Page 236 of Secrets Along the Shore

Suddenly, the door opened, and Nathan, a younger version, entered. He placed something over the boy’s mouth, awakening him for just a few seconds before he stilled again. Nathan reached into his breast pocket.

A syringe.

Nathan then injected the substance into his ear.

McNealy leaned forward, frowning. “Where did you say this was filmed?”

“At the lodge,” I said. “There are dozens of journals detailing the experiments. This one—this one proves his nephew Nathan was involved. He was working on…something with rosemary,” I added, sliding a journal across the desk. “Hair growth in the ear canal. He thought it could create hearing where there was none. He then hypnotized us to forget the experiments.”

McNealy opened the journal, flipping through the notes, his brow furrowing.

“And that night…the Fourth of July,” I said, trying to keep my voice steady. “Livvie wasn’t like us. She couldn’t be hypnotized. These say he had tried numerous times until Livvie’s journals said she pretended to not know anything. She lied to him—pretended it worked. But he knew. She was scared. I figure Nathan realized Livvie had lied about forgetting. I think she lied about being Deaf in the first place. Or went through a psychological selective hearing loss because of some trauma in her home life. Her parents agreed to let Scanlon do some experimental trials on her because they were embarrassed by her. Livvie’s hearing had been restored that same year. She was at the school for only kindergarten. Scanlon then thought he had found a cure for deafness. Only Livvie was never actually Deaf, but Scanlon didn’t know that. He went off the deep end, trying to recreate the experiment with other students from the school. With his nephew’s help. Only Nathan went too far when he realized Livvie remembered everything they had done. The hypnosis didn’t work on her. Then she died.”

The sheriff looked up slowly. “You think the nephew killed her?”

“I think he’s been killing all the students who took part. Over the years. One by one. Just in case they remembered.”

“And you?” he asked. “You think you’re next.”

I nodded. “Because I remember now. I remember what he did to me. I remember the pain. The smell of rosemary oil. The needle. And I remember being locked in that room.”

McNealy leaned back, exhaling. He tapped a pen against the desk. “Why would Scanlon leave you his lodge if he didn’t want anyone finding out about these experiments?”

“I wondered that, too. I think he realized Nathan was killing everyone, and I was the last one left. Maybe Headmaster Scanlon thought he could save me if I figured it all out. I did. I also figured something else that he probably never thought about.”

“What’s that?”

“I went to the library and did some extra research that wasn’t in his study. I think he changed my name. I was born Katherine Nieves. My parents were killed in a car accident, and the school became my guardian.”

Sheriff McNealy sat forward. “I worked that case. Are you saying you are the missing child from the school?”

I nodded. “Not missing. Just reported as such, so no one would ever come looking for me as Scarlett McBride. Soon after he took custody of me, he staged my disappearance from the school.”

“Why would he do that?”

“I don’t know. At this point, he took that to the grave. Perhaps Katherine had living relatives.”

“She did. Katherine…uh,youhave an aunt. I know this because she was my prime suspect in your disappearance. I had no evidence to arrest her, and she alibied out. The case went cold after that. A simple blood test will prove you’re lying about this.”

“I’m not.”

“Scarlett, you also said there was a body in your basement,” he said carefully. “We went there. We searched. There was nothing.”

“I know what I felt,” I stated loud and clear. I wouldn’t be made to feel like I was losing my mind. “It was dark, and I couldn’t see or hear. But I touched a boot. A leg. A body. Maybe someone moved it. Maybe Nathan came back. But that doesn’t mean this isn’t real.”

Becca crossed her arms. “She’s telling the truth. I don’t want tobelieve it, either, but I think we still need to find out. For my sister and all the others who have died.”

The sheriff hesitated. For a long moment, he stared at the screen, where Nathan’s face was paused in mid-motion, the syringe still in his hand.

“This…this tape is enough for me to open an investigation,” he said finally. “But it doesn’t prove murder. I can issue a warrant for unauthorized medical experimentation. That’s a start. And that may be all I can do.”

I slumped in the chair, relief and frustration battling inside me. It wasn’t enough. But it was something.

“Do it,” I said. “Start there.”

He picked up the phone and began dialing, nodding for us to head out. “I’ll be in touch.”

Becca and I stepped outside. The sun was coming up now, casting long shadows over the sidewalk, and I realized I hadn’t slept for over forty-eight hours. I glanced down the street and noticed someone going into the real estate office.