The weight of the shadow was growing. She felt it. It had to be tied in to what was happening to William. She had to find him. Giving the number to that young hunter may have been reckless and potentially fruitless, but she’d had to risk it.

“Roxy, I hate that you’re here—”

“Nope.” Roxy shook her head. “I can tell by the tone of your voice what you’re about to say. You know I’d be even more angry if I’d shown up at the house and I couldn’t find you. Kate is just worried; she doesn’t want you caught up in what William’s going through, so she holed you up here.”

“They’ve gotten to her. I know I sound irrational, but it’s true. She doesn’t know the truth. She’s never believed it. Anne and Chris and the boys must have called and realized I’m not answering my phone. They’ll know something is wrong.”

“Then it will get to the point where Kate can’t leave you here without an explanation—Now, what the hell is that?”

Roxy pointed out the window. Lynn turned to the sight that once made her skin crawl. But now the large vans with the bold call letters of networks and local stations, following each other like some kind of parade, stilled her breath in her throat.

They kept coming, one after another, turning off the frontage road and heading down the long gravel driveway.

Both women hurried to the window, watching as the trucks began to stop. The passenger and driver’s-side doors flew open, men and women in fashionable suits rushed alongside drivers in jeans and ball caps, gathering their equipment.

Like a tiny grand marshal, the Volvo that had led them in now parked directly in front of the home. As one of the security officers rushed out, a small woman, her hair in a fierce ponytail, waved her hand to the media to gather.

Lynn had to force herself to both breathe and not cry, watching her youngest daughter stand before the burly and enraged agent.

“This, ladies and gentlemen, is classic Stella,” Roxy said with admiration.

Lynn reached for the door, seeing one of the agents running from the yard towards them. But Lynn was closer, and rushed out into courtyard with Roxy behind.

“Stella!” Lynn cried out.

As the agent began to berate Stella for being on private property, she pointed to her mother and called out to the photographers.