“That’s normal for some people,” my father muttered.

“Wonder where I got that from?” I wasn’t sure how I felt about having him around, but if Teddy really was missing, we were going to be spending time together.

“Pot, meet kettle,” Reagan added.

We piled into my father’s car. Our drive to Theo’s town house was tense but speedy, thanks to my father’s lead foot on the gas. When we got there, I banged on the door. It was just after seven in the evening. Theo opened it immediately.

“I’m so glad to see you,” he said, touching my shoulder. “The police told me you were attacked.”

“An old pal of Caro’s tried to throw me out a window,” I said. “Honestly, I’m more worried about Teddy.”

“I’m anxious as well, but I know Ursula loves him,” Theo said. “She’d never do anything to hurt him. I think it’s just a matter of time until he’s found. Please come in—you can wait with me.”

I filed in, Reagan and my father following me. Gloria was pacing in the parlor. “I can’t believe this is happening,” she said. “Ursula has nowhere to go and no money of her own. Where would she take Teddy?”

“It was a good impulse gone awry,” Theo said. “I can understand her wanting to get him away from my family.”

“Sit down, Deirdre,” Gloria said. “Tell us what happened to you.”

“I want to hear Theo’s story first,” I said. “You emailed about wanting to talk. What did you want to say?”

“The day of Caroline’s funeral, you accused me of killing another woman. For years, I’ve run away from that. I tried to pretend it didn’t happen. I went to Berlin to finally confront it, and I discovered my father has lied to me all these years.”

“I’m confused,” I said. “Lied to you about . . . killing this woman?”

“Yes,” Theo said. “The condensed version is this: During my second year at university in Berlin, I had a whirlwind fling with a woman I knew as Mirelle. I was a mess at the time, but I thought I was in love.” He cleared his throat. “One night, while I was . . . let’s just say high . . . this is so hard to talk about.”

We were all quiet. Then my father said, “There’s nothing more painful than the truth. But it’s the only thing that cures you.”

Theo nodded. “I don’t remember what happened, but Mirelle’s body was on the floor—stabbed to death—and my father told me I’d killed her. I believed this for years.” He took a deep breath. “I’ve discovered it was all a lie. The woman was an actress my father hired. He killed her—had her killed—because I married her. It was all a fiction to enable my father to control me.”