The relief in her voice was unmistakable. She needed him, and for some crazy reason, he didn’t hesitate to pull a U-turn and head straight to her house.

As he drove, possibilities flooded his mind—none of them good.

Approached her . . .

What did that mean? Had she been assaulted? Flashed? Did someone try to sell her drugs? And if any of those had happened, why had Kate called him?

Twelve minutes later, he pulled onto her street. A text landed on his phone.

Girls in bed. Pls come around back.

Antonio pulled up to her house and parked discreetly under the shadow of a pecan tree. Yeah, it was dark, but he didn’t want any nosy neighbors spotting his car in front of her house this time of night.

Antonio scanned the block as he walked up the driveway. The street was mostly one-story houses, most with porch lights on and moderately priced cars in the driveways. It was a nice neighborhood in a good school zone, and he wasn’t sure how Kate afforded it as a single mom with four kids.

The kitchen window was dark. Ditto the utility room. He approached the back door off the driveway.

“Antonio?”

He looked over the gate as Kate opened the back door that faced the patio. The living room lamp was on, and he saw her curvy body silhouetted in the light as she stepped outside. She wore jeans and a tight white shirt, and she was pulling a cardigan sweater around herself.

“Hey,” he said, matching her quiet volume as he opened the gate and joined her on the patio.

“Thank you for coming.”

He stepped around a red wagon, the one he’d seen her kids in just the other day.

“You okay?” he asked.

“No.” She pulled out a lawn chair and gestured for him to sit down.

Antonio took a seat, glancing over her shoulder at the house. The kitchen was dark, and the only light came from the living room. No TV on, and the other windows facing the yard were dark.

“They’re asleep,” Kate said. “Everyone but Kelly. She’s on her phone. Took me forever to get Sylvie down. She can tell when I’m anxious.”

Antonio leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees so he could look her directly in the eye.

“How’s Kelly?”

“Upset. I had to tell her about Vanessa tonight.”

“She didn’t know?”

“I didn’t want to tell the girls yet. Not until we knew something definite. I didn’t see the point, and it hasn’t been on the news yet, so . . .” She cleared her throat. “But I knew the officer would ask about it.”

“Back up,” Antonio said. “Who was here?”

“Officer Meyers.”

“I don’t know him.”

“He interviewed Kelly, and she told him everything.”

“Tell me.”

She took a deep breath, and he kept his attention on her face.

“I don’t know where to start,” she said.