Maggie nodded. Grady had been real upset with Savannah when he found out she’d been to the town. Savannah had come to look for special roses, and Grady had stomped around the house for days. Even Laredo wasn’t happy when Savannah wanted to come back and look for more roses.

“Now, this is very important,” Richard said, his voice low and serious. “You mustn’t let anyone know where you’ve been, understand?”

Her chin came up a little. “Why not?”

“You love your mommy, don’t you?”

Maggie nodded.

“If anyone finds out you’ve been here…” He stopped and glanced in both directions as if he was afraid someone might be listening. “If anyone finds out, then something really bad will happen to your mother.”

Maggie’s eyes grew big.

“Do you know what ghosts are?” Richard asked.

“Melissa Washington dressed up in a sheet and said she was a ghost last Halloween,” Maggie told him.

“There are good ghosts and bad ghosts.”

“Which kind live here?” Maggie whispered.

“Bad ones,” he whispered back. His voice was spooky. She wondered if he was trying to scare her on purpose.

“Bad ones?” she repeated faintly.

“Very bad ones, and if you tell anyone, even your best friend, then the bad ghosts will find out and hurt your mother.”

“How…how will they hurt Mommy?”

“You don’t want to know, kid.” He squeezed his eyes shut and made an ugly face, as if just telling her about it would upset him.

Maggie blinked, not sure she should believe him.

“Remember when Wiley cut his hand and Savannah had to wrap it up for him?”

“Yes…”

“That’s what bad ghosts will do to your mommy, only it wouldn’t just be her hand.”

Maggie forgot all about the smell of bacon. Wiley’s hand had bled and bled. Blood had gotten everywhere, and she could remember being surprised that one hand had so much blood in it. Just looking at it had made her feel sick to her stomach.

“You wouldn’t want anything bad like that to happen to your mommy, would you?”

Maggie shook her head.

“I didn’t think so.”

“Can I go home now?”

He studied her for a long time. “You won’t tell anyone?”

“No.”

“Cross your heart?”

“Cross my heart.” She made a big X over her heart.

“I’d hate to see your mommy hurt, wouldn’t you?”

Maggie nodded.

“Then maybe it’d be all right if I took you home.”

Maggie sighed with relief. She was tired and hungry, and all she wanted was to see her mother again.

Richard helped her into the cab of Grady’s truck. He made her curl up on the seat and keep her head down so she couldn’t see as they drove away. Every time she closed her eyes she thought about a bad ghost and what might happen to her mother if she told anyone where she’d been. She still wasn’t sure if Richard was lying, but she couldn’t take any chances. She remembered how angry Grady had been with Savannah. When she asked her mother about it, Caroline had explained that Savannah had gone to a dangerous place. Now Maggie understood why Grady was so upset. That town was really creepy, and the more she thought about it, the more she believed there were bad things in those buildings.

The ride was bumpy and she was tossed about, but Richard wouldn’t let her sit up and look out the window until they were on the real road.

“Remember, kid, you never saw me. Got that?”

“I never saw you,” she repeated solemnly.

“Your mother’s life depends on you keeping your trap shut. You wouldn’t want your mother dead, would you?”

“No.”

“Good. Just remember that the first time you’re tempted to tell someone where you were.”

“I’ll remember. I won’t tell.” Maggie didn’t want her mommy to die. Not like her grandmother. Or Savannah’s parents. Or Emma Bishop’s daddy.

Richard didn’t drive her all the way back to the Yellow Rose. He stopped at the top of the driveway, leaned across her and opened the truck door.

“Remember what I said,” he told her again. His eyes were mean.

“I’ll remember,” she promised, and before he could change his mind, she climbed out of the truck. She stumbled as she jumped down and fell, scraping her elbows. She began to cry, hardly noticing that Richard had driven off, tires squealing.

With her backpack hitting her shoulder blades, Maggie raced toward the ranch house. The driveway was long and her legs felt like they were on fire before the house finally came into view.

Grady stood on the porch with a cup of coffee, but the moment he saw her, he gave a loud shout and flung the cup away. Then he leaped off the porch without using any of the steps and ran toward her.

Almost immediately afterward, her mother threw open the screen door and placed both hands over her mouth. Then she started running, too. Maggie had never been so happy to see her mother. She was even glad to see Grady. He waited for Caroline and let her go to Maggie first. Maggie liked that.

Her mother caught her in her arms and held her tight, then started to cry. She was worried about the bad ghosts, Maggie reasoned. She didn’t need to be afraid, because Maggie wouldn’t tell. Not anyone. Not ever.

Grady wrapped his arms around them both. He closed his eyes the way people did in church when they prayed. When he opened them again, he smiled at her. Maggie liked the way he smiled. It was a nice smile, not mean.

“Boy, we’re glad to see you,” he said.

* * *

SAVANNAH WIPED the tears from her face as she strolled along the pathway in her rose garden. But this morning she didn’t appreciate the beauty of the roses. Nor did she find the solace she normally did here. If she lived to be a hundred years old, she didn’t want to go through another day like the past one.

Although Caroline had repeatedly told her it wasn’t her fault that Maggie had turned up missing, Savannah blamed herself. She’d been preoccupied with baking bread, her head full of the romance developing between her brother and her best friend. What she should have been doing was keeping careful watch over her best friend’s child.

“I thought I’d find you here.” Laredo walked up from behind her.

She didn’t want him to know she’d been crying, but wasn’t sure she could hide it.

“Sweetheart, why are you still upset? Maggie’s home safe and sound.”

“I know.”

“Then what’s bothering you?”

Her chest tightened, and she waited until the ache eased before she answered. “My brother.”

Laredo clasped her shoulders. “Richard?”

She nodded. “He was involved in Maggie’s disappearance. I know it.”

“I have to admit it’s mighty suspicious.”

“Maggie won’t say a word. Everyone’s tried to get her to say where she was, but she refuses. Even Frank Hennessey can’t get her to budge.”

“It doesn’t matter. She’s home now.”

“But it does matter,” Savannah said passionately. “Laredo, tell me, where did Grady and I go wrong?”

“Sweetheart, your brother’s an adult who makes his own decisions. You didn’t do anything wrong. You’re his sister, not his mother, and even if you were, I’d say the same thing. Richard is his own person, responsible for himself.”

“In my head I agree with everything you’re saying, but that doesn’t take away the pain.”

Laredo guided her to the patio set and made her sit down in one of the white wrought-iron chairs.

“I was the one who convinced Grady to let him stay.”

“Yes, but that’s because Richard’s your brother.”

“If I’d listened to Grady that first night, none of this would have happened.”

“Oh, my love, that’s the risk of having a gentle heart. Someone’s bound to take advantage of it. I’m sorry it had to be your own brother.”

“He’s hurt so many people.” That was what troubled Savannah most. It wasn’t just she and Grady who’d been hurt, but others. Who knew how many? Wherever he’d spent the past six years, she had no doubt he’d left victims behind. People like the shopkeepers in Promise. He’d defrauded them, humiliated them, and ultimately she was the one to blame. Savannah didn’t know if she could forgive herself. “I should’ve let Grady kick him out that first day,” she muttered fiercely.