“Take Marco with you,” he said.

“And do not let them past the foyer.”

I nodded, pulling a wool shawl over my shoulders.

The cold air hit me the moment I stepped onto the covered front porch.

The rain was coming down harder now, a steady drumbeat against the stone steps.

Marco walked beside me, his flashlight cutting a bright beam through the mist.

We walked down the paved path toward the massive iron gates.

The deputy standing outside was soaked, his wide-brimmed hat dripping water onto his collar.

He held the white envelope in a gloved hand, his face expressionless.

“Evelyn Steel?” he asked as we reached the gate.

“I am,” I said, keeping my voice as calm as possible.

“I have an emergency court order for the immediate return of Lily and Owen Vale to their legal guardian, Marissa Vale,” he said.

He slid the document through the iron bars of the gate.

The paper was damp, the ink slightly smeared by the rain.

“Officer, those children were abandoned at the airport,” I said, holding the paper without looking at it.