The rain settled into a steady curtain by the time the streetlights came on. The house went quiet in the way houses do when the last of the daylight drains out of the windows. Lucas turned off the kitchen lights. Ryan locked the front door and the back. Zoe stood at the counter a moment longer, looking at the three zucchini and the coil of rope beside them, then picked up the rope and carried it upstairs herself.
Lucas’s bedroom was already dim. The blinds were half-closed. Rain tapped the glass in an uneven rhythm. Zoe set the rope on the dresser, pulled the borrowed basketball shorts down her legs, and left them in a soft pile on the floor. The black t-shirt stayed on a little longer. She sat on the edge of the bed and waited.
Ryan came in first. He closed the door behind him, turned t
