“Do you have any idea what this is going to do to him?” Suzannah’s voice was shrill. “What you’re accusing him of?”
I ignored her, focusing on the click as Tommy answered on the second ring.
“Dad?” Tommy sounded panicked. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s Rose.” My voice was stronger than I expected it to be.
“What happened? Where’s Dad?” Tommy was worried. I felt my resolve weaken. This wasTommyon the phone. My little big brother.
I clutched the phone. “Where is she, Tommy?”
Tommy’s voice was panicked. “Who? What are you talking about?”
It sounded so sincere. Could he honestly not know? Was he lying? Would he forgive me if I was wrong?
“Hazel,” I said carefully. “Where is Hazel?”
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. A flicker of hesitation. My chest constricted in pain.
“Rose—” he said quickly.
“Did you kill her, Tommy?” I asked, my voice breaking in two. I didn’t even know which girl I was asking about. Hazel or Alex.
Suzannah reached for the phone, trying to pull it out of my hands. My father held her back, a few steps away from us. The silence on the other end was unbearable.
“Did you kill Alex?!” I shrieked into the phone.
More silence, broken only by Daisy and Felix’s chirps in the background.
“Tommy, please,” I said again, desperate now. “Is Hazel alive?”
I could hear his breathing turning heavy, like he was preparing to cry.
“Rosie.” Tommy’s voice was breaking now too. I could hear him crying. “I’m sorry. God, I am so sorry.”
He hung up. The phone fell into my lap. My sister was gone.
“What did he say?” Suzannah’s voice was quiet.
“He … he said he wassorry,” I choked.
Suzannah ripped herself from my father’s grip, yanking her own phone out of her jeans and frantically dialing. I heard the familiar voicemail greeting.Hey, it’s Tommy. Leave a message.
I picked my father’s phone back up and scrolled through his contacts with shaking fingers until I found Detective Pullman.
“Hello?” Detective Pullman’s voice was clear. “Mr. Dearling?”
I could hardly think. “It was Tommy,” I said. “He killed Alex and Hazel.”
33
I lay there on the soiled rug. I could hear voices and doors slamming, but I didn’t care.Nothingmattered anymore.
My sister was dead. My brother had killed her, and he’d also killed Alex. I had been right all along. Will had been innocent. But none of that made it hurt any less. None of it made me less numb.
The world moved in and out of my consciousness. I heard officers enter the house. I heard them console my mother. I heard them speak to my father. I just lay there. Eventually someone guided me to my feet and out of the room. They were saying my name. They were asking me questions, but I couldn’t respond.
I found myself in the back of a police car with my father, who was completely silent. My mother and Suzannah were being taken to another one. Suzannah was inconsolable. An officer said my name again. He pressed a phone to my ear. It was mine. Someone had retrieved it for me.
