“All right.” He most decidedly does not want to go to the police station. “Who did this?”

“I don’t know. It’s not like we have muggers hanging out in that park.” Iris’s voice is shaking, her lip trembling.

“It has to be random,” he says. “Everyone loved Danielle. Where is Ned?” he asks.

“With the police. They’re talking to him. Trying to establish her movements.”

Movements. What a clinical word, he thinks. Her movements. Where she was, who she talked to. Who she saw. Tracking her phone. He feels cold terror inch up his spine. I want out. I want out. Words, echoing in his head.

“I’ll go with Julia. You’ve had a shock,” he says. Knowing full well what Iris’s answer will be.

“No. I’ll go. I was here.” And there he hears it, the barest bit of accusation that she had to come and comfort their traumatized daughter while he lounged in bed.

“All right. Whatever you think best.”

And then Julia starts crying. Really crying. Brokenhearted crying.

“We’ll tell them you’ll talk to them later,” Iris says, embracing her.

“No, no,” Julia said. “Whoever did this has to be caught. I want to help the police.”

Kyle can see Iris is in full mom mode. Protective, determined. Is he in dad mode yet? He is so shaken right now. “We’ll both go.”

“Is Grant home alone?” Iris asks.

“Yes.”

“Well, go home. Whoever did this could have fled into the greenbelt, been hiding…” Iris says, and she’s off, theories pouring out of her. “I mean, he could try to break into a house to hide.”

“Grant is fine.”

“I’ll feel better if you go home,” Iris said. “I got this.”

None of us do, he thinks. No one has this. It has us.

He puts his hands over his face, feels the nub of his wedding ring against his cheek. He can’t bear to look at his family for a moment.

“Are you OK?” Iris asks.

Kyle lowers his hands. He realizes it’s a normal question. They’ve known Danielle for years. “Yes. It’s just a shock,” he says. “No one expects this.”

Her gaze meets his and then he glances away.

A police officer comes over and Iris tells him they’re willing to go to the station now. The detective, the officer says, will join them there shortly.

“Ned,” Iris says. “He shouldn’t stay alone at that house.”

“Where is Mike?” Kyle asks, looking around. Mike is Danielle’s boyfriend, a big, brawny bear of a man. One of Kyle’s best friends.

“I guess they haven’t found him yet or contacted him,” Iris says. Julia has calmed a bit, wiping the tears from her face.

“I can give the police his number. If Ned isn’t up to it.”