“Oh, yeah. I forgot you weren’t at school. The church Chloe’s parents go to is having some kind of dinner tonight. It’s a law enforcement appreciation thing, and I guess they’re using it to make sure people don’t forget about Chloe. The cops and volunteers are searching again this weekend. Massively. They want to get a ton of people out, and they’re worried they can’t get enough. Dad always says people have short attention spans and start to lose interest.”

“I think he’s right.”

“If they let her mom have a microphone again, she’ll probably start railing against you. Talk about people I’d like to punch…”

“What time is this thing?” I ask.

“I don’t know. Seven, I guess. Why? Do you want to go and get roasted in person again?”

I can’t believe I’m about to say what I’m thinking.

But I say it anyway.

“No, of course not. But it means their house is going to be empty.”

Forty-Nine

We run into Dad in the kitchen.

He comes out of his office, a red pen stuck behind his ear. He looks surprised to see the two of us leaving.

“Where are you going?” he asks.

Not only is Olivia the most honest person I’ve ever known, she’s also the world’s worst liar. On the rare occasions she tries to lie, she stutters and mumbles and ends up sounding exactly like someone who is lying.

If she tries to tell Dad a story, we’re doomed.

“Over to Hector’s,” I say. The lie appears in my mouth like magic. “They invited us. His mom is making fajitas.”

“Fajitas?” Dad says the word like he’s never heard it before. “I was going to order Ray’s.”

“Oh, yeah,” I say. “Sorry. We won’t be gone long.”

“How are you doing on that homework?” Dad asks.

“It’s slow,” I say, telling the truth. “But I made a little dent.”

Dad nods. His eyes roam over the two of us, settling on Olivia. She shifts her feet and twirls a strand of hair.

“Why are you going together?” Dad asks.

“I figured you wouldn’t want me out alone. Right?”

Dad nods at this. “And your sister can punch someone if there’s trouble?”

“Dad, I—”

“Easy, Olivia,” Dad says. “Dr. Whitley told me about your little dustup with the lacrosse player. He was actually pretty understanding given the circumstances. Just don’t deck anybody else. Got it?”

“Sure, Dad, I was just going with Hunter because—”

“It’s Hector’s grandmother’s birthday,” I say, cutting Olivia off. “That’s why they’re having a little party.”

“And Olivia is really close to Hector’s grandmother, right?” Dad says.

“They want a lot of people there,” I say. “She’s turning eighty.”