It was a horrifying prospect, but if I wanted answers fast, there was only one way to get them. My sister had been missing for almost two days now, and I could not let my reluctance to face the Hopelys distract me. It was now after 5 p.m., so I figured Victoria would probably be home. I ignored the shouting reporters as I exited the car and headed toward the back of my house. Thankfully, the yard was too densely covered with trees for anyone to see me back here.
I was desperately craving a Xanax as I made my way toward the Hopelys’ house. My breath caught when I passed the spot where we’d found Alex’s body all those years ago. The sick, distorted image of her sprawled and lifeless on the ground had never left me.
I tried to summon my resolve as I approached the Hopelys’ front door. I really did not want to do this, but I owed it to Hazel.
I knocked loudly, and my acrylic nails jabbed into the palm of my hand. It took a full minute before the door opened, a full minute of me praying to anything I could think of that it wouldn’t be Mrs. Hopely who answered the door. When the door swung open, I gasped, my mouth instantly dry.
Alex stood in the doorway.
I couldn’t feel my hands. I was staring at a ghost, trying to process what I was looking at. Was I going insane?
After a beat of stunned silence, she spoke. “What doyouwant?” The familiar look of annoyance on her face made it click.Victoria.
I had forgotten how much she looked like her older sister. Logically I knew. I had spent the years after Alex’s death watching Cassandra and Victoria from afar. But the older Victoria had gotten, the more she had settledinto Alex’s features. Her hair was the same glossy shade, her nose a perfect ski slope.
“Seriously, Rose,” she said, her voice octaves higher than I remembered and dripping with vitriol, “why would you come here? To myparents’house? Or I guess it’s just my mom’s now. Thanks to fucking you.”
“Believe me, I didn’t want to come here,” I snapped. I had sworn to myself I would never step into this house again. “But I need to talk to you.”
Victoria rolled her eyes. “You have a lot of nerve. Do you have any idea what you did to us? Your awful book was everywhere. I literally couldn’t escape it.” Her voice turned shrill. “Everywhere I went, people were talking about Alex, about us. I had to hear your lies repeated over and over.”
“I never lied,” I retorted.
Victoria’s eyes narrowed. “Are you kidding me? You told the world that myfatherkilled Alex.”
I flinched. Okay, I had lied about that one thing, but the rest had been entirely true.
“I wanted to sue you,” Victoria continued. “I would have, except my dad—” She choked a little on the word and shook her head. Her long fingers moved to her temples as she tried to calm herself down. This was not going to go well. I should just leave. The only thing that kept me rooted in place was Hazel.
“Look, Victoria, I am sorry about your father.” This was both true and untrue. I was sorry for her, that she’d had to endure another loss, but I had my reasons for what I did. Reasons I just did not plan to share with Victoria now. “But I’m not here to get into my book, or any of that.”
“How convenient,” Victoria said darkly.
I tried to focus. “I’m here about Hazel. You know she’s missing right?”
Victoria’s face softened slightly, and I took it as a good sign. It was hard for anyone to hate Hazel.
“Yes, I heard,” Victoria said tentatively.
“We’re trying to figure out where she could be,” I said, seeing no reason to beat around the bush. “Listen, I know you hate me. I get it. But I promise you, the only reason I’m here is because I think my sister came to see you. I just need to know if that’s the case, and then you’ll never hear from me again.”
Victoria’s lips parted and a small look of concern crossed her face. It was all I needed as a confirmation.
“I did talk to her,” Victoria said, letting her guard down.
“What about?” I pressed, and she sighed. She looked past me toward the empty driveway and closed the door behind her. She gestured to the two rocking chairs on their front patio. “Let’s sit.”
I was grateful that Victoria hadn’t suggested we go inside. I couldn’t even imagine the emotions that would surface. I sat stiffly in one of the rocking chairs while Victoria curled up like a pretzel in hers. She was barely looking at me.
“I talked to Hazel about a week ago,” she said, wrapping her arms around her knees. “She came by and wanted to ask me about what happened back then. And honestly, I was a little harsh with her.” Victoria looked guilty. “I don’t have anything against Hazel, obviously. She is a nice girl …” With that she gave me a dirty look that saidUnlike you.
“I asked her if this was some kind of fact-finding mission for you,” Victoria continued. “The very last thing I wanted to do was give you any ammunition for another book. But she swore she hadn’t spoken to you about this. She only wanted to know more about that guy at the mall. Honestly, I didn’t even know who she was talking about at first, but then I told her what I knew: Alexgave Nick her number. They texted. You know this too. It wasn’t that deep. They were literally eighteen.”
Easy for her to say. Her brother wasn’t in jail for a crime he didn’t commit.
“I couldn’t even tell why she wanted to know,” Victoria continued.
“Did you tell her anything else?”
