“I’m not the one who died.” Maryanne was. Maryanne, who’d almost gotten away. Maryanne, who’d chosen to leave her abuser. She’d been brave and it had cost her everything.

Lila had nothing. That was what she’d realized in those moments when she’d knelt on the floor and waited for the bullet that would end her life. She had nothing. Her siblings were starting their lives. They were all married and having kids and building something. She went to work and came home and thought that looking strong meant she was strong.

It should have been me.

It should have been me.

It should have been me.

The world went watery and she felt arms go around her. Someone was crying—screaming, really.

It was her.

Despite the fact that her family surrounded her, Lila Daley had never felt more alone.

chapter one

PAPILLON, LOUISIANA

Eight months later

“I don’t understand why you can’t stay with us. We’ve got plenty of room.” Lisa Daley’s voice came over the car speakers loud and clear, as though reminding Lila that her sister wasn’t far away anymore.

Not far at all now. The sign that let her know she was entering Papillon Parish rushed by, or rather she rushed by it. Papillon Parish was on the sign, but her sister often referred to the place as Butterfly Bayou. A quaint name for a quaint place. It had been a long drive from Dallas, and everything she owned was in the back of her crossover. She did not need this argument with her sister. She needed to get to the new house, find the bottle of wine she’d packed, and settle in for the night. Unpacking could wait. “You’re still newlyweds, Lis. I’m not going to be the third wheel.”

“You wouldn’t be,” Lisa replied. “You would be like the eighth wheel or something. Remy’s family is always around. Well, when Zep’s not in jail, that is.” There was a soft gasp over the line. “That came out wrong. Zep’s not on drugs or anything. He’s just really obnoxious, and the police around here know how to deal with his smart mouth.”

Lisa wasn’t a Daley anymore. It was odd to think of her little sister as a Guidry. Most of her life had been spent trying desperately to keep the four of them together, and now they were all off on their own.

“It sounds like you’ve got enough family around you.” She loved her sister, but she couldn’t handle her rowdy in-laws right now.

Was she making a mistake? She’d left a perfectly good fast-track job in a cosmopolitan city in exchange for a tiny clinic in the sticks.

Of course, she couldn’t actually walk into that gleaming, high-tech hospital without seeing her friend on the ground bleeding out.