Page 68 of It's One of Us

She opens the folder. Park Bender’s face stares up at her. He is much younger and quite good-looking, his hair too long and the hint of a scruffy beard around his chin. A nice fat thump in her heart, one she recognizes and loves, the wonderful moment of suppressed excitement when something unexpected pops on a case.

She flips a page. “Wait. This is from Daytona Beach.” She reads further. “No. You’re kidding me.”

“Not kidding at all. You know how those spring break parties get out of hand. Everyone gets wasted, folks go for a late-night swim in the ocean, and sometimes, people drown. This girl just happened to be from Vermont and was staying at the same hotel as Mr. Bender, Mr. Johnson, and a few other frat boys from UNC Chapel Hill. Made the papers for a minute at best. Nothing suspicious, just a terrible accident. They took everyone’s prints, just in case, and let them go. The boys headed back to Chapel Hill the next morning.”

She reads it aloud. “‘It was our last night, and we’d been partying pretty hard. We decided to go for a final swim since we were heading out in the morning. We arrived at the beach just as people started to shout for help. I ran back up to the hotel and called 911.’ God, he’s the one who called the authorities?”

“Ironic, isn’t it?”

“Why in the world did he not mention this? Get out ahead of it. He wasn’t a suspect; they just took his statement. And his prints, of course. Good on them for them being cautious.”

“Would you offer that up to us? It’s a prime piece of bloody steak. He’s on scene when a woman drowns, and six months later his girlfriend goes missing, and is found murdered in a lake? Makes him look guilty as shit. Proximity to two women, dead in bodies of water? Now we’re up to three—and this one, we know has connection to him. Yeah. I wouldn’t have offered it up, either.”

Joey closes the file and taps it with her fingernail. “Do you think we’re dealing with some sort of serial, Will? Is Bender a monster, disguised as a suburban wannabe dad?”

Osley shakes his head, as serious as she’s ever seen him. “I honestly don’t know. But it’s time for us to tear Park Bender’s life apart.”

29

THE MOTHER

“Mom!”

Darby is napping in the chair in the living room, where she sat down for just a second, her biorhythms still completely screwed up by switching her days and nights. At her daughter’s call, she leaps to her feet, ready to take on the world, to fight to the death whoever has harmed her baby.

Scarlett skids to a stop in front of her.

“They have a drawing of the suspect.”

“You’re okay?”

“Duh. I’m fine.”

Darby puts a hand to her heart. “You scared me to pieces, screaming like that. I thought you were hurt. What are you yelling about?”

Scarlett speaks lower and slower. “The police have a drawing of the suspect in that woman’s murder. And another woman is missing.”

Now it’s Darby’s turn to get agitated. “They do? How do you know? Who is it?”

“I just know, okay? I don’t know who it is. I don’t think they’ve released her name yet.”

“No. Not okay.” Darby gets up and stretches. “I thought we’d discussed this. No more sneaking around. Who is feeding you this information?”

Scarlett looks entirely incensed at this accusation. “I’m not sneaking around. A friend told me. And it’s going to be on the news. Don’t you want to see? I mean, I’m related to whoever it is, right? It’s one of the Halves. I just wonder if it’s one I’ve already talked to.”

Of course Scarlett wants to see who this mystery sibling might be. Darby wants to know, too. Still.

“What friend? I’m serious, Scarlett. This is a dangerous situation, and I refuse to let you play coy with me.”

“It’s one of the Halves. Her name is Jezebelle. Well, that’s her handle. Remember, we don’t use real names, to protect ourselves. But there’s no way it’s the killer—she’s a girl. I think her mom must work with the police or something. She finds things out.”

“And you believe her?”

“She hasn’t been wrong yet. We’ve been talking for a while.”

“How do you know it’s a girl? Anyone can pose as someone else, Scar. I’ve told you this time and time again. You are being reckless talking to strangers online.”

Scarlett’s eyes fill with tears. “I’m being careful. I’m not an idiot, Mom. It’s not like we’re making plans to meet up for coffee. And I know it’s a woman because of the way she talks about things. Like, personal things. I mean, we talk about all the stuff happening in the world now. People are more open about themselves. She’s cisgendered, pronouns are she/her. Why would she lie?”