But I could feel it in every part of my body.
I want to refuse, but what if this is it? What if this is the path that will lead me to answers to what happened to Zoey? I already have an idea of what occurred, but I need evidence to confirm it. I can’t back out yet. I need a little more time.
Just a bit more of this.
I can handle this.
I have to for Zoey.
So her memory can finally breathe freely.
Me: All right, I’m in.
9
AVA
Clara and I are quiet during the drive to my mother’s house. She’s uneasy and keeps fidgeting with her bracelet, readjusting the size as if her wrist is somehow growing.
“We’ll be fine,” I assure her as I make the turn off the main road lined with a house every so often. “And you can wait in the car if you want.”
She swiftly shakes her head. She is wearing a pair of sunglasses, and her hair is pulled into a messy bun. “Like hell I’m going to let you go into that house by yourself.”
I shift gears. “I’ll be fine.” I’m donning sunglasses as well, but the sunlight creeping through the clouds feels blinding against my throbbing headache.
“I saw what happened yesterday between Jason, you, and your mother. You won’t be fine if any of them are here. Plus, a girl was found dead the other day. The last thing you need to be doing is wandering around by yourself.”
I think about the cut on my back:slut.
It was almost a match to what Camilla showed me on her stomach while we were near the crime scene yesterday:vain.And according to rumors, allegedly the dead girl found in the park had a word branded onto her flesh as well:whore.
Slut.
Vain.
Whore.
Camilla had also speculated that the murder occurred because of my return to Star Meadows. But if that’s true, why?
And if that is the case, then did someone kill my father to lure me here?
That thought strikes me out of nowhere and scares the fucking hell out of me. But maybe I’m reaching. It seems unbelievable to think about. But so does everything else that’s occurred.
I finish the drive to my mother’s house, lost in my thoughts and worries. Instead of parking the car out front, I decide to steer it toward a turnout located on the side of my parents' property, where the towering trees are so thick that the area is relatively concealed. Parking here allows the car to remain conspicuous, so no one should know we’re here.
I roll the windows down for Bailey, who’s in the backseat. His ears are perked up, and he’s peering around, nervousness radiating from him. No cars are parked in the driveway or nearby, and yet my nerves are on edge.
“Let’s make this quick,” I state the obvious as I pocket the keys and phone, then push open the door to get out.
“That goes without saying,” Clara says, climbing out of the car as well.
We meet at the front of the car and hike the short walk to the house. It doesn’t dawn on me until I go to twist the knob of the front door that my mother would lock the house. She used to hide a key beneath a rock that’s beside the front porch, so I hurry over to it and luck out.
“Some things never change,” I mumble as I return to the front door with the key in my hand and unlock it.
“Yeah, your mother doesn’t seem like the type to change much,” Clara remarks as she wraps her arms around herself. She starts to follow me inside but pauses. “Are we sure no one’s home?” she whispers.
“The front door was locked,” I point out as I close the front door behind us.
