Glenn answered immediately, and I listened closely before I hung up and went back to the kitchen. “He says to try the usual things, but there’s no easy way to break in. If I want him to come over next week, he’ll take a look. No guarantees, though.”

Teo stood back, and I tried variations of Wendy’s birthday, the birthdays of the girls, mine, my parents. I finally stepped away. “No go.”

Teo closed the doors to the laundry area. “Do you want to wait for him? It sounds like a long shot.”

By next week I would have to tell my mother what was going on. Wendy might be hiding out in an ashram or dead. And the girls would be getting out of school for winter break.

Teo read my expression. “I’d bet on the roofer.”

He was right, although my stomach was knotting at the thought. “I’ll call Carrillon. At the very least we need to learn the guy’s name.”

I saw the question in his eyes. “I’m not going off half-cocked, Teo. I promise. If I have to confront this guy, I’d like you to be with me. If you’re willing. Are you?”

“I’ll stand by you. You stand by me.”

I stroked my fingers down the side of his cheek, already just a bit rough, although he’d obviously shaved that morning. “I pick you up. You pick me up. Or better yet, we congratulate each other for not falling in the first place.”

“We’re always going to fall.”

I touched his lips. “Then let’s fall together. Deal?”

He kissed my fingertips. For the moment, it was answer enough.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

The continuum between truth and lies was becoming more than a philosophical problem. Every day was a new tug-of-war. Truth whenever possible. Half-truths for love or safety. And finally, lies, if absolutely needed.

As a fraud investigator, I’d learned to spin believable stories with little or no basis in fact. Sometimes lying was the only way I had been able to protect our consumers. That skill had continued to serve me well on Out in the Cold. Now, once Teo left, I put my dubious skills to work.

Carrillon was a small company. I told the woman who answered the phone that I needed an estimate on a new roof for my waterfront estate. If you have to resort to lying, go for broke. I told her I thought I might have talked to one of their roofers, and described my attacker. Did the guy sound familiar and could I drive by and see one of Carrillon’s jobs in progress?

She told me the guy was probably Jonah Greer. She gave me an address, and said the crew would be working there until late afternoon.

I texted Jonah’s name to Teo. An hour later I cruised by the address, and saw the now familiar Carrillon pickup parked in front of it. This time I called Teo and we made arrangements to meet there later, after I dropped the girls at my parents’ house.