More than anger, Grace expressed disappointment. ‘Sadly, I’m not surprised. I don’t suppose you ever discovered why Mack was at the Ranch Steakhouse the night of the murders?’

It was Cord who answered. ‘The business client he had dinner with later that night was the owner’s sister, but that’s as much as we were able to uncover, for now at least.’

The lines around Grace’s mouth deepened, but whatever she was thinking, she kept to herself. Instead, she thanked Alyssa and Cord for stopping by. ‘I know this is your job, and while it seems so ineffective, I’ll never be able to thank you and your team enough for bringing Addis and Emerson back to us.’ Her smile was warm even while her eyes showcased her sadness as she stared over at her niece.

‘Of course.’ Alyssa turned to Addis. ‘You have an amazing role model here, but I’d still like to offer you a word of advice. Don’t let anyone tell you how long it should take for you to heal. You and Emerson have survived a nightmare most people can’t even begin to wrap their minds around. And don’t be afraid to seek help.’ She didn’t say it, but she had a feeling that Tony, who had confided in the entire team this morning, would be there to help guide her and Emerson through some of their rough patches.

Addis sniffled. ‘Yes, ma’am.’

Grace ruffled her niece’s hair and then followed Alyssa and Cord to the courtyard. ‘Detective, before you go, I do have one more thing I need to discuss with you.’

Alyssa and Cord exchanged puzzled looks.

‘In light of your… connection… to the McCormick/Bishop case, I just wanted to let you know in advance that I’ll be offering a plea deal to Rafe McCormick. I believe his actions were the result of temporary insanity brought about by the brutal murder of his wife and unborn child. I’m in no way condoning vigilantism, of course, but this case goes beyond that, I believe.’

Alyssa didn’t allow herself to dwell on the reasons why she was relieved to know Mr. McCormick wouldn’t spend the rest of his days rotting behind bars. Not quite trusting herself to speak around the sudden lump in her throat, she nodded to the district attorney, offering a brief wave to Addis who now stood in the doorway, her head leaning against the frame as she waited for Grace to come back in.

Back in the car, Alyssa turned to Cord and said, ‘You know what? I’m taking the rest of the day off and I’m going to go spend it with my family. Brock called to say Holly and the gang showed up again for a late lunch, so everyone’s at the house. And I haven’t seen much of them lately, so…’