I crossed the yard.
“Naomi, what happened?”
She shook her head.
“Caleb, you weren’t supposed to be home.”
That sentence frightened me more than anything else.
I reached toward her carefully.
She looked toward the kitchen before looking back at me.
“Please,” she whispered. “Not out here.”
Before I could answer, the back door opened.
My mother appeared.
She looked nothing like someone who had been struggling financially.
Her hair was freshly styled.
She wore gold bracelets, a cream blouse, and designer sunglasses pushed onto the top of her head.
Kendra came behind her carrying a new phone.
Mom stopped when she saw me.
For half a second, her expression wasn’t happiness.
It was panic.
Then she recovered.
“Caleb!”
She rushed toward me with her arms open.
“My baby is home!”
I didn’t hug her.
I was still looking at Naomi.
“What happened to my wife?”
Mom’s smile tightened.
