I tossed a couple of pairs of socks and boxers into the case. I must have been in the bathroom, my head full of the sounds of brush scrubbing teeth, when Sarah returned to the house and came upstairs.

She was standing in the bedroom, staring at the open case on the bed, when I came out of the bathroom. She looked at me, bewildered.

“I forgot my watch,” she said.

“You won’t need it in the home section,” I said, trying to sound apologetic. “Deadlines are somewhat ethereal. Although Frieda’s fairly rigid about cookie time. You won’t want to miss that.”

Her eyes went back to the overnight bag. “You’re going away?”

“Uh,” I said. “I was just throwing in a few things—”

“Maybe that’s a good idea,” Sarah said.

“Huh?”

“I mean, maybe we do need a bit of time. Apart, I mean.”

“You see, I was actually—”

“Where are you going to stay? Are you going to go back up to your father’s place? He might be happy to see you. You know, spend some time without all that other stuff hanging over you.”

“Uh, no, I’m not going to see him.”

“I can’t imagine Lawrence Jones would let you move in with him,” Sarah said softly. “Even for the short term.”

“No, I don’t imagine he would,” I said, feeling a growing emptiness. My detective friend Lawrence, he liked his world well ordered. I would be a piece of paper not lining up with the edge of his desk.

“Have you told the kids?” Sarah asked.

“The thing is, Sarah,” I said, “I wasn’t actually leaving. I was just figuring to be away overnight, maybe two nights at the most, sorting out some things. But not actually leaving. But now maybe I should get a bigger suitcase, take a few extra things, if that’s what you’d like.”

She started to speak, stopped, opened her mouth again, closed it. Finally, “I just figured, when I saw you packing…”

I looked into Sarah’s eyes and said, “I would never leave you.” I paused. “Unless you didn’t want me here.”

Sarah broke eye contact, saw her watch on the bedside table. She went over, picked it up, slipped it over her wrist, concentrating on the task, making more out of it than she needed to. But it only takes so long to put on a watch. Finally she said, “Where are you going?”

“I’m going to try to figure out what’s going on. I’m heading to Canborough, and then on to some place called Groverton.”

“So you’re helping Trixie,” she said quietly.