Chapter 1
PART 2: The Letter Waiting Beneath Grace’s Pillow 001
The first thing Alexander did after learning that I had gone to Toronto was drive home and stand in the middle of our empty bedroom.
He had expected anger.
A suitcase thrown across the hall. A note filled with accusations. Perhaps even a message telling him exactly where I had gone and how long I intended to stay away.
Instead, there was only silence.
My side of the closet was bare. The hangers swayed gently whenever the heating system came on, tapping against one another like tiny, impatient clocks.
Grace’s dresses were gone too.
The yellow cardigan she wore whenever she felt cold. The blue pajamas covered in little moons. The pink party dress she had insisted on wearing to breakfast one Sunday because, in her words, “beautiful clothes shouldn’t have to wait for beautiful days.”
Alexander walked into her room.
The walls were still painted lavender. Her picture books remained on the low shelf, except for the ones I had packed. A small paper crown sat on the floor beside her toy kitchen.
And on her bed, there was a shallow indentation where the stuffed rabbit had been.
Alexander stood there for a long time.
Then he noticed the framed photograph on the nightstand.
It showed Grace sitting between us, her arms around both our necks. She was missing one front tooth and laughing so hard that her eyes had disappeared into crescents.
I had taken the picture on her fourth birthday.
Alexander picked up the frame.
His thumb brushed over Grace’s face.
The photograph slipped from his hand and landed softly on the carpet.
His assistant, Daniel, appeared at the door a few minutes later.
“Mr. Hayes?”
Alexander didn’t turn around. “How long has she been gone?”
“We’re still confirming the details.”
“Don’t give me details you haven’t confirmed.”
Daniel lowered his voice. “Mrs. Hayes boarded the flight shortly after midnight. She used her passport and her maiden name.”
“Bennett?”
“Yes.”
Alexander’s jaw tightened.
Emily Bennett.
The name she had carried before him. The name she had returned to without asking his permission.
“Did she take anyone with her?” he asked.
“No.”
“She has family in Toronto?”
“Her company arranged temporary accommodation near the downtown office. We’re checking whether anyone met her at the airport.”
Alexander finally faced him. “Stop checking.”
Daniel hesitated.
“Sir?”
“I said stop.”
Daniel looked surprised. “You asked me to find her.”