Neither Kyle nor Nick was home yet, and she wasn’t sure if she was worried by Nick’s absence or angry at him. School ended at three, and he should have been back long before this. Following the suspension, he was supposed to keep them informed of his whereabouts, and the fact that he was not where he should be left her feeling both irritated and concerned. She stepped out of the car and was about to call his cell, when he cruised into the driveway on his bike, braking next to her.

“Where have you been?” she asked. Now that he was here and safe, anger had superseded worry. “You’re supposed to tell us if you’re going to be late.”

“Dad wanted me to stop by the store. He was having computer problems and needed technical assistance.”

“From you?”

“Well, Gary’s gone, and in comparison…” He left the sentence unfinished. They both knew Kyle was not very tech savvy.

Anita locked the car door. “What was the problem?”

“Nothing. He just forgot his password and ID for ordering books from a distributor. He kept trying to use his sign-on. I helped him create a new password. After that, he asked me to stay and keep an eye on things while he caught up on stuff.” Nick opened the garage door and brought in his bike. “Oh, by the way, he’s going to be a little late. Hey, what’s for dinner?”

“That remains to be seen,” she said.

Walking up to the front of the house, Anita found a blue placard hanging from the doorknob. “SORRY WE MISSED YOU!” read the white calligraphic message at the top of the navy rectangle. Below that was an ad for a Visa card offered by The First People’s Bank. Beneath the ad, scrawled in Sharpie on a blank line, was a note—“CALL ME!”—and a signature: Mr. Worthington.

She glanced across the street at the Riveras’ house and the Swartwoods’ but saw nothing hanging from either of their front doorknobs.

He’d only come to her house.

A sliver of cold slid down the back of her neck. The idea that he had been to her home creeped her out, as did the fact that he seemed to be aware of her credit card troubles. Or maybe that was a coincidence. She didn’t know and wasn’t sure she wanted to know, and when Nick closed the garage and walked around the corner, she folded up the doorhanger and shoved it into her purse before unlocking the door and following him inside.

5