“We’ll look into everything. We always do. But you were the goose laying golden eggs. They didn’t seem to want that money to stop coming.”

“Yeah,” I said, accepting it all. “But I guess you can’t buy your way out of guilt.”

Rountree stood up. “Maybe understanding that is the first step toward moving on.”

CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN

Amanda managed to sleep fitfully, while I once again stared at the ceiling and paced the house.

When I had left the police station, around one thirty, I went by my in-laws’ house to pick her up. Mercifully, Bill and Karen were asleep, and so was Henry, and Amanda had already arranged with them to leave the baby there overnight so the two of us could have distraction-free conversation in the morning. I desperately wanted to lay eyes on the little guy, but I knew he was safe with his grandparents. And I agreed with Amanda’s assessment that it would be nice to talk without interruption.

Since I was up long before Amanda, my mind swirling with the events of the previous evening, she at least came downstairs to the aroma of brewing coffee filling the house and the sight of me at the counter buttering toast.

She smiled when she came into the room, and we shared a kiss. But there was a strain in her smile, something that showed across her face. She wore a hoodie and baggy shorts, and I wished it were simple to pick up and return to our regular lives.

But I knew it wouldn’t be.

And I knew Dawn Steiner’s deadline loomed over the morning.

But would she really show up? Wouldn’t she be scared off by the news that everything was out in the open? She held no more leverage over me. She had nothing to push me with. For all I knew, the police had her in custody as well.

Before we sat down at the table with our steaming mugs, Amanda went out onto the stoop and grabbed the morning paper. She reluctantly slid it across the table toward me, and I saw Jennifer’s death and Aaron’s arrest taking up most of the front page. And when I saw the large type and Aaron’s mug shot, my heart jumped to a pace suitable for NASCAR.

“I thought about hiding it from you,” she said. “But what’s the point? Isn’t everything supposed to be out in the open now?”

“It is.” But I sounded less sure than ever.