Nate’s jaw clenches. His eyes flash with hatred. “He tried to hurt you. He tried to hurtDani.”
—
I want totell Nate that Marta has the video, but I don’t know how he’d react. Now isn’t the right time.
Instead, I put my head on his chest and thread my arms around his torso. “Remember what the detective said—his alibi fell through,” I remind him. “This is almost over.”
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Maya
August 2023
I’m in a deep sleepwhen a loud sound rips through the silence. A guttural scream.
I jerk awake.What the hell was that?I sit up, filled with adrenaline, heart kicking against my rib cage. Holding my breath, I sit perfectly still, waiting for it to happen again.
The silence stretches. Nothing but wind. Crickets. I instinctively reach for Nate next to me, but instead I just feel the sheets, cool beneath my fingers.
There must be a rational explanation for why he’s not here: He couldn’t sleep. He needed something from the house.
As I stand, I’m suddenly dizzy, my head throbbing with a splitting headache.How many drinks had I had last night? Three? Four?I grasp onto the side table for support. After steadying myself, I make my way to the door and peer into the night. The wind rattles the shutters.
The pool glows under a full moon, and beyond it the lawn is dark. No sign of Nate. The windows on the main house are black save for one rectangle of light emanating from an upstairs bedroom.
On the counter, the new phone I bought, still without a case, lights up and vibrates. It vibrates again. I pick up the phone—four o’clock—and open the message.
It’s from Kai.Are you awake?
I text her back:Did you hear that noise?
Kai:Come over to the main house. I’m in the kitchen.
Tossing a loose sweater over my shoulders, I shove the phone into my pocket and rush out the door.
The air outside is chilly. The lawn wet beneath my shoes as they sink into the grass. As I cross the lawn, anxiety grips my chest. I’m halfway to the house when a bright light slices across my vision, startling me.
“Maya?” Kai grips a flashlight. She rushes over, barefoot, clutching her robe. Her eyes are wide with panic as she catches her breath.
“What’s going on? Have you seen Nate?”
Kai frowns. “No, why? I heard a scream, and when I looked outside, there were headlights on the road right outside the gate. That’s when I texted you—I texted everyone—we should check the cameras.”
But without Margaret, who isn’t answering, we don’t have access to the cameras. I follow her up the back stairs and we cross through the kitchen. We reach the front of the house and step out to the front yard, which is empty besides a few of the staff’s parked cars. Without the wind, the shriek of crickets feels threatening.
“What about Margaret? Should we wake her up?”
“I don’t want to bother her.” She shakes her head. “It could’ve been a neighbor’s car. And an animal or something earlier.”
Kai and I go back inside and do a full scan of the house, checking windows and rooms for signs of a break-in. Nothing.
Back in the kitchen, Kai removes a bottle of pills from the cabinet. “We’re flying to Milan today and then it’s a long car ride to Como. I need sleep.” She unscrews the cap and shakes two into her hand. “Here.” She hands me one. “Ambien. It’ll help you get back to sleep. No offense, but you look like you need it.” She gives me a flashlight to get back to the pool house.
—
After Kai leaves,I run a glass under the faucet and place the pill on my tongue and take a long sip of the cool water.Maybe it was nothing.
I’m about to turn back for the pool house when something catches my eye: a sliver of light runs jagged across the room, illuminating the knife block. And…one of them is missing.
