Page 128 of This is Why We Lied

On a hunch, she continued around the Loop Trail. Most of the guests had been assigned cottages close to the main house, but she remembered from the map that cottage nine was tucked away between her own cottage and the rest of the compound.

Sara had only walked along the top side of the Loop Trail twice, once with Will and Jon and the second time in darkness. On neither occasion did she see the ninth cottage. Sara was wondering if she was on a fool’s errand when she finally spotted a footpath winding up another hill. The sweet smell got decidedly stronger as she walked the path. Sara knew from Jon that the odor was from a cartridge of Red Zeppelin. She also knew that he had lied about only having one vape pen. The one he held to his mouth now was silver.

Jon was sitting on the porch swing staring into the woods. His face was swollen, his eyes bloodshot, from mourning the loss of his mother. He was so deep in thought that he didn’t notice Sara until she stood on the porch. He didn’t startle. He just looked at her. Judging by his heavy eyelids and the glassy look in his eyes, he’d smoked more than Red Zeppelin today.

She said, “This is a nice place to hide out.”

Jon used the excuse of putting the pen back to his mouth to quickly brush away his tears.

Sara asked, “Do you have enough food?”

He nodded as he blew smoke into the air.

“I’m not going to tell you to go home, but I need to make sure you’re safe.”

“Yes, ma’am, I’m—” He cleared his throat. “I’m safe.”

She could see what the admission had taken out of him. Jon’s mother was dead. For all he knew, his father was the murderer. He was probably feeling completely alone.

Sara asked, “Were you on the path by my cottage just now?”

He cleared his throat again. “The lookout bench was the last time … I mean, not the last time, but the last place …”

Sara watched a tear slip down his face. She wasn’t going to inundate him with questions, but she sensed that he needed someone to listen. “You sat with your mother on the bench?”

His face looked pained by the memory. “She wanted to talk. We used to do that a lot when I was little. I thought I was in trouble, but she wasn’t mad. She was real sad, though.”

Sara leaned against the railing. “What was she sad about?”

“She told me Aunt Delilah was here.” Jon rested the vape pen on the swing beside him. “She told me to ask Papa what was going on. It was about the sale. She wanted me to hear it from Papa instead of her. But not because she was a coward.”

Sara’s heart ached at the protective tone in his voice.

“I was mad at her, though. After I talked to Papa, I mean. Cause why did she want to stay up here? What was the point? We could all get a house in town and she could do her thing and I could … I don’t know. Make some friends. Go out with …”

Sara listened to his voice trail off again. “It’s a beautiful place. It’s been in your family for generations.”

“It’s boring as shit.” He tucked his chin into his chest. “Sorry, ma’am.”

Sara said, “I don’t imagine there’s a lot for you to do up here.”

“Work is all there is.” Jon used the tail of his shirt to wipe his nose. “At least Bitty started paying me some a few years back. Papa never gave us a dime. I didn’t even have a phone till Bitty sneaked me one. Papa said everybody I need to talk to is on this mountain.”

Sara watched him start playing with the vape pen, turning it end-over-end. “When you were on the bench with your mother, did she say anything else to you?”

“Yeah, she gave me the night off. Then told me to get some liquor for the lady in seven. Only, I forgot.”

Sara wondered if he’d really forgotten. “Did you drink it yourself?”

Jon’s expression told her the truth.

Sara said, “I’m very sorry she’s gone. Mercy seemed like a nice person.”

His eyes cut toward her. She could tell he wasn’t sure whether she was joking. Jon obviously wasn’t used to hearing Mercy painted in a positive light.

Sara continued, “I didn’t have much time with your mother, but we talked a bit. The one thing that was clear to me is that she loved you very much. She wasn’t upset about the argument. I think like all mothers, she just wanted you to be happy.”

Jon cleared his throat. “I said some awful things to her.”