Page 99
Story: Whistle
“I just don’t know. Could he do that on a bike?”
“I am aware of incidences of people doing complex tasks while in that state,” Standish said. “People have prepared meals, eaten, even driven cars while in a sleepwalking state.”
“Oh God.” Annie put a fist to her lip, pressed. “Someone could have... not paying attention...”
“We’ve got police going up and down the road, walking it, looking on both sides, in case something like that happened. Your neighbor Daniel? He’s out with them, helping. So far, nothing.” She paused, then asked, “Could this have anything to do with what happened to Mr. Sproule?”
Annie said, “How?”
“Only hours after Mr. Sproule’s death, your son is missing. That’s a lot to happen in less than twenty-four hours.”
“I don’t understand... how could they be connected? I mean, yes, Charlie was the first to find him, but...”
“Was he pretty upset about that?”
“Of course he was upset! Who wouldn’t be upset?” But even as she said the words, Annie thought back to the night before when she was having her heart-to-heart with Charlie, and how he was less traumatized by what had happened than she might have expected. But that didn’t have to mean anything.
“Upset enough that he’d feel he needed to get away?” Standish asked.
“I don’t know,” Annie snapped, growing exasperated. “He’s nothere. Can’t we just focus onfindinghim? Does it matter why he left? Does it matter whether he was sleepwalking or freaked out by what happened to Fin? Shouldn’t we just find him?”
“You seem very upset,” Standish said, keeping her voice even.
“For fuck’s sake, you think?” Annie shot back.
“Maybe we should go in and sit down, take a minute.” She put a hand on Annie’s shoulder, getting ready to guide her into the house.
“We’re wasting time, standing here,” Annie said, pushing Standish’s hand away and heading for her car.
“No, Ms. Blunt, I’d like you to stay here. I have more questions.”
“About what?”
“Well, frankly, I’d like to ask you a few questions about your state of mind.”
“I’m sorry, what? I’m fucking scared to death, that’s my fucking state of mind.”
“And I totally understand that, I do. But right now we’ve got lots of people looking, and if we could talk through a few things, that would help. Please. Could we take a seat?”
Standish tipped her head toward the porch. With some reluctance, Annie agreed to walk away from her car and sit down on one of the porch chairs. Standish took the next closest one to her.
“I understand this has been a very difficult year for you,” the officer said.
“Christ,” Annie said. “First Daniel, and now you. Everyone’s googling me. I’m starting to feel like I’mtrending.”
“You lost your husband, and before that, all that controversy about the boy who thought he could fly.”
Annie bit her lip and look away. “I don’t need reminding.”
“And now your son’s missing not even a full twenty-four hours after this man, Mr. Sproule, died in your house.”
“Make your point.”
Standish hesitated before making it. “There has been an inordinate amount of trouble for people in your orbit.”
Annie slowly turned her head and narrowed her eyes. “Are you saying that I’m somehow responsible?”
“It’s an observation. Not necessarily responsible, but somehow at the center of things.”
Table of Contents
- Page 1
- Page 2
- Page 3
- Page 4
- Page 5
- Page 6
- Page 7
- Page 8
- Page 9
- Page 10
- Page 11
- Page 12
- Page 13
- Page 14
- Page 15
- Page 16
- Page 17
- Page 18
- Page 19
- Page 20
- Page 21
- Page 22
- Page 23
- Page 24
- Page 25
- Page 26
- Page 27
- Page 28
- Page 29
- Page 30
- Page 31
- Page 32
- Page 33
- Page 34
- Page 35
- Page 36
- Page 37
- Page 38
- Page 39
- Page 40
- Page 41
- Page 42
- Page 43
- Page 44
- Page 45
- Page 46
- Page 47
- Page 48
- Page 49
- Page 50
- Page 51
- Page 52
- Page 53
- Page 54
- Page 55
- Page 56
- Page 57
- Page 58
- Page 59
- Page 60
- Page 61
- Page 62
- Page 63
- Page 64
- Page 65
- Page 66
- Page 67
- Page 68
- Page 69
- Page 70
- Page 71
- Page 72
- Page 73
- Page 74
- Page 75
- Page 76
- Page 77
- Page 78
- Page 79
- Page 80
- Page 81
- Page 82
- Page 83
- Page 84
- Page 85
- Page 86
- Page 87
- Page 88
- Page 89
- Page 90
- Page 91
- Page 92
- Page 93
- Page 94
- Page 95
- Page 96
- Page 97
- Page 98
- Page 99 (Reading here)
- Page 100
- Page 101
- Page 102
- Page 103
- Page 104
- Page 105
- Page 106
- Page 107
- Page 108
- Page 109
- Page 110
- Page 111
- Page 112
- Page 113
- Page 114
- Page 115
- Page 116
- Page 117
- Page 118
- Page 119
- Page 120
- Page 121
- Page 122
- Page 123
- Page 124
- Page 125
- Page 126
- Page 127
- Page 128
- Page 129
- Page 130
- Page 131
- Page 132
- Page 133
- Page 134
- Page 135
- Page 136
- Page 137
- Page 138
- Page 139
- Page 140
- Page 141
- Page 142
- Page 143
- Page 144
- Page 145
- Page 146
- Page 147
- Page 148
- Page 149
- Page 150
- Page 151
- Page 152
- Page 153
- Page 154