“Dad.”

“I know. I’m just saying it’s not — she’s not Patricia. Rebecca Chase brought us groceries. She sat in that hallway for two days.”

“I know she did.” Lily put the paper down. “That’s what makes it hard. If she were awful this would take me four seconds.”

She called the Senator herself. She would not let Daniel do it, and he sat in the next room with the door open, which he is aware was not the same as not listening.

He heard about a third of it.

He heard his daughter say, “I’m not going to do the September thing.” He heard a long pause, and then Lily saying, “No — I know you didn’t. I know Corinne wrote it and I know that’s her job.