Page 138 of The Five Year Lie

Buzz chases his sandwich with a handful of chips.

When he’s done, Drew grabs a tennis ball and asks him if he wants to play fetch with Buster. “His favorite thing in the world is having somebody throw the ball for him in the yard.”

Buster wags his tail in agreement, and Buzz climbs down from the stool. “’Kay. Let’s go.”

That’s how I end up outside, sitting on the porch in whispered conversation while Buzz throws a slobbery tennis ball for the dog.

I’m trying to provide a quick accounting of my last three weeks, but it’s such a wild tale that he keeps stopping to ask questions. “You got my textwhen?” And “Zarkey’s sister is adrug dealer? Fuck.” He grips his coffee mug like he’d rather strangle something.

I know I’m blowing his mind, but we have a lot of catching up to do.

“How did they kill Zain, do you think?” he asks.

“The cop just said opiates. I don’t have the details.”

He’s silent for a long moment. “Let me ask you if you remember something—five years ago, did anyone in your family drive a gray Mercedes with darkly tinted windows? Like maybe Ray?”

I shake my head. “He’s a BMW guy.”

“I wonder what Zarkey drives. On the morning your father died, I saw a car pulling away from your parents’ house when I arrived there.”

“Why did you go over there, anyway?”

He watches Buzz for a moment before answering. As if he’s trying to decide what to say. “I had a lot of information about LiveMatch and the fraudulent warrants. I knew Ray was guilty, but I didn’t have enough evidence to pin it on him. Then I figured out your dad wasn’t part of it. I was going to rat Ray out to Edward.”

“Oh.”

“I was going to explain what a huge liability it was. That he could lose the whole company in the scandal. I called, and he told me to come to the house.”

“And you told him?”

Slowly, he shakes his head. “I snuck up to his office window to make sure he was alone, right? And he was...” He swallows hard. “He was slumped over his desk. So I hopped up onto the front porch—just like you told me you did in high school. The front door was open. I went in and felt his pulse. Nothing. He was gone, honey.”

Chills climb down my body. “It was ruled an accidental overdose. But it wasn’t, was it?”

Another shake of his head. “I don’t know how it happened. But I could tell that someone was in his office just before I got there. The computer was all lit up—a spreadsheet on the screen. But I tabbed over to the command window and started scrolling. Guess what was purged a few minutes earlier from your dad’s terminal?”

“What?” I whisper.

“Everything. LiveMatch and two judges.”

“Twojudges?”

“The other one was Amelia Brown. I didn’t document it, though. I was not willing to get caught scrolling through a dead man’s computer. I needed to get out of there.”

“So...” I try to piece together what happened that day. “My father takes his pills, and then he dies. Then somebody does a little work on his computer, probably after he’s dead. And then you show up.”

“Right. Although I’d spoken to him ninety minutes beforehand. He was his usual grumpy self.”

“What time was that?”

Drew rubs the back of his neck. “A few minutes to ten? That’s my best guess.”

“Ray told my mother that he’d stopped by to see my father that morning.” I wish I could remember his exact words, but the details of their argument didn’t seem very important at the time. “I think Ray dropped off his medication. Do you think Ray could have...?” I can’t even say it out loud.

Drew covers my hand with his. “I really don’t know. Although the car I saw driving away wasn’t Ray’s.”

“Right,” I whisper. “Maybe Zarkey’s?”