“That doesn’t excuse what happened to Piper,” she said quickly.

“No,” I answered.

“But it helps explain why we didn’t see it sooner.”

Hannah brought us information about the temporary safety arrangements that would be needed.

There could be no unsupervised contact between Piper and Dolores while authorities assessed the allegations.

Whitney agreed immediately.

At noon, I received a message from an unfamiliar number.

You’re destroying an old woman’s life because you never could stand losing.