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CHAPTER TWELVE

“How did you know this was happening? Did they go to the police? Were you the one to take the statement? How did Chloe seem?” I questioned Stan rapid fire, barely able to catch my breath. I’d called him as soon as I got in my car, hoping he was one of the detectives that met with the Danes down at the station.

“They came in yesterday morning, and it was an absolute disaster. We already knew we needed everybody ready and all hands on deck because Mr. Danes called the night before, and he was absolutely furious. Understandable, but he was ready to go find those boys and take care of them himself, so we had to try to de-escalate the situation.”

That detail stopped me in my tracks. I knew there was a gun in the house somewhere. Did Stan remember that? Of course he did. He’d be a terrible detective if he didn’t. “Was Chloe with him?”

“She was.”

“What was she like?” He could lose his job for having this conversation with me, and I could hear the slight hesitation in his voice. But he knew me well enough to know he could trust me. Also, I’d helped him navigate the sticky gray edges of his divorce a few years back, free of charge, and he owed me a favor.

“I didn’t take her statement, but she wasn’t in a good place at all, and I’m pretty sure she wasn’t there willingly. Her and her mom both seemed a bit shell-shocked, but Mr. Danes had shifted into take-down mode. He was determined to go after everyone involved, and nothing was going to stop him. Honestly, I’d feel the same way. Who wouldn’t? He bulldozed his way into the station and forced her down there, too, but what other choice did he have? You couldn’t not report something like that. If there are high school kids going around drugging girls at parties and assaulting them, you’ve got to do whatever you can to stop it. And… listen, I didn’t tell you this until now because I don’t work sex crimes and hadn’t talked with them about the case until yesterday, but there’ve actually been a few other instances of young girls being drugged and raped within the last year. The detectives investigating those cases are wondering if Chloe’s is related, so it’s an even more serious issue than we originally thought. Not that it wasn’t serious to begin with.” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, we called in our crisis response team and one of our victim advocates is the one who took her statement.”

“But forcing her to go down to the police station and give a statement before she was ready… don’t you think it could all backfire?” I realized the hypocrisy in what I’d just said. I was the one who made her tell her parents before she was ready. And look what happened.

“I know. Feels harsh, but he wasn’t wrong. It’s now been weeks since the assault, and we’ve already lost valuable time. All the physical evidence is gone. Washed away. Now our team is working its way backward. We’re going through the video, and a few of the officers are headed out to the school today to question students.”

I wondered if Chloe was at school today. How was she supposed to go to school after something like this? Before, I’d told her there was no way everybody knew about what happened, but this changed everything. If there was a remote chance somebody didn’t know about the assault or the video as of yesterday, it was gone now.

“Did she say who did it?” I asked. Maybe that would be the saving grace in all of this. They’d arrest the boys who hurt her and she could start to heal.

This time there was even more hesitation to answer my question. “We’re compiling a list of names of possible suspects,” Stan said, being intentionally vague.

I didn’t push. I wanted to keep him on my side. But I was dying to know if Hunter was on the list. Or what about Shai? Any of his other friends? “Have you watched the video?” I asked instead.

“I have.” His voice grew thick with emotion. No doubt he was thinking about his ten-year-old daughter at home. Only a few years younger than Chloe.

“And?”

“It’s awful. Like, really awful. There’s nothing of the actual assault, but they start filming her afterward, when she’s super disoriented and traumatized. You can tell she’s terrified and has no idea what’s happening.” He paused for a second, clearly wrestling with his emotions. “You want to know the worst part about the whole thing?”

I couldn’t imagine the worst part. It all seemed awful, and I hadn’t even seen it. I didn’t think I ever would. I wasn’t sure I wanted to live with those disturbing images in my head. Hearing about it had already been too much.

“It’s the laughing. The way they’re all mocking her and making fun of her, especially this one guy. It’s the cruelest thing I’ve ever seen, and it’s burned into my soul in a way I’m never going to forget. Makes me question what the hell is wrong with kids these days. How could anyone do that? How do you take enjoyment in another person’s suffering and humiliation like that?”

I just shook my head. I didn’t know either. It was impossible not to be affected by her case. “I just don’t know what I’m supposed to do now. I haven’t heard anything from her since this all came out. All I can think about is how she’s doing, especially after all this attention. Did she even know her parents were going to go on the morning show? How did that even happen?”

“Mr. Danes is one of the executives at the station. I don’t think they could say no to him. I watched it, too, and you could tell Miguel and Rachel were shocked when he held up her picture. I understand why he feels like this is necessary, but I’m not sure it’s the best move. He has a very clear idea of what needs to be done and exactly how it has to happen, though. And he doesn’t seem like a man who’s used to being told no or not getting his way.”

“I just don’t know what to do,” I repeated myself. I’d been parked in the lot in front of my office for the last few minutes. I didn’t know how I could shut all these emotions off and just go do my job. Especially now that I had a name and face. All I kept seeing was the picture Chloe’s father had flashed. Her smile. The navy-blue Buckley polo. Something about her being in uniform was like an extra stab to the heart.

“There’s nothing you can do, Felicia. You’re just going to have to do your best to let it go. Let the people who are trained to deal with these sorts of things be the ones to handle it.”

Maybe he was right. I’d already done enough damage. The more I tried to help fix things, the worse they got. Maybe I should just step out of the way and let them take care of it. But deep down, I knew I was partially responsible for today. I was the one who’d made her go to her parents. This was probably why she was so afraid of her dad.

“Okay,” I said. “Just don’t forget, there’s a gun in the house.”