these years.â
Audrey gave her friend a squeezing hug and then glanced at the dance floor where Geraldine swayed dreamily in Willieâs big, strong arms. âYour parents are proof that there really is such a thing as happily-ever-after.â
âYour dadâs here,â Tam said. âHe and your uncle Garth. And Hart.â
âHartâs here?â
Tam nodded.
âHow is he?â Audrey asked.
âClean and sober, at least for tonight. He looks nice. I think heâs wearing that new suit you bought him for his last job interview.â
Audrey forced a smile. She loved her stepbrother. After Blakeâs disappearance twenty-five years ago, they had bonded as siblings. They had both known that they were the expendable kids, the ones who would never be as important to her father and his mother as Blake had been. And each of them had dealt with their familyâs tragedies in different ways. Audrey had focused all her energy on a profession where she could help other people deal with their own tragedy, with grief, with suffering of any kind. Hart had sought solace in drugs and alcohol. Heâd been in and out of rehab half a dozen times during the past two decades, and heâd never held down a job for more than six months at a time.
âI wish I could do more to help him than just buying him a new suit.â
âMy God, youâve done all you can. And youâve done it over and over again. What more could you do? Iâm not saying Hartâs a lost cause, butâ¦â Tam grimaced. âHartâs got problems that you canât fix, problems that maybe nobody can fix.â
âI know. In hereââAudrey tapped her headââI know. But in hereââshe patted her chestââI want to believe that somehow, some way, somedayâ¦â
âFairy Godmother Audrey.â Tam smiled. âAlways wishing you could wave a magic wand and make everything all right for everyone.â
Audrey snorted, the sound quite unladylike. âYeah, all the good that wishing does me when my damn magic wand is broken.â
Tam laughed.
âItâs good to hear you laugh,â Audrey said. âNeither of us has done much of that recently, have we. You know, in a way, it seems strange to be enjoying such a happy occasion tonight when only a few hours ago I was at Jill Scottâs funeral.â
âI try to keep my professional life and my personal life separate,â Tam said. âMost of the time, I can, but sometimesâ¦Heâs still out there, the guy who kidnapped and murdered Jill Scott. Weâre no closer now to catching him than we were nine days ago. And unless all the experts are wrong, thereâs a good chance that the same man abducted Debra Gregory and will kill her, too.â
âI shouldnât have mentioned Jill tonight,â Audrey said. âIâm afraid Iâm seldom able to separate myself from my clientâs problems. What does that say about my professionalism?â
âScrew your professionalism. Caring too damn much about everyone else is what makes you you, and I wouldnât change that or anything else about you.â
âOnly because you love me like a sister.â
âGot that damn straight.â Tamâs gaze fixed on something or someone behind Audrey. Her eyes widened and a quirky smile played at the corners of her mouth. âDonât look now, but tall, dark, and could-eat-him-with-a-spoon is here, right behind us and coming this way.â
âWho are you talking about?â
When Audrey started to turn around, Tam grabbed her by the forearms. âDonât turn around. Not yet,â Tam said under her breath. âDamn, heâs not alone.â
âFor goodness sakes, who are youâ?â
âWell, hello there,â Tam said to the person standing behind Audrey. âHow are you tonight?â
Why was Tam acting so odd? Audrey turned and,