CHAPTER TWENTY SIX
For a long time, Avery remained in the diner booth, alone. She ordered eggs and toast, a small salad, and a cup of coffee and just sat there, going over everything that had been said.
My daughter hates me, she realized.
More depressed than she’d been in years, she wanted to crawl in a hole and die. Instead, she paid the check and walked out.
Sunlight made her cringe.
Why can’t it be a rainy day? she wondered.
People on the street seemed to race by. Cars whizzed past her view. She stood alone among the activity like a spirit, not yet dead, not truly alive.
This is what the killer wants, she thought. He’s in your head. He’s laughing at you. Just like Howard. Just like Howard.
Avery went back to her car and drove.
Without any conscious thought to a destination, she
