Page 85 of Sins of Innocence

No one talks on the way home. Not even me or mom. I'm trying to figure out how to explain everything without making it all worse, but I don't know why mom goes along with the silence edict.

Maybe she's digesting the knowledge that not only is my boyfriend in the mob, but her daughter-by-another-mother works for him.

The only thing that breaks the silence between here and the apartment are sporadic muffled giggles from the backseat. I devised the "quiet game" when Neeve was little, more for Sadie, who could talk a subway train off the rails than my already quiet younger daughter.

The trick was never to make it last too long and always give a clear marker for what ended it.

Like now, when we walk into the apartment and noise erupts the second we cross the threshold.

The girls' excited chatter about the things they bought for our upcoming trip bombards Torch, who was apparently following us the whole morning and is now carting bags and luggage from our shopping trip into the girls' room.

Ellie and I set their soup bowls around the coffee table and mom puts a Disney movie on for them to watch while they eat lunch.

Torch comes out of the bedroom, something that looks like a walkie-talkie in his hand. I blink as he goes into mom's room instead of the living room like I expect.

"What's he doing?" I ask Ellie.

"Scanning for bugs," she says in a low tone mom won't hear over the music for the opening credits of the movie. "I don't think there are any, or your rat ex-boss would have known you were under Kieran's protection."

Okay. "But then why is he scanning?"

"To make sure."

"Is that why you took our phones?"

Ellie nods. "Either K.S. was having you followed, or he's got some kind of tracker on you or your phone."

"I'll set our food up in the kitchen, so we can talk over lunch," mom says with a look that says there won't be any fobbing her off and disappears with the last bag of takeout.

As soon as she's out of earshot, I ask, "Me? You think I've got a tracker in me?"

"It's more likely on your phone, but it's possible."

Torch is finished scanning all the rooms but the kitchen when the girls come looking for their lunch, still talking excitedly.

"Who won the quiet game?" Joy demands, bouncing in front of Ellie.

"Everyone did so good this time, you can all pick out your own desserts."

"For after dinner," I hastily interject. "Neeve and I have a conference with her teacher at St. Patrick's after lunch and won't have time for dessert."

"We do?" Neeve pushes her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Will Kieran be there?"

"Yes."

She smiles and sits on the floor in front of the coffee table to eat her soup and watch her movie.

How did he become so necessary and trusted so fast?

Torch comes from the kitchen and makes for the front door. "I'll be in the hall until it's time to go to St. Patrick's."

"In the hall?" I ask, startled.

Ellie answers as Torch slips out the door. "It's his job."

"To stand in our hallway?" Sadie asks, not as enthralled by the movie as she is our discussion.

Ellie shrugs. "Sometimes, yes."