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Present day
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Scuttling through the trees, Rose came out into the clearing. She didn’t want to relive that night, but she didn’t have a choice if she wanted to stop The Midnight Flower. This was the only way to find out what had happened to her sister. Spencer stood on guard next to her, watching her cautiously as she retraced their steps and summarized what had happened one year ago. They moved through their actions as well as they could remember, then went back to her house afterward to recap.
“And after you saw Lily riding her bike . . . nothing else happened?” Rose prompted, tapping a pen against her notebook.
“That was the last time I saw your sister,” Spencer answered.
“Okay. It’s impossible to know where she went after that. Whether she rode her bike around the neighborhood or went somewhere else . . . I can’t imagine her leaving our neighborhood so late at night, especially by herself. Our parents didn’t let us go out that late.”
“Yeah, but you clearly broke that rule too,” Spencer said pointedly.
“I know. But I don’t think Lily would have snuck out if I hadn’t done it first. She only came out that night because she wanted to hang out with us.”
“Didn’t the police go over all of this when your parents reported her as missing last year?” Spencer asked.
“Yeah, but they could have missed something. The police aren’t perfect. They never found her.” Rose chewed on her lip.
“Well, yeah, but she’s been gone for almost a year, Rose. Do you really think she’s still out there somewhere?”
Tears formed in her eyes. She blinked slowly, trying to prevent herself from collapsing. “Spence, please . . .”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to . . . Sorry.” He stumbled lamely over his words, then wrapped his arms around her, holding her against his chest and comforting her the best way he knew how.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Rose continued, “The anniversary of the day she went missing is next week. I want to have a memorial for everyone to remember her and celebrate her life. I think it will be good for my parents too. They never talk about her, even when I mention her name. They act like she never existed, but she did. I miss her and want to honor her life.”
“That’s a great idea, Rose. Let me know how I can help. I’ll do whatever you need.”
“Thanks.” She sniffled. “Maybe we can rent out the cultural center downtown. That would be the perfect event space for this.”
“I’ll do some research. I can ask my mom for help too. She still volunteers at the cultural center sometimes,” Spencer offered.
Rose turned to Spencer and buried her head in his chest, wanting to disappear. Sometimes she thought about how different her life would be if Lily was still here, if she still had a sister. If she didn’t have overprotective, ultra-paranoid parents who watched her every move. Her life would be normal.
Other times, she couldn’t make herself believe Lily was gone, and she pretended her younger sister was out there in the world somewhere. She could have run away and started over somewhere new. But Rose knew that was unlikely. Where would Lily have gone and why would she run away? Lily had only been twelve when she went missing, and the police never found any trace of her. It was as if she had vanished.
***
It was the day of the memorial. Rose’s parents struggled to talk about Lily, so Rose didn’t push them too much. They had agreed to pay for the memorial and to show up shortly before the event started. It would be weird if her own parents weren’t there.
Spencer had volunteered to help. He was by her side every day, helping her pick out photos to use for the remembrance video, giving her notes on her speech, and recommending snacks and drinks for everyone who attended. She had never been more thankful for her best friend than she was during that week.
Smoothing out her silky, black skirt, Rose checked herself out in the large rectangular mirror in the bathroom she used to share with Lily. Her black, lacy, short-sleeved blouse was immaculate, but she straightened it out, anyway. She ran a hand through her wavy, red hair and touched up her makeup, which she rarely wore, but today seemed like a good enough occasion to pull out all the stops.
As Rose debated if she should chance wearing high heels or wear her flat silver sandals, the doorbell rang.
A moment later, her mom called from downstairs, “Rose, Spencer’s here!”
“Coming!” she yelled back.
Rose slipped on the silver sandals, then threw her keys, wallet, and a few other items into her purse and went downstairs. Her mouth nearly dropped open when she laid her eyes on Spencer. On a daily basis, he was adorable, but this was an entirely different level of hotness. His curly, light brown hair was shiny and freshly combed. He wore a dark gray dress shirt with black slacks and dress shoes.
When their eyes met, he smiled at her in awe, and she knew he felt the same.
“You look beautiful, Rose,” he whispered in a voice so sexy she felt her face flushing while her mom stood by the doorway watching them.
“Thanks, you too,” she responded, tucking her hair behind her ear.
“You look very handsome, Spencer,” her mom said with a smile.
“Mom, we’re going there early to set up.” Her mom’s smile became strained. “See you later?” Rose said.
“Yes, sweetie, we’ll be there,” her mom choked out. She took off down the hallway toward her bedroom, and the door slammed soon after.
Rose’s gaze dropped to the floor. Tears sprang to her eyes. She didn’t try to stop them from falling. It was a tough day, and her sister was gone. She didn’t need to keep her emotions in check. It was okay if she cried.
Spencer came over to her and tipped her chin up so her green eyes met his hazel eyes.
“I’m here for you. Always,” he promised.
“I know. Thank you. I don’t know what I would do without you.” She wrapped her arms around him, falling into his familiar embrace.
“Luckily, you won’t have to find out. I’m yours for as long as you want me.” He winked.
“I don’t think I’ll change my mind anytime soon,” she said cheekily, trying to lighten the subject.
“Ah, how romantic. You’re making me swoon, Ms. Blackwood,” Spencer joked, rubbing her back with one hand while he held her other hand in his.
Rose smiled and shook her head. “Should we get going?”
“Sure. Where’s the stuff we need to bring? I’ll load up my car.”
Rose pointed to the family room. “There are some boxes in there.”
Spencer jogged over to the boxes, with Rose following him. Rose handed him the heaviest box and picked up a lighter one, full of photos. With a grunt, Spencer carried the box to his car, loaded it into the trunk, then took the box Rose was holding from her arms.
When they had finished loading the car, Spencer opened the passenger door and Rose got inside the car. They arrived downtown. Spencer struggled to find a parking spot and had to circle the nearby streets multiple times before he had no choice but to go in a parking garage. All the parking lots close to the cultural center were full. There was a festival going on downtown, so the streets were packed.
Together, they brought the boxes into the cultural center and started setting up for the memorial. Rose couldn’t believe her parents weren’t there with her. She hoped they didn’t back out at the last minute. It felt wrong that they weren’t at the one-year anniversary memorial of their missing daughter. Didn’t they care about Lily? Didn’t they want to remember her?
Fuming, Rose accidentally ripped a white streamer in half as her anger got the best of her.
“You okay?” Spencer questioned, moving closer to her. He had been across the room, hanging the rest of the streamers throughout the lobby.
Rose held the broken streamer in her hands and let it fall to the ground and curl against the dark hardwood flooring. A sob escaped from her mouth like a creature waiting to be unleashed from captivity. Wordlessly, Spencer pulled her into his arms and tucked her head against his chest, running one hand through her hair and whispering soothing words to her. Rose didn’t know how long they stayed like that—her crying and Spencer comforting her—until she heard someone clear their throat, and she broke away from Spencer.
Kasey waved hello to them awkwardly. “Are you two together?” she asked with an impish grin.
“Oh, uh—” Rose started.
At the same time, Spencer said, “Yes.”
Kasey laughed. “Okay, then. Good for you guys. I always wondered why you weren’t dating. You’re cute together. No one else is here yet? Do you need help setting up?”
Rose wiped her cheeks and groaned. “I bet my makeup is ruined. Do I look like a mess?”
“Of course not,” Spencer said, ever the wonderful boyfriend.
“You can go to the bathroom to touch up your makeup. I’ll help Spencer with whatever is left,” Kasey offered.
“Thank you.” Rose snagged her purse from the table where she had left it and headed to the bathroom.
Staring at her reflection in the mirror, she swiped away the clumps of mascara underneath her eyes and re-applied her makeup. When she put the makeup back in her purse, she found an item that hadn’t been in there before: a new note from The Midnight Flower.
Her arm hairs stood on end as she wildly searched the bathroom for a sign that someone had been inside, but no one else was in there.
When had The Midnight Flower put the new note in her bag?