Rue’s POV

By the time I returned home that afternoon, I was so tired I wanted to sleep. I’d barely stepped past the threshold when I heard the faint clatter of cleaning tools from the corridor.

I frowned.

I took a few steps cautiously, wondering who would be at my house. Because except for my friend Vicky, no one would have the keys to my house.

“Vicky?” I called out gently.

Almost instantaneously, Vicky popped out of my kitchen, clutching a rag to her chest like a guilty child. She ...