“I should go to bed,” she said, pushing back from the table and taking her plate to the sink to rinse it. “Sam wants me there at eight. He says he’s a morning person.”
Luckily, she didn’t have a preference as long as she managed a few hours of sleep, something she wasn’t too sure about tonight, despite her heavy fatigue. She hadn’t slept well last night either, too nervous about her interview.
“You didn’t eat much,” Brian protested, his face creased with concern.
“I’m not hungry.”
She stood, picked up the binder, and headed for the guest room. Behind her, she heard Tara whisper something to Brian, and Brian’s low, reassuring response. She didn’t turn around. She couldn’t.
The guest room was exactly as she’d left it that morning. The bed was unmade, clothes piled on the chair, and the laptop open on the desk. Alli set the binder down next to it and sat on the edge of the bed.
She lay back and stared at the ceiling. Outside, a car passed, its headlights sweeping across the wall. Somewhere in the house, a faucet turned on, then off. The world kept moving, even though Leigh Gabler was dead and Sam Winslow was grieving, and Allison Crenshaw was starting a job she’d never applied for.
Not to mention the open question as to whether she could even do that job.
She didn’t know if she’d made the right choice to accept, but her bank balance had done the talking for her today. She didn’t know if she would last a week or even a day. But she knew she would go back tomorrow, because what else could she do?
The world didn’t stop because bad things happened.
The hospital corridor lights were so bright that they made Sam’s headache throb in his temples. That hospital smell didn’t help, either; the heavy aroma of disinfectant was almost burning his nostrils.
He didn’t want to be there. He didn’t want to see his father, even though he knew he should. He didn’t want to rehash the day with his siblings, reliving finding Leigh’s body all over again, but they deserved to know the updates since he’d talked to Frankie this morning.
Not that there was much to say. Finn was leaning toward a robbery gone wrong, which made the most sense. Her wallet and phone were gone, after all.
But it didn’t explain why she was moved to her vehicle. That fact still bugged him. If he’d accidentally killed someone, he wouldn’t hang around to move the body to a second location.
Even his new assistant seemed to have doubts, too.
To be honest, he was wondering whether he’d been unfair to his new employee. She appeared to be competent enough, but he’d handed her a near-impossible assignment. She was going to be compared to Leigh, no matter how good she was at her job. She was obviously a nice person, and he didn’t want to be the reason she was miserable at work.
His siblings were clustered in the hallway, their voices low enough that he couldn’t hear what they were saying as he approached. Frankie’s head whipped around when she caught a glimpse of him, nudging Cooper’s shoulder, who appeared to be deep in discussion with Zack.
As usual, Aunt Kim stood at the fringes, not really part of the group but not separate either.
“You spoke with Finn?” Cooper asked. “Anything new that we don’t know?”
“Nothing has really changed,” Sam replied. “Finn thinks Leigh was being robbed, and it all went sideways. There are signs of a struggle at the crime scene and on the body.”
The body. A strange way to describe someone he’d known pretty much his entire life.
“Shit,” Cooper said, his expression tight. “This world is so fucking cruel. She was a good woman. One of the best.”
“Was she alone?” Tate asked. “She didn’t leave with the other employees?”
“Last night she worked late. Told me she wanted to get some spreadsheets done before she left.”
Piper’s face was streaked with the remnants of her mascara, but she didn’t wipe it away.
“She always remembered everyone’s birthday. Even the dog’s. Did you know she sent a card to Olive every year?”
Cooper smiled and chuckled, nodding in agreement.
“I still get one for my imaginary dog. Not even kidding. Addressed to ‘Waffles.’”
Zack’s eyes stayed fixed on the floor, not saying a word.
“You okay?” Frankie finally asked.
