His fingers curled around the pendant.

“Leave, Rachel.”

“What happened to my brother?”

His wheelchair suddenly

moved backward.

“Get out!”Beauty Services & Spas

The shout brought Mrs. Alvarez running.

She stopped in the doorway.

“Christopher?”

He pointed toward me.

“Take her home.”

Mrs. Alvarez looked between us.

“What happened?”Business News

“Now.”

I didn’t move.

“Rachel,” she said softly.

“Ask him about the necklace.”

Her expression changed.

That was all I needed to see.

She knew.Standardized & Admissions Tests

My stomach dropped.

“You know too.”

Mrs. Alvarez looked away.

“Oh my God.”

I backed toward the doorway.

“You both know.”

“Rachel,” she said.Language Resources

“Don’t.”

I held up my hand.

“If you knew my brother, if you knew anything about what happened to him—”

Christopher slammed his palm against the chair
control.

“Enough!”

I stared at him through tears.Gems & Jewelry

Then I picked up my coat.

“I need this job,” I said quietly. “More than you could possibly understand.”

His eyes met mine.

“But if that necklace came from my brother, I will find out how.”

I walked out.

Mrs. Alvarez followed me downstairs.Beauty Services & Spas

“Rachel.”

I kept walking.

“Please.”

I stopped near the front door.

She lowered her voice.

“You should go home tonight.”

“Was Ryan here?”Business News

She hesitated.

That hesitation answered everything.

My eyes filled.

“When?”

“I cannot tell you.”

“Cannot or will not?”

“Both.”Standardized & Admissions Tests

I laughed bitterly.

“My son is sick. My daughter is hungry. I came here because I had nothing left. And now I find the one object that belonged to my dead brother hanging around your employer’s neck.”

Mrs. Alvarez looked genuinely shaken.