Declan jumps in. “It fits with what you were saying earlier, Ky. It does seem like quite strange timing for her to fall off the wagon, especially given how excited she was about the reunion.”
“But why?” Adrien considers.
Ellery takes this one. “Maybe drugs. A debt she didn’t repay or something. Or…” The alternative dangles there between us for a second. “Maybe it has something to do with Phoebe.”
My attention snaps towards her at this.
Ellery picks up steam. “I’m just thinking, Villanueva said someone from the Australian Abroad program likely killed Phoebe. Andit seems odd that Hari would die from a suspicious overdose on the exact day we were all meant to be getting back together.”
“So you think one of us killed her because Hari knew we were Phoebe’s murderer?” Adrien says it facetiously, but it rings true. Anxiety rushes through me.
“That’s ridiculous,” Kyan says. “We were all at my house last night. None of us could have drugged Hari.”
“Everyone went to bed fairly early, though,” Ellery says tentatively.
“Someone could have snuck out last night and done it,” I add, building on Ellery’s thought. “Or even gone to her house earlier in the day, before we got to Kyan’s, if the EMT is correct about the time Hari died.” My memory flicks back to earlier this morning. The whispers I overheard from down the hall.
The others’ eyes dart around the room. No one can bring themselves to make eye contact. Am I really standing in this room with a murderer?
Anothermurderer, a cruel voice in my head reminds me.
“Come on,” Kyan says, forcing out a laugh. “None of us killed Hari, obviously. This is just what Villanueva was saying earlier, screwing with our heads. We should go back to the house. I, for one, could use a cocktail.”
We mumble our agreement as we trail behind Kyan out of the apartment, Ellery using the key she finally found in Hari’s junk drawer to lock the front door.
I breathe in the air when we get outside, thankful to be out of that confined space. Darkness has fallen, and the harsh squeak of batscomes from nearby. Shadows fall across the others’ faces, making them look suddenly unfamiliar.
“It could have been someone else in our group,” Declan proposes weakly as we reach the street.
Adrien scoffs. “I’m pretty sure neither Tomas nor Phoebe killed Hari.”
Declan shakes his head. “That’s not what I mean, of course.”
“And Josh isn’t even here,” Kyan says.
“No,” Declan concedes, “but there was another person.”
I think back to the face staring out at me from the photo I held minutes ago. The sharp line of his mouth, the unexplained anger in his eyes. And despite the night’s heat, I shiver as I say his name.
“Nick Gould.”
***
“Does this happen to you often? People camping out in front of your gate?” Adrien asks as we pull up in front of Kyan’s house. It’s the first time any of us have spoken during the ride back from Hari’s, everyone lost in their thoughts.
I’ve considered calling the police, telling Villanueva my suspicions, having them run a fingerprint or DNA test on the second glass in Hari’s apartment to find out who it belonged to, but I keep thinking back to the EMT’s reaction.Fairly standard.Hari was an addict—they won’t waste precious public funds on her.
Plus, it’s not like Villanueva trusts any of us. She’s made that much clear.
Adrien’s question jars me back to the present. Kyan doesn’t answer, but sure enough, there’s someone standing there, waiting by his gate, a suitcase at their feet. In the darkness, it’s impossible to tell the person’s gender—let alone if we recognize them. Something about it feels wrong, off. Maybe it’s the shock still coursing through my veins, but I’m not up for any more surprises tonight.
Kyan slows the car, rolls down the window. “Can I help you?”
“I think you can,” the stranger replies.
And then the shoe drops, just as Declan voices my exact thought.
“What areyoudoing here?”
