“People make mistakes, Amarok.”

“Not like that one, they don’t. And if they do, they don’t get off with a, ‘Whoops, I’m sorry,’ so long after the fact.”

“What good will it do to hold a grudge?”

Amarok didn’t answer right away. He was busy logging the address for Beacon Point into his GPS.

“Amarok?”

Finished, he pulled out of the parking lot. “It won’t do any good. But I’m not trying to punish her. I just don’t need her in my life. I’m an adult now. It’s too late.”

“Why not accept whatever love she can offer whether you’re an adult or not?”

“Because it’ll be awkward, weird. Why would I put myself into such an uncomfortable situation?”

“For a lot of reasons.”

“Name one.”

There was a long pause. “Look, she’s not a bad person. Sure, what she did wasn’t fair to you. But I wasn’t a perfect husband. Maybe some of what happened was my fault, too. I never mentioned your brother to you, either—not after they left.”

Because he was afraid Amarok would start pleading to go live with his mother so he could be with his brother. That Amarok could forgive. Hank would gladly have been a part of Jason’s life if only Alistair would’ve allowed it.

Amarok signaled for a left turn and slowed down. “Dad, you realize Evelyn is still missing, right? I don’t give a rat’s ass about anything except getting her back, so maybe we can talk about this later.”

“Phil said the same thing when he gave me your number. But that’s just it.”

“What’s ‘just it’?”

“If you can’t find Evelyn … If, for some reason, this ends badly, you’re going to need all the love and support you can get. And your mother is ready and waiting for a second chance.”

“I know you’re worried about me, Dad. But if I don’t get Evelyn back, there’s nothing my mother can do to make it better.”

There was a long silence. “Okay. But … I wanted you to know that it wouldn’t be disloyal to me if you decide to welcome her back into your life. As a matter of fact, I’m in favor of it. You mean more to me than hating her. I’d let the devil in at the door if I thought it would be a good thing for you, especially right now, when you’re going through so much.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“You’re still holding out hope?”

It didn’t sound as though his father was very optimistic. “Of course. Evelyn’s the woman I love.”

“You need to be prepared, Amarok. It’s been a week. What are the odds she’s going to be okay?”

“Not great,” he admitted. “But she’s beaten the odds before, and I’m making progress on the investigation. It’s just taking time.”

Hank didn’t say it, but Amarok knew what he had to be thinking: time was the one thing they probably didn’t have.

“I’ll let you go. I didn’t call to upset you. Merely wanted to plant a seed.”