He laughs. “No. I meant tomorrow.”
The front door bursts open and Miguel and Rachel spill into the foyer, their laughter filling the house. Miguel carries a Chipotle bag into the kitchen while Rachel clutches the nub of a burrito wrapped in foil, sauce smeared at the corner of her mouth.
“Hi, Mom! We brought you food, but I ate mine in the car. I was so hungry.” She stops short when she sees Finn, her body language shifting instantly. “Hi.”
“Honey, this is Finn. He lives in the neighborhood.”
“Hi, Finn,” she says in a grown-up voice I haven’t heard her use before. And I remember in a flash—she’s eighteen. A woman. When did that happen? While I was looking the other way. “I’m gonna shower and then I was going to head over to Aida’s, if that’s okay.”
“That’s fine,” I say, forcing a smile that feels like it might crack my face. This is her last night here before she heads off to camp for six weeks, and she wants to spend it out with her friends. “Sounds fun.”
“Don’t stay out late,” Miguel says as he unpacks the rest of the food on the counter. “We have a long drive tomorrow.”
“I won’t.” Rachel kisses me on the cheek. “Nice meeting you!” she calls as she rushes out of the room.
Miguel opens the cupboard door and hesitates. “You joining us for dinner? There’s plenty.”
That’s the Miguel I fell in love with, spontaneous and warm.
Finn shakes his head. “I better get going. What time should I come by tomorrow?”
“How about eleven?” I ask. “I’ve been getting started pretty late these days.”
“What’s tomorrow?” Miguel asks.
“Oh, I’m going with Finn to see that woman who used to live in that house behind the Allards. The one where that young nanny was killed.” I shoot Finn a glance.
“Why?”
The word hangs in the air for a moment. It’s a reasonable question, but the look on Miguel’s face makes me think he is gearing up for a fight. I don’t want to tell him that it’s because Finn asked me to. For some reason, I feel protective of Finn, and irritated that Miguel thinks I owe him an explanation.
“I think he’d like some company.” It’s an elusive answer. We both know it.
“Yeah, I got that part,” Miguel says. “But why are you going to see her in the first place?”
“Because Finn wants some answers. And you know what? So do I.”
“I think I better get going,” Finn says. “And look, if you can’t come tomorrow, that’s fine—”
“No, I’m coming with you,” I say, more sure than ever. “I have a theory that this is all connected to Van—”
“Van?” Miguel barks out the word. “Now you’re dragging Van into this? Caren, this has to stop.”
I spin to face him. “I’m not dragging Van into anything. He was there. All along.”
“Yeah, I’m definitely going to go.” Finn begins backing outof the kitchen. I’m embarrassed he had to see Miguel and me argue, but I know somehow that he won’t hold it against me.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” I call after him. “Eleven o’clock.” I hope he can hear the resolve in my voice. Then I turn back to Miguel. “I saw Jo. I asked her about the bracelet. She basically admitted that Van had been breaking into people’s houses. And she was really rude to me.”
“Caren, look—”
“No. Let me finish. When I was talking to Jo, or more like getting yelled at by Jo, she said you could explain it to me.” I pause for breath. “I know Rachel wasn’t with Van, that she wasn’t sneaking into people’s homes, stealing, but she’s got to be involved somehow. So tell me, Miguel, because it doesn’t add up.”
His jaw clenches, a muscle working frantically beneath the skin. “Fine. You’re right. Rachel was involved. But I did what I did because I was trying to protect her.”
TWENTY-EIGHT
“Protect her from what?” My voice is low, vibrating with suppressed panic.