She glanced up at Stephen.
“You dropped it.”
Stephen didn’t seem to hear her.
His face had changed so dramatically that I almost didn’t recognize him. He wasn’t simply surprised. His skin had gone gray around his mouth.
I reached for Lily instinctively.
“What do you mean, you know her?”
Stephen blinked.
His eyes moved from Lily to me and back again.
“I—”
He stopped.
Lily tugged gently at my sleeve.
“Mommy?”
“It’s okay, sweetheart.”
It wasn’t.
I could tell from Stephen’s expression that something was terribly wrong.
I crouched beside Lily.
“Could you go check on Mr. Buttons for me?”
Mr. Buttons was her stuffed rabbit, currently occupying a place of honor at the tiny table in her playroom.
She frowned.
“But Stephen came.”
“I know. Just for one minute.”
Children know when adults are lying about things being fine. Lily studied my face, then Stephen’s, and her excitement disappeared.
