When the door opened a few hours later and I recognized the sound of my mother's familiar shuffle of steps followed by the quicker patter of Cam's sneakers, I stood up from the couch, prepared to joke with them about how long errands were lasting these days.
"Did you two get lost in the store again?" I shouted, trying to keep my tone light.
No response.
I frowned, rounding the corner, looking for at least a smile from Mum or Cam's duty-free breathless rundown of some school drama, but they were both away. Not tired, and if they were, I would have gotten it. This was not like it. Cam had her shoulders rolled forward, her face puffy and red like she'd cried before, and Mum… her eyes refused to meet mine.
A frozen terror gripped me. "What's wrong?
Mum carefully placed the shopping bags o
