CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
Wednesday, September 23, 6:18 P.M.
Hannah sat in the backseat of the Uber car with a bouquet of flowers she’d bought for Ellie at the Jewel-Osco. It was her pathetic apology/condolence token for helping get Ellie fired.
She’d shown up to journalism class at Lombard Hall this afternoon, only to find a note on the door saying classes were canceled for the remainder of the week. Practically all the other students from the class were there in the hallway—with the strange exception of Nick Jensen. Hannah overheard someone say that Ellie had been “shit-canned,” and they would have a new instructor on Monday. Apparently, the announcement was on an automatic reply on Ellie’s school email.
Hannah checked, sending a quick email to Ellie: Have you been fired?
Sure enough, she received an automatic reply:
Ellie Goodwin is no longer at Our Lady of the Cove and cannot be reached at this email address. Emails cannot be forwarded. Written correspondences addressed to Ms. Goodwin at the university will be forwarded for a limited time only. All written correspondences should be sent to:
Ellie Goodwin
9203 Larkdale Road #3
Lake Forest, IL 60022
From everything her parents had said about their conversation with Father O’Hurley, Hannah had thought that Ellie might get reprimanded. But she hadn’t expected Ellie to get the ax. And it seemed so careless of the university to give out Ellie’s home address on their email server. Didn’t they know about all the threats and hate mail she had received because of her reporting on those arsonists? Ellie had mentioned it in class.
Hannah sent her a text, asking what had happened, and if she was okay.
Ellie’s text back was brief:
I’m fine, just overwhelmed right now. Hope UR OK. We’ll talk tonight.
Hannah called her mother and told her that Ellie had been fired—probably because of them. Wasn’t there anything they could do to persuade Father O’Hurley to give Ellie back her job?
“Oh, honey, I really don’t think we’re to blame,” her mother said. “And I don’t know what we can do or say on her behalf. We’re the parents of a couple of charity scholarship students at that school. We don’t have much clout there at all. The Bonners are the ones with all the influence. And from what you’ve told me, they’re not exactly fans of Ellie Goodwin.”
With journalism class canceled, Hannah went back to the bungalow. Rachel was home. Hannah told her the news about Ellie.
“Well, that’s too bad,” Rachel remarked, slouched on their living room sofa with a laptop at her side. “I know you like her, but to be perfectly honest, I always thought it was weird—a thirty-something woman getting all palsy-walsy with her eighteen-year-old student. I couldn’t help thinking she was trying to get a news story out of you because you were such a big deal a couple of years ago. And I still hate the idea that she knows we’re sisters . . .”
“Yeah, well, about that,” Hannah said, her stomach in knots. She sat down in the chair across from her. “I’ve been meaning to tell you. My dad got the paternity test results—”
“Forget it,” Rachel cut her off.
“What do you mean?” Hannah asked, wide-eyed.
“You just said, ‘my father,’ not ‘our father,’ and you didn’t even stop to correct yourself.” Rachel gave an off-hand shrug, like it didn’t matter. “Obviously, the test came back negative.”
Hannah reluctantly nodded.
“My parents said that would happen. I’ve already scouted out some clinics, and there’s a place in Lake Bluff. The two of us can go in there, get tested, and have the results in twenty-four to forty-eight hours. It’ll prove we’re sisters. I don’t have anything going on this afternoon. And now that your journalism class is canceled, you’re free, too, right? What do you say we go get tested right now?”
So Perry drove them to a rather posh clinic in Lake Bluff. A nurse took a swab sample from the inside of Hannah’s and Rachel’s cheeks. They said they’d have the results by Friday at the latest.
On the way back, Hannah had asked Perry to drop her off at the Jewel-Osco. She’d decided to buy Ellie some flowers and go check in on her.
Hannah hated siding with everyone else who thought Ellie’s copycat killer theory was irresponsible, panic-inducing nonsense. But she didn’t want to think of Eden locked up in some lunatic’s backyard tool shed. She didn’t want to think the same psycho had been in her bedroom, collecting Eden’s things and leaving that note. She hated the idea that this same guy still had Eden’s keys and could break into the bungalow any time he wanted.
Though she’d made up her mind to discount Ellie’s copycat killer hypothesis, Hannah refused to discount Ellie—no matter what everyone else said about her. Hannah wanted to show her teacher and friend that she cared and supported her.
Hannah noticed the street sign as the Uber car was turning down Larkdale. She smelled the bouquet she’d bought for Ellie and started to check the address numbers of the houses.
The driver slowed down as they approached a row of two-story, brick townhouses. A system of water sprinklers showered the well-manicured front lawn. Hannah could see the address in front, and it was Ellie’s complex. She could also see someone ambling up a walkway to the doorway marked 3.
“Could you stop here, please?” Hannah asked the driver.
He stopped in front of Ellie’s neighbor’s townhouse.
It was just starting to get dark, and Hannah couldn’t quite see the face of the tall man approaching Ellie’s door. He had an overnight bag in one hand, and in the other, a plastic bag that looked like it held carry-out food. He set down the overnight bag and rang the bell.
The front light went on. That was when Hannah recognized Nick Jensen.
She watched the front door open. Ellie greeted him with a hug. Then Nick Jensen picked up his overnight bag and she led him inside. The door closed.
Hannah didn’t understand. Nick Jensen was the guy Ellie didn’t like or trust. At the pool last week, Ellie had warned her about him. This was the same creep who had told Alden, “I’m watching you.” The sound of his voice had made Hannah’s skin crawl. And here was Ellie, acting like they were old friends or lovers. Were the two of them in on something together, some sort of scheme? Was everyone right about her?
And she thought Ellie was so open and honest with her.
“Ah, listen, I—I’ve changed my mind,” Hannah said. “Could you turn around and take me back to Delmar? I need to go to the Our Lady of the Cove campus, Saint Agnes Village . . .”