CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part six)
Sam stuck his head in her bedroom.
“Noelle? Nash?”
The kids gave him a groggy look.
“Time to get up. Let’s get dressed. We have to hurry to make sure we get some of Delphie’s waffles while they’re hot.”
Nash jumped out of bed. He hugged Sandy then went down the hall to the bathroom he shared [...]

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CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part five)
Thursday — 8:20 A.M.
Hearing a knock, Sandy wandered from the kitchen toward the door. The kids were still sacked out in her bedroom. After such a rough night, she had let them sleep. Sleep was better than waking up to the reality that Aden was gone and not coming back. After checking in [...]

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CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part four)
She heard a floorboard creak in the hall. There was a sound of a small knuckle against the wood. Sandy got up to open the door.
Noelle stood on the other side. Her hair was sleep-tangled and her face wet from tears. Her eye filled with ointment and her bruise covered in cream. She [...]

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CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part three)
Thursday — 12:13 A.M.
Sandy shooed away Tanesha and Heather around nine. She had to force Jill to leave. After receiving a firm promise that Sandy would call her, Jill made Sandy another cup of Tension Tamer tea and left around eleven.
Sandy had laid down to sleep. But the tears seeped out of her [...]

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CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part two)
A man stood from a bunk on the right side of the room. Aden blinked. That’s Molly’s husband. Jacob’s bookkeeper Molly’s husband. Pete.
“Pete?” Aden asked. “What?”
“Hi Aden,” he said. “They told me they were putting us together. They thought since we knew each other, I wouldn’t be influenced by your fame.”
“What are you [...]

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CHAPTER EIGHTY-TWO
(part one)
Wednesday evening
Aden spent most of the day waiting.  After the hearing, he had waited in a holding cell at the courthouse. It wasn’t awful. It wasn’t even all unexpected. He’d simply forgotten what it was like. He’d started the day as a President of a large construction company. Everything he said or did [...]

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