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"Kenneth's heart rate and blood pressure are back to normal," the doctor continued with a reassuring smile. "Your husband admitted to forgetting to take his blood pressure medication this morning, which didn't help matters. We're just finishing up some tests and paperwork. Once that's complete in about an hour, he'll be discharged home as long as someone can stay with him for the next 24 hours."
"Of course,” Lilith said with a quick nod. “I'll be with him, and I'll make sure that he rests.”
"You can head back now to sit with him if you'd like."
Lilith didn't immediately release Phoebe's hand. Instead, she pulled her daughter into her arms.
"I'm sorry," Lilith whispered as the two of them held each other tightly. "I could have handled this evening better."
"I'm the one who is sorry, Mom," Phoebe replied as she pulled away. "I should have told you the truth a long time ago."
Lilith moved so suddenly that Chloe didn't have time to prepare for the woman's hug. One of Chloe's arms got stuck between them, but that didn't stop Phoebe's mom from tightening her embrace.
"Thank you, Chloe. Thank you for watching over her."
Lilith finally released Chloe before giving out instructions. One was for Trish to open the yarn shop tomorrow morning at nine o'clock sharp. Trish and Billy both assured Lilith that they had things under control. Lilith dug out a set of keys, removing one of them to give to her sister.
Lilith then handed her cell phone to Phoebe with a request for her to call the university. Kenneth would be taking a few days off from work, and a substitute teacher would be needed temporarily. Once Lilith was confident that she could spend the next twenty-four hours taking care of her husband without the additional worries of everyday life, she turned back to Phoebe.
"We need to finish our conversation." Lilith held up her hand when Phoebe would have spoken, but it wasn't like they could put the genie back in the bottle. They had already pulled the cork today when Phoebe met with Chief Bennett. "The two of you have our blessing, but there are some things that your father and I need to talk to you about soon."
"Thanks, Mom," Phoebe murmured as she fiddled with her mother’s cell phone. "I'll come back with you as soon as I finish talking to someone at the college."
Lilith eventually made her way through the double doors.
"Phoebe, what was all that about?" Trish asked in concern as she slipped the key to the yarn shop in her purse. "Did something happen this evening?"
"You might say that," Phoebe muttered as she gestured toward their seats. Come tomorrow morning, everyone in town would know that they were looking into Jenna's death. It was best that Trish and Billy hear it from them instead of someone else. "There is something that Chloe and I need to tell the two of you."
Chapter Six
Phoebe
The morning air held a biting chill that stung Phoebe’s cheeks as she stepped out of her vehicle. She gazed up at the familiar red-brick exterior of Bar Harbor High School, and a wave of nostalgia washed over her. The building looked exactly as she remembered it from her teenage years, with its towering rectangular structure, rows of gleaming windows across each level, and the name of their mascot emblazoned in bold letters above the front entrance.
Phoebe vividly recalled walking through those doors as an excited freshman, clutching her books to her chest. She remembered strolling down the busy hallways between classes, chatting with friends at her locker, and eating lunch in the noisy cafeteria. Some of her happiest high school memories were within those walls...and some of her worst.
Phoebe couldn't stop the flood of memories from washing over her as she stared at the school's façade. She could almost hear the remnants of innocent laughter as the students rushed down the front steps after the last bell had rung for the day. They had been so eager to go home and escape the rules and guidelines set forth by their teachers. So much had happened within those years—football games, school dances, cramming for exams in the library.
And then?
Jenna's death had changed everything.
Joy had been replaced by loneliness, and nothing had ever been the same.
Phoebe could still picture Jenna walking across the parking lot, her backpack bouncing with each step. Jenna's blonde hair had glowed in the morning sun, her eyes bright with laughter. The memory twisted Phoebe's heart. Jenna should have graduated on these very steps. Instead, her life had ended much too soon underneath a frozen sheet of ice.
"Are you okay?" Chloe asked gently as she walked around the front of the SUV. She already had one hand shoved inside the pocket of her puffer jacket while the other held onto a small camcorder. "We could have postponed this for another day or two."
"No, we couldn't have," Phoebe replied, her gaze still fixed on the building ahead. "I don't want to drag this out any longer than necessary. I want to find out who killed Jenna. I need to give her some peace."
If Phoebe were being honest with herself, she was also searching for a measure of serenity. She had lied to her parents for too many years. Such a relationship wasn't healthy, and it was well past time to rectify the damage that had been done.
Phoebe had spent the night in her old childhood bedroom after helping her father get settled at home. He had been irritable, but it had more to do with all the fuss that her mother had made over him than about their previous conversation. He had only mentioned it once, and that was to apologize for making her believe that she had to lie to them. Lilith had quickly changed the subject, probably for fear that any discussion about Jenna would send Kenneth back to the hospital.
"A lot of memories are within those walls. Some good, some..." Phoebe's voice trailed off. "I pushed a lot of friends away in those last two years of high school. They didn't deserve that."
"You got me now, Pheebs." Chloe nudged Phoebe with her shoulder. "By the way, how is Sheriff Mason Ward?"
