And for the record, the party was doing a terrible job of keeping her mind off the pact. She was thirty years old, and in her pocket was a slip of paper with her birthday wish on it. A wish that made her seem a lot like a teenager. Talk about embarrassing.

People filtered in and out of her house, but the majority of them were gathered on the back deck. Louisa put on her best hostess smile, trying not to look at the time but hopelessly aware that the pact had ended and soon the sun would set on her—their—golden birthday. And Cody Boggs was horribly absent.

A cake emerged from the kitchen after dinner, and Louisa blew out the candles as her friends cheered and sang for her. She scanned the crowd as she balanced a glass of iced tea and a small plate with a slice of cake—everyone seemed to be having fun. Even McKenzie Palmer seemed to be enjoying herself—and Charlie seemed to be enjoying her. It should warm her heart to see it, but instead, it made her feel empty.

She missed Maggie. She missed Cody. She missed having the sliver of hope she’d worn like a charm around her neck. It was gone now, and the emptiness of that realization tormented her.

The sun had begun to set, and she’d started to wonder when people might leave, dreadfully aware that some people were just arriving. Everyone seemed content to hang out. They were there for the duration.

“Louisa,” Ally called out from the kitchen. “Can you come in here a minute?”

Only if I can crawl into bed and you make all these people go home.

It was ugly of her to think such a thing when everyone was there to celebrate her, but her heart hurt.

She made her way across the deck and inside the house, where Ally stood, wide-eyed.

“What’s up?” Louisa asked.

“You have a visitor,” Ally said.

Louisa laughed. “I have a lot of visitors.” But she followed Ally’s gaze into the living room, where she found Marissa Boggs, clutching a large handbag and wearing a worried expression.

“Mrs. Boggs?” Louisa heard the gasp in her own voice.

“Happy birthday, Louisa,” the woman said.

“What are you doing here?”

“Can we go somewhere to talk?” Marissa slowly looked around the space. “It’s hard for me to be here.”

“Of course. Let’s go out front.” Louisa rushed past her, head spinning, Marissa following close behind. In the yard, she turned back to Marissa. “Would you like to walk?”

She nodded. “That would be nice.”

They started off down the road, the noise from the party slowly beginning to fade.

“I’ll get right to it, Louisa,” she said. “I’m worried about my son.”

“Is he okay?” Louisa’s heart raced. “Did something happen?”

“Oh no, physically he’s fine.”