“That’s possible,” the female cop said.Thank God. “Where were you, exactly, when the accident happened?” Her eyes were kind, but still, the question was anythingbut; I wanted to bolt from the room.
I did my best to explain that I wasn’t anywhere near Blair, that I was hanging out in the water near the dock with Tommy.
“Did you see anything suspicious? Anything at all?”
My mind went back to the old boathouse and the door that was ajar. I mentioned that, that I’d never noticed it open before, but that other than that, no, nothing out of sorts.
“Well, could be like you said. She’s on so much medication that she might’ve been excited to see you, so she went to thej.”
Of course, I know, with a feeling of sickly dread, that Blair knew exactly what she was doing.
78
Charleigh
Jackson’s on his way home, thank God in heaven. Charleigh sighs to herself, cradling her first cup of Folgers.
She doesn’t think her nerves will last another second without seeing him.
She called him again, late last night, waking him up, telling him all about the police and Nellie’s date with Luke. Leaving out the part, though, where she quite generously bribed Luke to ask her daughter out.
“So can you please come the fuck home now? My whole system is on overdrive, and my partner is MIA.”
“Yes! And I got what I needed here, so—”
“Ooooh, do tell! What’s the lucky guy’s name—”
“No, not that, but I have a lot to share, too. I’ll head home first thing.”
The sec she hung up with Jackson, the phone rang. She figured it was him again, but then Kathleen’s mousy voice squeaked across the line. “I just went and visited Monica and Blair, and, my God, this is getting stranger by the second!” She almost sounded excited, which grossed Charleigh out.
“Okay, what now?” Charleigh pinched the phone cord between her perfectly manicured nails.
“Well, the cops were there earlier and asked her to spell outthe name of who she saw, who might’ve done this to her—”
Charleigh felt herself gulp, felt herself struggle to take a breath. With utter dread, she said, “Go on.”
“They had this sheet with letters printed on it, and anyway,she pointed to the letterj. Which is crazy, right?”
Crazy, why?Charleigh thought.Because she didn’t go to the lettern?
“I don’t know. I don’t know what that means” is all Charleigh could muster because her body was sagging with relief, a helium balloon with the air being let out of it.
“Well, that Jane girl was there, at the hospital visiting, and so they are thinking that’s maybe why Blair chose the letter—like she’s mixed up or something—becauseobviouslyshe and Jane are friends, and Jane would never—”
“Nobody knows that! That Jane girl and her family are weird as hell. I’ve said it from the moment they hit town. So—”
“Well, nobody’s really thinking that, but itisweird, isn’t it? And poor Blair, that’s all she could manage. She passed back out right after.”
Charleigh was having a hard time focusing on Kathleen’svoice. It was as if the heavens had opened up and it was the day of rapture. “Huh? Yeah, whatever. Keep me posted.” She dropped the phone on the receiver, then blew out a sizable exhale, a breath she’d been holding ever since Blair’s accident.
Jane Swift.
So Nellie’s not the only one who wasn’t all that happy about Luke and Blair being in the woods together.
After Kathleen called, she waited up for Nellie to come home from her date, and by all accounts—not that Nellie spilled a word, but she looked cheery and springy on her feet when she waltzed through the front door—the date with Luke was a success.
“Seriously, you’re waiting up for me? Get a life.” Nellie huffed as she blew past her mother on her way up the stairs.
