Chapter 18: The Binder

On Sunday, Alana carried the binder into the dining room in both arms.

It was three inches thick and had been color-coded since the first week of October.

Knox's mother sat at the head of the table with her spoon in her hand, and Gran sat at her right in the best chair.

Knox sat beside me, with his hand on his knee and nothing on his face.

I had known since Wednesday that the text was not his.

I knew it from the colon, and from the way he had looked at his own phone when I showed him mine.

I did not yet know what else I did not know.

"Alana," said Knox's mother. "Put it down, dear. Open it to the front."

"Of course, honey," said Alana, and her headset slid a little on her head. "Which tab?"

"All of them," said Knox.

Alana opened it on the tablecloth and turned the pages with one finger.

The first tab was red, and it said FAMILY.

It held a guest list for Thanksgiving, the allergy chart, and a pencil sketch of the seating with Alana's name at the head.

I watched Knox's mother read down it, and her mouth went small.

"You made the Thanksgiving chart in October," she said.

"I like to be ahead," said Alana.

The second tab was yellow, and it said VIN (TEMPORARY).

It had my laminated schedule, photocopied.

It had a printout of my hospital's org chart, with my boss circled.

It had a page titled Replacement Options, in Alana's round hand, and it listed four names.

The first was Austin Merrill.

"Oh, I didn't make that up," Alana said quickly. "Those were her own."

Keep reading free with an account. Start Replacing Four Grooms in One Day from Chapter 1, then sign up free to read the rest of this chapter.