"Weekend ns? Anything important going on?"


    McNeil couldn''t help himself-he asked, "Got a date with your Miss Fannie?"


    Marcus grinned. "Yeah, we''re heading out for somemb hotpot. You guys have fun."


    He hopped into his McLaren, engine roaring as he sped off.


    On a whim, McNeil pulled out his phone and dialed Victoria''s number. He wasn''t sure why-maybe just curiosity, maybe something else.


    It rang for ages before she finally picked up.


    "Where are you?"


    Victoria was surprised to get a call from McNeil in broad daylight, especially on a weekend. He had their daughter with him, so she couldn''t imagine what he wanted.


    "I''m at home. What''s up?"


    She hesitated for a second, but answered truthfully.


    Simms ce was her home now, after all. The house belonged to the Turner family, so it wasn''t a lie.


    McNeil could hear the ck of a keyboard in the background. He remembered catching her upte at theputer the other night and rxed a little.


    "No reason. Just checking in."


    He hung up and went back to find Violet and their daughter.


    Victoria stared at her phone for a moment, then sighed and muttered, "He''s lost his mind."


    Not long after, her phone rang again.


    She assumed it was McNeil and ignored it.


    It wasn''t until the third call that she finally, annoyed, snatched up the phone.


    He used toin she called too much. Now that she''d given him his space, he was suddenly the one checking up on her.


    The caller ID just showed an "M." Victoria quickly answered.


    "Miss Fannie, I was thinking I could pick you upter?"


    Victoria nced at the clock-it was only 11:40. They weren''t meeting the Yates family until two. Wasn''t this a bit too early? There were still more than two hours to go.


    "I was hoping you''d have lunch with me first. Max insisted youe after all,


    you did save his life. I''d like to thank you too."


    It was a solid reason, and Marcus didn''t sound like he was just being polite.


    Victoria couldn''t think of a good excuse to refuse. "Alright."


    She didn''t let Marcus pick her up, though. Instead, she asked Yasmine to drive her.


    On the way, Yasmine filled her in on thetest at work.


    "Mr. Miller and Yulia are keeping their daughter under wraps-I haven''t figured everything out yet. All I know is the kid was fostered out, and now her whereabouts are unknown."


    Victoria rested her fists lightly on her knees. "Is she really missing, or have we just not found her yet? Keep someone on their trail."


    Yasmine agreed, dropped Victoria off, and drove away.


    Marcus and Max were already waiting when she arrived.


    Max didn''t look happy, slouched at the table, but he still managed a polite, "Hi," when he saw her.


    "What''s up with Max?" Victoria asked, handing him a big toy race car she''d picked out for him.


    Max brightened for a moment at the gift, but soon slipped back into his funk.


    Marcus ruffled his hair, exasperated. "He lost a game with some friends, and he''s been sulking for days."


    Victoria''s concern showed. "What game was it?"


    Max finally looked up. "A racing game. I even lost to a girl."


    He''d lost to Gwh, and he couldn''t let it go.


    He''d even tried rematching with his friends, always taking first ce—so Gwh must have cheated, he reasoned. There was no way she could''ve beaten him otherwise.


    "Kids and their games," Marcus said, shaking his head. He''d never expected Max -usually so upbeat-to take a loss this hard. The boy had already lost his parents so young; it broke Marcus''s heart, but he didn''t know what else to do. He wasn''t any good at video games himself, so he couldn''t exactly help.


    "What''s the game? Maybe I can take a look?" Victoria offered.