“You stay with Rina and play sous-chef. My wife and sister-in-law will help. They will probably relieve me of my table setting duties anyway, which is fine with me. I haven’t read the paper today.”

“It’s on the dining-room table,” Rina told him.

After Koby left, Decker regarded his wife’s inquisitive bright blue eyes. She was bathed in a sheen of sweat and looked incredibly sexy. He said, “I’ve found Chris Donatti. Rather, he found me. He’s driving in from Nevada and should be in town by midnight.”

“That’s good…I think.”

“We’ll see. I’ve got to talk to the kid.”

“I haven’t seen him yet.”

“He and Hannah came home about five minutes ago. He’s in the bedroom.”

“Okay,” Rina said. “Will your chat take long?”

“I suspect not. Do you need any help?”

“I was going to ask you to choose a bottle of wine, but I can do it. How about a Sangiovese?”

“Anything as long as it has alcohol.” Decker paused. “But not too much. I’ve got some work to do with a fresh homicide and then I have to deal with Donatti. I need to be on my toes.”

“Yeah, the hanging. That’s horrible. How’s it going?”

Decker blew out air. “It seems the girl enjoyed partying. Nothing wrong with that, but risky behavior widens the net of suspects. We’ve barely scratched the surface.”

“It’s going to be a long evening for you.”

“When is it ever not?” Decker pulled his wife into his arms. “Lucky for me, I’ve got an understanding wife who cooks like a demon.”

She gave him a lingering kiss. “Let me ask you this. What’s more important to you? The understanding part or the cooking part?”

“Depends how hungry I am. Right now, you could be mean to me and I wouldn’t care a fig. Just so long as I get my fair share of paella.”

LYING ATOP ONE of the twin beds, his hands behind his head, Gabe felt his eyes close a few seconds before he heard the knock. It wasn’t tentative, it wasn’t overly strong. It was a detective’s knock. He sat up. “Come in.”

Decker came in and sat down on the twin opposite. “Nothing on your mom, but your father called me about an hour ago from Nevada. He couldn’t get a flight out that made sense, so he’s driving in. He should be here around midnight.”

Gabe felt his voice catch in his throat. He nodded.

Decker said, “How do you feel about that?”

“It’s fine.”

“Is it?” When the boy didn’t answer, Decker said, “No sense being coy. We both know who and what your dad is. How safe do you feel being with him?”

“Safe. He’s okay.”

“He beat up on your mom. Has he ever beat up on you?”