Reesa’s father used to tell her that people, like diamonds, could become their most beautiful under pressure. In the blur that was the experience of turbulence, an emergency landing, several medical examinations, and a temporary shelter that was not on the itinerary, she saw shining examples of that concept.

Mrs. Vitale refused to be separated from Harper even after the cut on her head was patched up. That was why, now that their group was settled in a high-rise hotel for a ...