“I don’t know.” Her lip began to quiver. “I was scared she’d get mad at me for not telling her sooner. And I kept expecting to hear from Dov. I didn’t know Dov would be…I didn’t know the whole family…”

“Yes?”

“I didn’t think they were missing. I thought Dov had just had enough. I thought he just needed to get away from it all, you know?”

Decker said, “No, I don’t know. Please tell me.”

Sharona covered her face, then wiped her cheeks. “My uncle’s a diamond dealer. He’s very rich. Did you see the house?”

Decker nodded.

“Isn’t it humongous?”

Again, Decker nodded.

“Uncle Arik is really rich. I mean really, really rich! He made a fortune in diamonds during the eighties. Dov told me he made lots of his money selling big stones to the Japanese and the Chinese living in Hong Kong.”

“Dov seems to know a lot about the business.”

“He works there. They work there—both of them. My cousins…you’d think they’d be spoiled rotten, right?”

“Possibly.”

“Well, they’re not, at all. They have to beg for everything they get. That’s my uncle. Eema used to say he was the same way as a kid.”

“What does she mean by that?” Decker asked.

“I think she meant he was always a tightass—” Sharona blushed. “I mean he was tight with a buck.”

“His kids resent him?”

The girl looked at her lap. “It’s not like my cousins don’t believe in work. I believe in working, too. Everyone has to work to feel useful. My mom doesn’t have to work but she does. Aunt Dalia certainly doesn’t need to work, but she does. My uncle just overdoes it. Dov and Gil are carrying a full load at school, plus after-school sports and music lessons. Gil’s a top swimmer. They’re both good students. But that’s not enough. Uncle Arik makes them go downtown two days a week and on the weekends to learn about the diamond business. I don’t talk to Gil so much, but I know it’s a big drain for Dov. He’s very resentful.”

“How does he express his resentment?”

“Sulks. Escapes into his head. What can he do?”

“Escapes? You mean drugs?”

Sharona shrugged. “Maybe a little pot. But mostly I meant escape by being spiritual. He used to be very religious. I think deep down he’s still religious, but…”

Decker encouraged her to continue.

“Dov wanted to be more Orthodox…traditional.”

“I’m traditional, I understand.”

Sharona eyed him. “You don’t look Jewish, you know that?”

“So I’ve been told. Go on, Sharona. What happened to Dov’s journey into religion?”