Brenda had transformed the place.

She had brought over her own decorative lamps and throw pillows and fine dining china, staged the half-emptied apartment into something warm and lived-in, a set dressed for a play in which I did not appear.

Liam stood near the dining table in a crisp suit, talking to a well-dressed couple, and Brenda was just emerging from the kitchen with a serving platter in her hands.

Both of them saw me at the same instant, and both of them froze, the color draining out of their faces.