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“You sound like a fucking robot,” I snap.

Regina watches the doorway and, in a hushed voice, urges me. “Go to bed and keep your thoughts to yourself. Don’t repeat what you just said. There is no Constellation Killer. If you suggest there is, I will have you committed. For your own good, erase whatever memory you just uncovered from your mind.”

Chapter 25

“Where the fuck is it?” I mutter, stomping into the kitchen after nearly ripping my room apart. I scan the kitchen island and counters, and everything is pristine. My phone is nowhere in sight.

I grab my hair and rip it, and bite down on my tongue. It’s fruitless. Beth took it, just like she’s taken everything that makes me a functioning adult, leaving me more pathetic than I was when I was in captivity. Even then, I managed to keep myself alive for months, so perhaps I was better off alone.

The coffee machine gurgles, the aroma floating through the air, but no one is in sight. I grab a cup, desperate for any kind of pick-me-up, then lean on the island, taking a sip and enjoying the silence.

Regina doesn’t want to do a session today. She thinks my brain needs a break from the trauma, and I agree. Everyone in the house is conveniently ignoring me. Slipping from the room at the exact moment they hear me coming. The coffee brewing, a door shutting, shuffling footsteps. The wind outside is slamming against the house.

They are all hiding something, slithering away into the shadows. I have to accept the undeniable truth: my family is the root cause of it all.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

My forehead throbs, and I press my fingers over my temples, checking the clock, and listening to the nearby faucet. I have to meet Sarah Crawley at three PM, but there’s no way Beth will let me leave the house, especially after my episode yesterday.

To my surprise, Regina and Beth both walk into the kitchen. Beth is wearing a coat. They both startle when they notice me, as if I’m nothing but a ghost. Beth draws her eyes to the knife block, but she’s already hidden all of them. “Where are you going?” I ask her.

Beth frowns. “There was another break-in at one of our yards. This one was on Enger Road. It was bad. I need to help your father. It’s an absolute mess. Regina’s going to stay with you.”

A smile hints at my lips, but I try not to let them see any emotion. If my mom suspects anything, she won’t go. Whatever happened must have been bad for her to leave me like this, especially in the state I’m in.

“Will you be okay?” Regina asks me. “I’ll just be in the living room if you need anything.”

I take another sip of coffee, keeping my eyes fixed on hers. “I’ll be fine.” She’s a liar. And now I’m determined to expose her too.

Beth nods. “Okay. Just rest and clear your mind.”

Clear my mind. She wants me to forget him. Make him disappear. As if I could ever do that. He’s always here…inside my head.

Beth grabs the keys from a hook on the wall. “You don’t need a reminder that I have cameras outside every door. One slight movement and I’ll know immediately.” She walks up to me, reaching her hand out and hesitating. I bristle. “Layla, I’m sorry about last night. I believe you saw footsteps, I really do. If anyone comes back, we will see them.”

She’s apologizing now? Beth Ashby, master fucking manipulator. This massive house. The generational money we have. Nothing is real. Was she willing to lose her kill for it?

“Mom?”

She glances up at me, and it gives me smug satisfaction that she has bags under her eyes. Her guilt is eating her from the inside too. “What is it, honey?”

“Did Dad check the camera last night? Did anyone tamper with it?”

She shakes her head. “Not that we can see. We watched the footage, and there were no delays. No one was here.”

I falter, wishing that were true, but also terrified that it’s not. “It’s this town, Mom. Everything is getting to me.”

Regina places a hand on Beth’s back and keeps her eyes on me. I tense up as a tear runs down my cheek. “I’m going back to bed,” I say. Maybe I can sleep my way out of whatever twilight zone I’m living in.

Beth frowns. “That’s a good idea. Regina will be back and offered to stay with you while I’m gone.”

I stare down at the floor. “I’m going back to my room now.”

Beth folds her arms. “Keely called the house this morning asking for you.”

I dart my eyes up to her. “What did she say?”

“She says she needs to finish your conversation.”