“Oh, Peter…Honey would never…I mean, I don’t think…” Rina put her hand to her mouth, then dropped it. “Sometimes I just can’t read you. Are you serious?”

Decker was deadpan. “What’s four more kids? My life is a mess anyway.”

Rina looked him in the eye, her own face just as serious. “Life is tough, isn’t it?”

They both started laughing-a release for both of them. Decker hated Missing Persons cases and this one was very unusual-an entire family gone with only a phone call as a lead. Where was Dov now? he wondered.

He kissed Hannah on the crown of her head and swung her around. Again, the little girl flapped excitedly. Decker brought her over his shoulder and the baby nestled into his chest.

Ah, what couldn’t be cured by a baby’s hug.

What a difference a peanut butter and jelly sandwich made. The younger girl smiled and even talked. She said thank you to Decker, and when he offered to show her the horses, she actually looked at him before she averted her eyes. After urges from Minda, Bryna went with her younger brother, Pessy, to give the steeds some chow. She even gave the horses sugar cubes. Afterward, Decker gave her two glasses of milk and she drank them both.

Maybe she was undernourished.

Pessy squealed with delight as he related his tale of horses to brother Mendel. The teenager listened politely, then tousled Pessy’s hair. Minda’s attention was still fixed on the TV. This time she was watching a word game. She responded to the questions, smiling when she got the correct answers, but the competition didn’t hold as much attraction for her as the prize shows. Decker checked the paper’s TV guide, then changed the channel to Wheel of Fortune.

“You can win big things on this one,” Decker told her.

“As big as The Price Is Right?”

“You bet.”

Minda nodded gravely.

Mendel went on with his learning.

And Honey still hadn’t returned.

Finally, just as Decker was about to leave, a knock sounded at the front door. Decker opened it and knew something was wrong. The woman, who seemed light-complexioned to begin with, appeared pale and nervous, hands clasped tightly to one another. Still, she tried out a smile, her voice attempting to be upbeat.

“I’m Honey Klein. I hope my kids haven’t been a bother.”

“No, they’ve been fine.” Decker felt a gush of relief as he stepped out of the way. “Come in. Is everything okay?”

“Fine.” Honey bit her lip. “I’m a little tired. Jet lag, I guess. Thank you very much for sharing your home with us. It’s very special what you’re doing.”

“It’s our pleasure. Rina’s in the kitchen.”

Decker started to walk and she followed. Not a bad-looking woman, if you like cute faces-small features and dimples in her cheeks. She had a nice figure, too. But her expression was full of anxiety. She saw her children gathered around the dining table and forced out another smile. “Hi, kids.”

“Mama!” Pessy bounced out of his chair and began to jump as he talked. “I got to feed the horses!”

“That’s wonderful,” Honey said.

“They eat sugar.”

“They do?”

“Yes. Big sugar cubes. And carrots, too!”

“Really.”

“You want to feed the horses, Mama?”

“Yes, but later,” Honey said. “Guess what, kids? I got us a car! Now we can go anywhere!”

Mendel said, “I thought you said we weren’t going to rent a car. That it was too expensive.”

Honey sneaked a sidelong glance at Decker and blushed. “I changed my mind. Some things are just worth the cost. So we’re mobile now. Let’s just grab us some lunch and then we’re off!”

“We had lunch, Mama,” Pessy said. “Sandwiches. Peanut butter and jelly. And potato chips too!”

“Don’t forget the carrot sticks,” Minda said.

“Yeah, and carrot sticks.”

“You all ate?”

“Each and every one of us,” Minda said.

Honey said, “Bryna, did you eat?”

The girl nodded.

“You did?”

The girl nodded.

“Really, Bryna?”

“She had two glasses of milk, Mama,” Minda said.

Astounded, Honey looked at Decker. “How’d you do it?”

“Must be vacation,” Decker said.

Honey’s smile was genuine. “Great. So I’ll just grab something and then we can go to the zoo.”

“I’d rather watch TV,” Minda said. “I can go to the zoo anytime. They’re spinning this big wheel, Mama, and if it lands on the word ‘fur,’ they win a mink coat. It’s not a joke. Come look.”

“Beetul Torah,” Mendel said. “Stupidity! What would Papa say?”

“Papa isn’t on vacation,” Minda snapped.

“Minda, Pessy really wanted to go to the zoo.”

“So go without me,” she said without anger. “I’ll be fine.”

Again, Honey blushed. “The addictive powers of the boob tube. Gershon would be furious.” She shrugged. “I guess a day of TV won’t hurt.”

Decker wasn’t about to offer an opinion. “Come. I’ll bring you to Rina.”

Honey followed him into the kitchen and closed the door behind them.

“There you are!” Rina said to Honey. She placed Hannah in her high chair and belted her in. “I was getting worried about you.” She noticed Honey’s tired face. “Is everything okay?”

“I rented a car.”

“You did? Why?”

“I didn’t want to bother you.”

“It’s not a bother, Honey.”

Decker cleared his throat. “I’d better be going.” He stared at Honey’s eyes. Something was off. “Are you sure everything’s okay?”

Wearily, Honey sat down on a kitchen chair. “Just the news, I suppose.”

“The news?” Rina said.

“Something about a family that disappeared. The father was a diamond dealer.”

No one spoke. Then Decker said, “What about the family?”

“Gershon is a diamond dealer. I hear things like that, I get scared.”

Again, the room fell silent. Decker broke it. “Why? Have there been incidents like that in New York?”

Honey’s eyes went to her lap. “Not a whole family disappearing, no. But we’ve had murders. It’s a cash and carry business. Sometimes I worry.”

Decker sat down. “The family that’s missing? That’s my case, Honey. Anything you might tell me is greatly appreciated.”

Rina cleared her throat. “Honey’s on vacation, Peter.”

Decker tapped his forehead. “Anyone home in there? You’re right. Scratch the question.”

“No, it’s okay,” Honey said, quickly. “What do you want to know?”

“Forget it, Honey,” Decker said. “I don’t know when to turn it off.”

Honey blurted out, “I’m worried about Gershon. I’m…”

Her sentence trailed off. Decker urged her to continue.

Honey said, “Just that he’s been acting strange. Then I heard the news on the TV. No wonder we don’t have television in the village. All it does is cause heartache.”

Decker waited a beat, then said, “What does this family have to do with Gershon?”

“Probably nothing,” Honey said. “But when I heard this story, I went to call him. In Israel. I didn’t want to worry the kids. That’s why I told them I was taking a walk. I didn’t want them to hear their neurotic mother talking about a disappearing family…”

She paused to catch her breath.

“He wasn’t in, Rina. It’s after ten P.M. in Israel. Where could he be?”

“Ten in the evening isn’t really late for Israel,” Rina tried. “People are just getting started-”

“It’s late for Gershon. He’s not the social type. Ordinarily, I wouldn’t think a thing of it except that things have been…bizarre lately.”

Honey bit her thumbnail and stopped talking.

Decker said, “What do you mean by bizarre?”

“This is so embarrassing,” Honey said.

Rina said, “Honey, if you don’t want to talk about it…”

Honey sighed. “Just that…Gershon hasn’t been well lately. He hasn’t been sleeping well. Or eating well. He stopped bathing or changing his clothes. He walks around the neighborhood, talking to himself. Just ask anyone in the village. Even the Rav says there’s something terribly wrong. But Gershon won’t talk about it.”