She asked about her cousin twice, and both times I changed the subject.

We kept the blinds closed and the deadbolt locked.

On the morning of November twelfth, my phone buzzed on the kitchen counter.

The screen showed Mark’s law office.

I picked up on the second ring.

Mark told me the city police had finished their preliminary file.

He told me to come to his office right away.

I left Emma with a neighbor I trusted.