‘‘I don’t give a damn about all the statistics you hear on television or read in magazines about how three out of five men—or whatever it is—cheat on their wives.’’ Grace dumped cleanser in the bucket, dropped it into the sink, and turned the water on full blast. ‘‘The Quinns loved each other, and they liked each other. And they had an admiration for each other. You couldn’t be around them and not see it. They were tied only tighter together because of their sons. When you saw the five of them together, you were seeing family. Just the way the five of you are family.’’

Touched, Anna smiled. ‘‘Well, we’re working on it.’’

‘‘You just haven’t had as many years as the Quinns did.’’ Grace hauled the bucket out of the sink. ‘‘They were a unit.’’

Units, Anna thought, often broke down. ‘‘If something had happened between Ray and Gloria, would Stella have forgiven him?’’

Grace thrust the mop into the bucket and gave Anna a cool, decisive look. ‘‘Would you forgive Cam?’’

‘‘I don’t know,’’ Anna said after a moment. ‘‘It would be hard to because I’d have killed him. But I might, eventually, put flowers on his grave.’’

‘‘Exactly.’’ Satisfied, Grace nodded. ‘‘That kind of betrayal doesn’t swallow down easily. And it follows that if the Quinns had that kind of tension between them, their sons would have known it. Children aren’t fools, no matter how many adults might think so.’’

‘‘No, they’re not,’’ Anna murmured. ‘‘Whatever the truth is, they need to find it. I’m going to type up my notes,’’ she said as she rose. ‘‘Will you take a look at them, see if there’s anything you want to add or change before they go into the file?’’

‘‘All right. I’ve still got some wash to hang out, then I’ll be . . .’’

They heard it at the same time, the wildly happy barking of dogs. Grace’s reaction was pure distress. She’d lost track of the time, and Ethan was home.

Going on instinct, Anna slipped her notebook into a kitchen drawer. ‘‘I want to talk to Cam about this before we tell Seth about the phone call.’’

‘‘Yes, that’s best. I . . .’’

‘‘You can go out the back, Grace,’’ Anna said quietly. ‘‘Nobody could blame you for not wanting another emotional hit today.’’

‘‘I have wash to hang out.’’

‘‘You’ve done more than enough for one afternoon.’’

Grace straightened her shoulders. ‘‘I finish what I start.’’ She turned into the laundry room and the lid of the washer clanged as she tossed it up. ‘‘Which is more than can be said of some people.’’

Anna lifted a brow. Ethan was in for a surprise, she decided. And wasn’t it handy that she was around to see him get it?

NINETEEN