Meanwhile, Connor kept acting online like everything was perfectly normal.

He posted family vacations, birthday parties, and smiling selfies from the fashion mall at Keystone. It was the exact image of a happy family he’d always wanted the world to see. Sometimes I wondered if he actually believed the lie himself.

Then, on a Thursday afternoon in mid-April, Melinda called my cell phone. I nearly ignored the call, and I almost laughed when I saw her name on the screen. She hadn’t contacted me directly in over a year—not after the affair, the divorce, or moving in with Connor. Yet there her name was.

I answered. “Hello, Melinda.”

There was only nervous breathing on the other end. “Kirsten?”

I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong, because her voice was shaking. “What do you want, Melinda?”