Monday
February 5
Isaac’s eyes meet mine and we exchange a silent understanding. Sonny’s murder wasn’t an isolated incident, and we are not safe.
Isaac swallows hard and pulls his phone out of his jeans pocket.
My pulse pounds in my ears so hard I feel dizzy. Chace, Sienna, and Charlotte—they need to know what’s going on. I need to text them.
“Come on, Lylah, we’re going to the station to find Detective Lina,” Isaac says. “We’ll get the others to meet us there.”
He’s pulling on his coat by the front door, note in hand, waiting for me to get it together.
“I’m texting them now.” I tap a quick message. “Isaac,” I start, but I can’t continue, my voice shaking.
“I know. Let’s not panic and just go to the police, then we can do whatever they tell us to do. We’ll be safe there.”
Isaac flags the cops in the car outside and tells them what happened. The cops on patrol take us to the station.
Chace, Sienna, and Charlotte are waiting outside the station when we arrive, all of them looking nervous. The note is in Isaac’s pocket, and I can’t wait until the police have it and we never have to look at it again.
No one seems to know what to say to Isaac, because what do you say at a time like this?
Whoever is doing this knows our routine. The thought of someone so evil literally standing on our doorstep makes my skin crawl.
Inside, the officer at the reception desk calls Detective Lina to let her know we’re here.
“Do you think Sonny’s parents will want to see the notes?” I ask.
Chace shrugs. “I don’t know. But I imagine they’ll come by the house later now that they are in town.”
I’ve been wracking my brain all night, trying to think of something to say to them. They’ve come to collect his things, collect Sonny’s body, so they can bury him back in their hometown. There is nothing I can say to make any of that easier. Detective Lina and her partner, introduced to us as Alexander, meet us out front and usher us back to a conference room.
“Do you have it?” Detective Lina asks, pulling on a pair of disposable gloves from her pocket.
Isaac hands her the note he’s pinching right at the corner. “This one is addressed to me. Lylah found it. First Sonny, and now me.”
She takes the note and reads. Her forehead creases and her lips purse like she’s sucked on something sour. “Where was it?”
“It was left on our doorstep, like before,” I say.
“Jake is saying who he intends to murder next,” Isaac adds.
“Tell us again why you think this is from Jake. Does this sound like something he would do?” Detective Alexander asks.
Sighing, Isaac continues. “He’s strong enough to be able to, you know…kill. He has medical knowledge from his classes. He got rejected around Valentine’s Day last year by Lylah. The rest of us have hardly gone out of our way to keep in contact. Jake is the only person I can think of who would make sense…”
Chace reaches out and gives my hand a squeeze. I know we are thinking the same thing: You would need to know what you’re doing to cut out someone’s heart. You would also need to be physically very strong. Jake fits both.
“Have you contacted him yet?” Chace asks.
Detective Lina gives Chace a thin-lipped smile. “Why don’t you all take a seat in the waiting area. I’ll get this into evidence and then will come and speak with you all, okay?”
That sounds an awful lot like her trying not to say they have nothing—no ideas, no leads. What if they’ve spoken to Jake and believe he’s innocent? He has always been charming. I may not have had romantic feelings for him, but I thought he was a nice guy. I never thought he would give up his studies and leave school so suddenly, but he did. He wasn’t the type to shy away from difficult or uncomfortable situations, but people can surprise you. He didn’t come back after winter break, and he didn’t give anyone an explanation.
I’m still thinking about Jake as we head into the waiting room. It’s a basic room with three vinyl sofas arranged in a horseshoe shape, a vending machine for hot drinks, and a few dusty plastic plants. One wall is glass, so we can see the reception desk. I sit down with Chace and he finally lets go of my hand.
“Why is Jake doing this?” Charlotte mutters. “The notes, the flowers, Sonny, the heart knifed into the noticeboard.”
“At first I thought it was Sonny’s.” The words spew from my mouth before my brain engages. But Isaac is being threatened next, and who knows which one of us it will be after him. My friends can’t be kept in the dark anymore.
Chace’s breath catches, and I feel him looking at me. I don’t care.
“What?” Sienna rubs her face. “What do you mean?”
I have my friends’ undivided attention. “The police didn’t tell us this, probably because it could affect the investigation, but Chace overheard a conversation saying that Sonny’s…his heart was…missing when we found him,” I stammered. “But obviously the heart on the noticeboard was a pig’s.”
I expected an explosive reaction, but instead, I’m met with silence.
Chace’s hand lightly brushes my back, telling me I’ve done the right thing by telling them. “Sorry we couldn’t tell you earlier.”
“Are you okay, Isaac?” Sienna asks. Her face is pale.
He shakes his head and looks away. When Isaac shuts down, it’s usually best to give him space. Understandably, he needs some time to process, and we have to respect that.
Charlotte and Sienna begin talking in hushed voices, probably about Sonny’s heart.
Chace digs his wallet out of his pocket. “Do you want a coffee?” he asks me softly.
“I think I saw Jake the night we found Sonny,” I blurt. I keep my voice low so the conversation is just between us.
His eyebrow arches, and he sits forward, the drinks forgotten. “Where?”
“Outside, in the crowd. He was wearing a hoodie. He was staring at the house. Well, I think so. It was difficult to see since he was far away and it was dark.”
“Jesus. You should tell Detective Lina.”
“I know. I will when she comes back. Do you think it could be him?”
“Possibly. Seems a bit stupid to hang around though. Jake isn’t stupid.”
I hadn’t thought of that. “Right. No, he wouldn’t do that, would he?”
“It’s probably coincidental. I think I saw about ten people in hoodies that night.”
He’s right. That guy only caught my eye because he seemed like he was watching our house. God, I hate second-guessing myself. I was sure at the time, but now I feel stupid.
“I’ll get you a coffee,” Chace says and squeezes my hand.
I watch him get up and walk over to the vending machine where the rest of our friends are settled. He brings me a hot Styrofoam cup.
Bowing my head, I prepare myself for yet more waiting.
• • •
“How long do you think we will be here?” I ask them after what feels like hours. I look at the clock on the wall—it’s only been twenty minutes.
Isaac shrugs, Charlotte doesn’t move, Sienna takes a breath, and Chace says, “I have no idea.”
I stand and start pacing. After a few minutes, I expand my territory out to the lobby. I’m going out of my mind waiting and drinking coffee. The caffeine was probably a bad idea. I spot Detective Lina walking out of another room and call out to her. She holds up her hand. “Sorry to keep you, Lylah. I’ll be with you in five.” She disappears behind another door.
I need to know what’s going on. Is she questioning someone? Is it a suspect in this case? Is she working on another case?
As I turn around to join the others, someone catches my eye standing at the reception desk. “Zak?”
Jake’s older brother, Zak, gives me a fleeting smile. “Hi, Lylah.”
I don’t really know what to say. Why is he here? His brother could have murdered my friend, not that he would have had anything to do with that. Zak visited Jake at school every two or three months until he dropped out, so I kind of got to know him. We all hung out together in a group.
He runs his hand over his short black hair. “I don’t know what to say to you,” he admits.
“Is Jake a suspect?”
“We’re not sure.”
“How so?” I ask, not following what he means.
“We haven’t seen him in weeks,” Zak tells me. “The last anyone in the family heard from him, he texted to say he needed space to figure out life and was going to do some backpacking or something. He hasn’t contacted our parents for a few days. When the police called asking about him, my mom freaked out thinking they were calling to say he was dead. But it’s almost as awful to think he could be a suspect. I can’t believe it, Lylah.”
“That’s Lylah? And stop talking like he’s guilty, Zak!” snaps a girl who’s come up behind him. She has the same black hair and deep brown eyes as Jake and Zak, so I assume she’s their sister. Jake told us that he lived with his dad, brother, and sister but I’ve only ever met Zak before. She looks quite a lot like Jake.
Glowering, he turns to her. “Shut up, Sarah. I’m not saying I believe he did this.” Zak turns back to me. “My brother couldn’t have done this. Even if he didn’t get along with Sonny, that’s not motive for murder.”
Ignoring Sarah, I say, “I didn’t want to think so, but we need to find him so we can settle it either way.”
“This is ridiculous, of course she would think that!” Sarah shoots daggers at me from her brown eyes and stalks off toward a man who can only be their father.
“What does she mean by that?”
Zak sighs. “Jake told us about the kiss.”
My face reddens, and I don’t know why I feel embarrassed. “It wasn’t a big deal. He seemed totally fine when—”
“You don’t have to explain, Lylah. You didn’t like him that way.”
“No, I didn’t.”
Silence falls over us. I’ve always liked Zak, but right now he feels like the enemy. He will, understandably, want to protect his brother, believe the best of him. Me? I’m not so sure about Jake.
“I should go. Can we meet up later?” he asks suddenly.
I open my mouth, ready to give him an excuse, but he sees straight through me.
“Lylah, please. Bring your friends too. I want to help. Jake isn’t responsible for this, and maybe we can work that out together if you hear me out.”
“You want to convince us your brother isn’t a sick murderer?” Chace’s voice booms behind me, and I jump. His eyes flame with hatred.
“That’s not going to happen,” I say, backing Chace up. “When the cops find Jake, if he’s innocent, I’ll apologize. But until then, he’s the only person we can think of who could hold a grudge.”
Zak’s posture changes. He straightens his back and puffs out his chest. “A killer is on the loose, and you’re playing guessing games.”
“Your brother is the killer,” Chace says. “Lylah, come back in here with us. This conversation is going nowhere, and we probably shouldn’t be talking to the suspect’s family.”
“You don’t know he did anything wrong!” Zak challenges, his voice thick with worry.
“He’s not the one who was carved up and left in our goddamn editing suite, that’s how I know!”
Chace is unnecessarily mean, but emotions are high. Sonny had a horrible death, and we found his body.
“Let’s go, Chace,” I say, reaching out and placing my hands on his chest. He doesn’t move when I apply pressure. I’m trying to get him to go back in the waiting room, but he’s too strong for me to force.
I widen my eyes at him, pleading. “Chace, please.”
This time he listens. His hand circles my wrist, and he steps back into the waiting room, taking me with him. Although he’s walking away from Zak, his attention is still fully on him.
“What was that about?” Isaac asks once Chace and I are seated again.
Chace finally snaps out of his stare-off with Zak and shrugs.
Sienna closes the door, scowling at Jake’s family, who are now talking to Detective Lina. I guess she won’t be with us in a minute after all.
“Zak doesn’t think Jake had anything to do with this… But he’s been kind of MIA since before Sonny’s murder.”
“The very fact that Jake hasn’t been in touch makes him look guilty as hell,” Isaac says. “Why can’t they get in touch with him?”
I shrug. “Zak didn’t say. He went off to find himself or something. Maybe they’re worried that something bad has happened to Jake too. They want to believe the best in Jake, obviously. No one wants a killer in their family,” I reply.
“Well they have one, and the cops better find Jake soon,” Chace says, narrowing his eyes at Jake’s family.
I get that Chace needs answers and is looking for someone to blame, but he seems so definitive. How can he be so sure? Or is he just desperate for answers and an end to this? I look over as Detective Lina shows Jake’s dad into a room. Two other officers take Sarah and Zak into separate rooms.
“They’re being interviewed,” I mutter. “If they discover where Jake is hiding this could all be over soon.”
If.