Chapter 6

The office was eerily quiet the day Wanda took a leave of absence.

"Did you hear? Her dad's got late-stage cirrhosis," someone whispered.

The receptionist lowered her voice. "I saw her crying in the stairwell this morning..."

The coffee cup in my hand suddenly tilted, and scalding hot liquid splashed onto my pants.

Vernon stared at me in shock. "Grayson! That's hot coffee!"

"It's fine." I set the cup down, noticing my skin was already turning red.

"How many days did Ms. Tillery take off?" I asked.

"Three, I think. I heard she even got a six-month advance on her…