He stepped further into the house, his wet leather shoes squeaking on the hardwood.

I shrank back into the shadows of the staircase.

Ethan stood his ground in the center of the hall.

“Uncle Richard,” Ethan said.

“What are you doing here in this weather?”

Richard smiled, his teeth white in the dim light of the laptop screen.

“I came to check on you, of course,” Richard said.

“And to make sure you aren’t digging up things that should stay buried.”

He looked past Ethan, his eyes finding me in the dark.

“Hello, Maria,” he said.

“Where is the little girl?”

My breath caught in my throat.

I wanted to run upstairs to Lily’s room, but my legs felt like lead.

“She is sleeping,” Ethan said, stepping between Richard and the stairs.

“You shouldn’t be here, Richard.”

“This is my brother’s house,” Richard said.

“And now it belongs to the estate.”

“Which I control,” he added.

He took another step forward, his umbrella dripping water onto the floor.

“I know you called the lab, Ethan,” Richard said.

“I have people on the board of that clinic.”