Below the photo, there was a single line of typed text.

*They look happy here. Let’s make sure it stays that way.*

My breath caught in my throat.

I dropped the phone onto the wooden table.

“What is it?” Robert asked, leaning forward.

He reached out and turned the phone toward him.

His eyes narrowed as he stared at the screen.

“When was this taken?” he asked, his voice flat and calm.

“It has to be today,” I whispered. “They wore those jackets this morning.”

I stood up so fast my chair scraped loudly against the hardwood floor.

I ran down the hallway toward the stairs.

The wooden steps creaked under my bare feet as I hurried up to the second floor.

I pushed open the door to Lily and Ethan’s bedroom.

The room was dark, save for the blue glow of a nightlight shaped like a starfish.

Ethan was tangled in his dinosaur sheets, his mouth slightly open.

Lily slept on her side, her favorite stuffed rabbit tucked under her chin.

I stood by the door, listening to the steady, rhythmic sound of their breathing.