HIS NEIGHBOR WOULDN’T STOP REPORTING THE SOUND OF A GIRL CRYING INSIDE HIS HOUSE—THEN HE HID BENEATH HIS DAUGHTER’S BED AND HEARD HER PLEAD FOR SOMEONE TO SPARE HER

The woman he believed instead of the neighbor.

The woman who always had explanations for Lucia’s weight loss, trembling hands, hollow expression, locked bedroom door, and disappearing appetite.