Danny laughed. Then his face changed. He looked at the bucket. Then at the water stain on the ceiling. Then at the peeling linoleum. Then at Ellie’s glued-together pink sneakers sitting by the back door.
I watched him understand.
He looked at me.
“You were going to keep it,” he said quietly. “Weren’t you? The ring. For a second. When she found it.”
The whole kitchen went silent.
I could have lied. I could have said no. It would have been easy.
“For one second,” I said. “Yes.”
Danny nodded slowly.
“But you didn’t,” he said.
“Ellie asked if somebody was crying because they lost it.”
Danny looked at Ellie.
“Your mom would’ve asked the same thing,” he said.
I tried to give it to them.
That was the first thing I did. Right there at the kitchen table. I looked at the bank statement, and I looked at Danny’s scar, and I said:
