LILY: Eddie Carter must be punished.
PSYCHO: I have to leave for work soon. What’s the plan? When and where do we meet?
CLEO: Saturday. After he works out, I’ll be inside his Ford Escape, waiting for him. With the help of my Glock, I’m going to convince him to drive to the same abandoned warehouse off Power Inn Road where we took Otto Radley. And that’s where he’ll stay for a night or two.
PSYCHO: How do you plan to get inside the car without a key?
CLEO: Easy. I have a mini airbag and a long reach tool. I watched a how-to video on YouTube.
PSYCHO: Nice. I’ll stay close to the gym early Saturday, then follow you to the warehouse.
LILY: What happens when you arrive at the warehouse?
CLEO: My target will be blindfolded and his wrists bound when we get to where you and Malice will be waiting. Be ready to toss questions his way, one after another. We’re going to cross-examine him, make him sweat, let him know he’s scum. I want to scare the shit out of him, threaten to do to him what we did to Brad Vicente. When it’s over, I’m going to let him know that his cushy little life is over. I’m going to video his face up close as he admits to everything he did. Then I’ll send a copy of the video to his wife and the police. Once he’s good and scared, we’ll leave him alone for the night.
LILY: What about his car?
CLEO: I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry.
MALICE: That’s it? Just leave him alone in the warehouse?
CLEO: That’s it. See you all Saturday.
After everyone signed off, Harper did the same. She then did a quick search on Eddie Carter. He had attended UCSD and was a part of Delta Sigma Phi. A friend of his on Facebook had posted an old photo that showed well over a dozen young men standing in front of a large colonial house with a wraparound porch.
She had to dig deeper to find anything about the time Eddie and his friends spent in the courtroom. But there it was at the end of an article about fraternities in Chico. Just a small paragraph titled FRAT BOYS WRONGLY ACCUSED. The header said it all.
And just like that, quick as a wink, images of a shadowy figure popped into her mind: Harper lying in bed, praying he wouldn’t come tonight. But that didn’t stop the man from walking into her room, slipping out of his clothes, and climbing into bed with her. The smell of whiskey clung to him. He brushed his stubby fingers through her hair, pressed his nose to her neck, and inhaled. “My sweet Harper. You’ll always be Daddy’s little girl.”
Her brain shut down. Her body stiff, she closed her eyes.
A few minutes passed in silence. And then like a bomb that had been detonated, Harper jumped up from the couch, marched through the kitchen, and opened the door that led to a small shed in the side yard where she kept cleaning supplies—bucket, brush, scouring pads, ammonia, and liquid bleach.
The lasagna would have to wait. It was time to get to work. The house was a mess. Sheets needed to be washed. Mattresses needed to be turned over, and bathrooms needed to be scoured.
CHAPTER SEVEN
For too many reasons to count, it had been months since Sawyer had sat at her oldest sister’s dinner table. But here she was, her heart beating so fast she wondered if it might explode.
Harper had wanted to meet Sawyer’s boyfriend, Derek. Sawyer never should have accepted the invitation. It was too soon in their relationship. Chances were good she’d never see Derek again after tonight. But then again . . . if he couldn’t accept her family for who they were, then why would she care?
Derek looked at her. “Are you okay?”
“I think I’m having a heart attack. We should go.”
He smiled. “Take a breath. It’s going to be fine. It looks like both of your sisters have gone to a lot of trouble.”
It was true. The house was cleaner than ever, which was saying a lot. Harper’s best dishes and a vase of fresh flowers adorned the table. And both her sisters were in the kitchen, where Sawyer could hear pans clanking and knives chopping.
She and Derek had arrived five minutes ago. Harper and Aria had looked slightly frenzied as they introduced themselves. Aria then ran back to the kitchen, muttering something about the bread in the oven, while Harper explained that the kids were washing up. She’d told them to take a seat at the table and they would all be joining them in a minute.
“Maybe we should offer to help,” Derek said.
Sawyer shook her head. “She’s a control freak. She wouldn’t allow it.”
“Lennon! Ella!” Harper shouted from the kitchen. “It’s time to eat.”
Ella was the first to appear. She ran to Sawyer’s side and squeezed her tight. Lennon joined them too and took a seat at the table across from Sawyer.
After Ella pulled away Sawyer said, “I’d like you both to meet my friend, Derek.”
Lennon and Derek shared a nod.
“Friend or boyfriend?” Ella asked, her eyes scanning every inch of him.
Derek looked at Sawyer and lifted a brow in question.
“I don’t think there’s a difference, is there?” Sawyer asked. “I mean, he’s a boy and he’s a friend.”
Lennon laughed.
Sawyer wrinkled her nose. “What?”
“There’s a big difference,” Lennon said. “Friends hang out. Girlfriends do more than that. They don’t just hug.”
“They kiss too!” Ella said.
Derek laughed.
“Exactly,” Lennon told his sister. “Girlfriends also expect you to support them emotionally and spend time with them. They like to talk about the future and stupid things like that.”
Derek and Sawyer exchanged looks, both struggling not to burst out laughing.
“Do girlfriends want to get married?” Ella asked.
“Some of them do,” Lennon said, his eyes wide. “It’s scary. That’s why I don’t have a girlfriend.”
Harper walked into the dining room, wearing oven mitts and carrying a steaming dish of lasagna that she set on the table. “This is hot, so don’t burn yourself. Ella, could you please grab the basket of garlic bread from the kitchen and bring it out here?”
Ella ran off just as Aria appeared with a wooden bowl filled with salad and placed it next to the lasagna.
Ella returned with the bread and then took a seat next to Derek. “Girlfriends dress up more than friends do, I think,” she added as if she’d never left the room.
Harper took a seat at the head of the table. “What is she talking about?”
Derek chuckled. “She asked Sawyer if I was a friend or a boyfriend, and we still haven’t gotten an answer, have we, Ella?”
Ella shook her head. “No. Aunt Sawyer has not answered.”
Before Sawyer could say a word, her brother-in-law walked through the front door. Nate had spent the past few weeks working on a project in another state. His hair was longer, his beard fuller. Sawyer had heard through the grapevine—Aria—that Nate and Harper weren’t getting along and needed a break from each other.
“Dad’s home!” Ella jumped out of her seat and ran to him. Her thin arms curled around Nate’s legs.
Nate dropped his duffel bag to the floor and knelt down for a proper hug.
Lennon joined them.
And then Harper.
“Did you know he was returning tonight?” Sawyer asked Aria in a low voice.