“Tell me how Anne fits into it all.”
“A few of us met her at the convenience store, and Wendy, who always wants to know everything about everyone she meets, learned Anne was in Cambria visiting her aunt, and she invited Anne to join us.”
“She seemed nice,” Vaughn added. “A bit on the quiet side from what I recall, but she was kind to everyone.”
“Did she have anything to drink? And by drink, I mean alcohol.”
“If she did, I didn’t notice,” Tilly said. “While I was there, she stayed close to Wendy.”
“And you two?” I asked. “What were you doing?”
Vaughn looked down at the floor. “Arguing.”
Tilly’s jaw tightened, and they both went quiet.
“I know about the affair, and the baby,” I said. “You just told me it was supposed to be a great night, but from what I heard, you were suffering even before you got there. I can’t imagine it would have been a great night for you either way.”
“I’d hoped having a bit to drink would help drown out my emotions. It did the opposite. I had too much to drink, and before I knew it, I’d confessed everything.”
“What happened next?”
“Everything blew up,” Vaughn said. “Everyone was weighing in with their opinions and judgments. It was too much for me to handle, so I left.”
“When?”
“Earlier than most, I guess.”
“Did you drive?”
He shook his head. “I walked.”
I turned toward Tilly. “What did you do?”
“I went after him. I thought if I could talk to him, maybe we could salvage our relationship.”
“Are you saying you left together?” I asked.
“Not together,” Vaughn said. “I left first. Then she chased after me.”
“Did either of you see Anne again after that?”
“No,” Tilly said.
“Did you see who she was with when you left?”
They shook their heads in unison, and Tilly said, “I was so caught up in what had happened that night, I didn’t give Anne another thought—not until we found out she was missing.”
“And that’s when the group met again,” I said.
“Yes,” Vaughn said. “We were all still angry, but when we realized we might have been the last people to see her, we set aside our grievances so we could figure out what to do next.”
“And you all decided to make a pact.”
“I’m ashamed to say we did,” Tilly said. “We agreed that if any of us were interviewed by the police, we’d all say we were together that night, but we wouldn’t mention the fact that Anne was with us.”
“We were afraid,” Vaughn said. “Afraid if she wasn’t found, one of us could be blamed for something we didn’t do.”
“And no one questioned that decision later?” I asked.
