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“Never mind your chills. What about Mom?”
Dad sighed. “She’s okay… now. She woke up thinking she heard a noise downstairs. So instead of waking me, she went to investigate.”
“What happened?”
“She tripped over the damn dog’s toy rabbit, that’s what. I keep telling her she needs to make sure all that stuff is in Casey’s box before we go up to bed.”
“Is she hurt?”
“Her ankle’s swollen, and I think she’s going to have a whopper of a bruise. I’ve given her Tylenol and wrapped it up. Got an ice pack on it too. Could’ve been a lot worse, though, given where Casey had left the damn bunny.”
“And where was that?”
“Top of the stairs.”
“Mom fell down thestairs?”
“I told you she’s okay, didn’t I? And it was only the top flight. Three or four steps. She grabbed hold of the handrail. She’s more shook up than anything.” He paused. “You okay?”
“I’m fine,” Dan assured him.
“You still living in Boston with that detective you told us about?”
“Still here. No plans to go anywhere.” It had taken him all these years to find the—literal—man of his dreams. Dan wanted just as many years to enjoy having Gary in his life.
“I-I meant to tell you—” Dad cleared his throat. “—I saw you in the papers last month. I read about that case you helped solve.”
“Oh.” Dan was too shocked to speak.Since when do either of them talk about my gift?Maybe Mom’s accident was more serious than Dad is making it out to be.Maybe it has upset the balance of his mind. Maybe—
Maybe I should just stop blowing this up out of all proportion and listen.
“Dan? Are you still there?”
“Still here, Dad.”
“Look, I know this is something we don’t discuss, but… I was proud of you.”
Oh my God.
“I even cut out the article and kept it.”
Dan found his voice. “Just don’t start keeping a scrapbook of all my press cuttings, okay? Especially the photos they use. I always look dreadful in them.”
Dad laughed. “So what is it you’re doing over there? Your last email didn’t go into too much detail.”
Heat bloomed in his cheeks, and his chest tightened.When was the last time I saw them?“You’re going to love this. I have a job with the Boston Police Department.”
“Seriously?”
“Uh-huh. I’m helping them solve cases that seemed to come to a dead end. They’re hoping I can find another route to the truth of what happened.”
“Like, cold cases? The kind you see on TV?”
“Yes, Dad, just like that.” He waited for more reaction.
“That’s great.”
Dan blinked. “Really?”
