the truth get snared in cheap whiskey and weed and whatever else. I let it lie dormant at the back of my mind for months, unacknowledged, unexamined, until I came to Herron Mills. Until I learned about Zoe. Until the two stories—girls snatched by dark water—became inexorably tangled in my mind.
I let Mike convince me that Starr moved to Orlando the next week. He said she got a job at one of the theme parks, and it started right away. And I believed him. Why would he lie about something like that?
And no one looked for her. Not all girls have a family like Zoe’s. Starr had been estranged from hers since she was sixteen. Because of us, because of what we did, no one even knew she was missing.
Starr always talked about moving south, where it was warm. I missed her. I hated her for not writing back, not keeping in touch.
But mostly, I was happy for her.
Kaylee reaches out her arms, wraps them around my shoulders. I fold my head into her hair, her neck, her chest. And then I start to sob.
34 October
Herron Mills, NY
CADEN’S LATE. After school on Tuesday, Martina waits in the newer of the two coffee shops on Main, at a table near the door. She clicks her nails against her mug, an oversize ceramic bowl with a black and pink houndstooth pattern. This place is cute, but the coffee could be stronger.
She taps her phone, checks the time. He’s not really that late, only a few minutes. She was early, is nervous about seeing Caden in person. Now that she’s here, she just wants to get it over with.
It’s been five days since Martina and Aster went to the ruins of the Windermere stable. Five days since they were brought to the station for questioning—and Martina was swiftly released after Mrs. Talbot declined to press charges for trespassing. A small mercy. Mami and Dad were still furious, of course. She’s grounded until further notice, is only here right now because she lied about an after-school project. She checks her phone again. If Caden doesn’t show up soon, she’ll have to leave. She only has a few minutes.
Aster’s arraignment was yesterday. She’s grounded too, but at least she’s home, not in juvie. Martina hasn’t been able to reach her friend, knows she’s been charged with concealing her sister’s body, but not much more than that. She saw the officer collect the earring from the stable floor. She knows Aster was interviewed that night, and that she returned in the morning with her parents. That sometime after they left Windermere, Aster changed her mind about coming clean.
“Hey.” Martina’s head snaps up. Caden is pulling out a chair, unwrapping a scarf from around his neck, and sliding into the seat across from her. “Sorry I’m late. Took longer than I’d thought.”
“No problem.” Martina gives Caden a small smile. He’s only home for the night. She knows she’s lucky he agreed to meet her after finishing up at the station, giving a final witness statement to Holloway and Massey.
“I wanted—”
“I didn’t—”
They both speak at once, then Caden laughs. “You first, Jenkins.”
Martina clears her throat and takes a small sip of coffee. “I wanted to apologize. I was really frustrated last winter, with the way the investigation was going. I’m not sorry I kept bugging you for an interview, but the things I said in my ‘boyfriend theory’ episode, they weren’t entirely responsible. I was thinking about you as a suspect, not a person.”
“Thanks,” Caden says. “I appreciate that.”
Martina breathes and leans back in her chair. “How was, um … how was everything at the station?”
“You’re not recording this, are you?” Caden leans forward, a small smile playing across his lips.
“Scout’s honor,” Martina says. “The podcast is on hold for now. I need to do some sort of final episode, but I’m … Honestly, I’m not ready to go there yet. All this time, I’ve been trying to figure things out, get justice for Zoe’s family. But then …”
“But then the bad guy turned out to be Aster?”
“Yeah, something like that.” She drains her coffee. “Can I ask you something?”
Caden nods.
“The flash drive. Why did you leave it where someone could find it?”
“How did you—?” Caden starts to ask.
“Oh right. Um, Anna found it this summer, and the card for Zoe. Right before the fire.”
“Huh.” Caden scrubs his hand across his eyes, then drops it to rest on the table. “Okay. Well, I found Zoe’s flash drive in