Page 52 of 44.1644° North
I think Simon had forgotten that. He was silent. Then he said, “I know you and your friend were digging through theWeekly’s archives yesterday. So? What did you want to know?”
Instead of answering, I said, “Did you know Hastings PD thinks they’ve identified Deirdre’s killer—and that they believe that person is dead?”
He turned his head, staring out across the vast emptiness of sky. “I know.”
I wasn’t completely surprised. “Are they right?”
“About Milo?” Simon seemed to think it over. “I don’t know. I hope not.”
Thatdidsurprise me.
“You never formed any opinion over all these years?”
“He was a good son and a good brother. That’s all I know. That’s all I want to know.”
I said gently, “He was just a kid himself when it all happened.”
That seemed to unlock the wellspring. Simon said hotly, “Hewasa kid. He wouldn’t have hurt her. He wouldn’t have hurt anyone. Not knowingly. Not deliberately. Whatever happened, happened. I can tell you this: it ruined his life. It haunted him.”
It ruined a lot of peoples’ lives. Including Deirdre’s. I didn’t say that. I said, “Whatdidhappen?”
Simon shook his head. “I told you. I don’t know. I don’t know the details. Milo never talked about it. Any of it.”
Okay, that had to be a lie. Maybe Milo hadn’t sat down and given his kid brother a blow-by-blow, but obviously there had been some conversation with family members. I didn’t call Simon on it, though. Didn’t say anything.
Simon said quietly, “I don’t know if he drove off that bridge on purpose. I do know he never got over it. Maybe it would have been better if hehadbeen arrested.”
“Maybe.” I gave him a minute. “Was he working at the Loon Mountain resort? I know there were rumors.”
“The Loon Mountain Three.” His smile was bleak. “I haven’t heard that in years. I didn’t think anyone remembered. Yes. He worked at the resort. At the lodge.”
Who else was in the car that night?”
“No one.”
“Then why did people think there were three boys coming back from the resort?”
“Why do people think any of the things they do? I don’t know. No one else was in the car.”
“Are you sure? Because if you weren’t there, how do—”
“Me? Hell, no, I wasn’t there. Winter break was over. I was in school.”
“Then how can you be sure there was no one else in the car? Maybe your brother lied to protect someone else?”
“No.”
“Did he have a best friend?”
Simon said impatiently, “What does that have to do with anything? My brother had a lot of friends.”
“Did he have a particular friend at the lodge?”
He said coldly, “I don’t know anything more than I’ve already told you.”
The winter wind whispered down the back of my neck. I shivered.
“The rumor is that three boys who were either working at the resort or were skiing there that week—”
