situation?”
“I don’t know. It just sounds light and carefree, like I’m going to be today. Nary a care in the world. No skulking in the shadows for me.”
After putting her cup down, Sun put a hand on Auri’s arm. “You know, you don’t have to pretend to be okay, sweet pea. Not ever.”
Discomfort prickled along Auri’s spine. She didn’t like it when her mom worried about her. She did everything in her power to make sure that didn’t happen. “I know. Can I at least help with the search after school?”
“How about you help your grandma and the rest of the Book Babes hand out coffee? If you get your homework done first.”
“You’re trusting Wanda Stephanopoulos to hand out coffee to a bunch of law enforcement officers?” When her mom nodded, Auri’s jaw fell open. “Mom! You know what uniforms do to her.”
“I know. It couldn’t be helped. If she does impede the search in any way—”
“Like wrapping herself around Quincy?”
“—I’ll have to ask her to leave.”
“No. You’ll have to take her away in handcuffs.”
Her mom laughed at that. Hard.
“Mom, this is serious. Wanda could give the whole town a bad name.”
She wiped a tear from underneath her eye. “You are such an old soul.”
“Yeah, yeah. So, what time did you get in?” she asked, putting her mom in the hot seat for once.
“You do not want to know.”
She looked at the map her mom was poring over.
“Why are you searching for Sybil there?”
“Didn’t your grandparents tell you? Jimmy Ravinder is missing, too, and we got a tip that he’s been seen hanging out with a girl who matches Sybil’s description.”
Alarm rocketed through her. “Jimmy Ravinder? How long has he been missing?”
“Since Sunday afternoon.” She stopped and focused on Auri. “Why?”
“Who said he’s been seen hanging out with Sybil?”
“Not Sybil, but a girl matching her description. And with them both going missing around the same time . . .” Her mom caught on. “Come to think of it, you match Sybil’s description, too.”
Auri sank into her chair. “It’s me.” She said it so softly, she was worried her mom didn’t hear her, so she said it again. “It’s me. The girl Jimmy’s been hanging out with.”
She had been friends with Jimmy since she was seven, but with the way her mom felt about the Ravinders, she’d never told her. While her mom worked, she’d spent the summers with her grandparents. She’d gone to the lake, taken up hiking the trails of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, and hit up all the coffee shops almost every day with Jimmy. That was why she’d never really gotten to know any of the local kids.
She spent all her time with her grandparents or with Jimmy.
The color drained from her mom’s face. “All this time, we thought we had a solid lead, and . . .” She focused on her daughter again. “Honey, why are you hanging out with Jimmy Ravinder?”
“He’s my friend. He’s smart. And he’s nice.”
“He’s nice?” she said. “He’s a Ravinder.”
The way she said the words cut Auri to the bone. No paper cut this time. Her mom wielded a machete. “So, that’s how we decide who to hang out with? We look at their last name? What about the color of their skin? Does that count?”
Sun gave her an admonishing glower. “That’s not fair. I’ve told you, they’re a crime family. A criminal organization unto themselves. And they’re mixed up with some very heavy hitters who make mincemeat out of little girls and—”
“I know. I know. Eat them for breakfast.”
She leaned into her. “Sweetheart, it’s not that Jimmy is a bad guy. It’s that his family is, and you could get caught in the crossfire.”
“Jimmy wouldn’t let that happen.”
“Jimmy? What can he do against an entire family of criminals?”
“He’s gone legit with his uncle Levi. Everything about Mr. Ravinder’s operation is legal. He’s made sure of it. He’s trying to get his family out of that life, Mom. No more crossfire.”
“Yes, but there are members of the family who don’t want out of that life. Those who want back in, no matter the cost. What then?”
Auri folded her arms over her chest. Not to be belligerent, but to silently protest her mother’s position. Sun had always worried about the Ravinders. If she knew what they’d done for her, what they’d done for Auri, she wouldn’t be so quick to judge.
Besides, the woman was so in love with Jimmy’s uncle Levi, it was ridiculous.
Auri suddenly realized the larger implications of all