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Dad came back to the doorway a minute later, carrying his keys.

Sadie stood beside me.

“Can you arrest her for ten minutes?” she asked him. “I need her to stay where I put her.”

A laugh escaped me.

“Don’t,” Chief said quietly.

Sadie looked at him.

The rest of whatever she’d been about to say stayed unsaid.

She picked up my water instead and handed it to me. “All right,” she said.

I had a strange urge to apologize to both of them.

I didn’t know what for.

Chief came home with us.

He handed Rook the keys to the Suburban in the parking lot, then got into the back of Dad’s car without making a discussion of it.

Sunshine took her own car. Sadie left in hers, following Marion to the shop before coming over.

Riot stayed behind to talk to the officers.

Dad drove. I sat beside him, holding the water bottle between my knees.

Chief was directly behind me.

For the whole drive, he didn’t say a word.

I kept looking at the road ahead, recognizing the turns. The way home was familiar. Everything was.

I had run that sidewalk before. I would run it again.

The man didn’t get to own it because he’d been standing on it when I passed.

But Chief’s silence was coming home with us.

I didn’t know what to do about that.

I showered, changed into soft shorts and a loose T-shirt, and came back out to find Chief on our front steps.

Sunshine was in the kitchen. Dad was in his study with the door open, on the phone again.

He looked up when I passed, and I pointed toward the front door.

“Just outside.”

He nodded.

I went out barefoot.

Chief turned at the sound of the door. The sharp movement stopped when he saw me.

I sat beside him, leaving a little space between us.