KNOX
She walked out and I followed, and Grayson fell in behind us without a word, and the three of us made it to the corridor outside the council room before I said anything.
I said: "Riley."
She stopped walking.
"What you said in there." I stopped too. "I need you to know I—"
"Don't." She turned around. Her face was composed, the controlled composure that costs something. "Not right now."
"Okay."
"What I said was the truth. You know it was the truth. I don't need you to confirm it and I don't need you to apologize for it again. What I need is to walk around this building for fifteen minutes and not have anyone talk to me."
I stood where I was.
She walked.
Grayson came up beside me. We watched her go — steady, unhurried, shoulders back, the particular walk of a woman who'd been l
