Page 130 of Trust No One

Mrs. Stocker paled. “She never took anything.”

An admission rumbled under the words. “So, she entered the house.”

Her lips flattened. “Sometimes she spent the night in her old room.”

“Did she tell anyone about these visits?”

“Me.” Her gaze sharpened. “I told her to stay away from that family. To not tell anyone about these visits. I told her Gabe wasn’t leaving his family for her and her make-believe baby.”

“Make-believe?”

“Amy lived in a fantasy world.” Smoke curled around her lips. “I blame myself. If I’d done a better job, she wouldn’t have been hiding in her made-up world.”

Her what-ifs weren’t material. What mattered was evidence. The local deputies had gathered the hunting cameras late yesterday, and the memory cards waited on my desk. Good chance one had caught Amy coming and going. Anyone with access to those cameras would’ve known about the trips to Hale House.

How hard would it be to set a cyanide-laden trap for Amy? “Did Amy have friends who knew her during high school?”

“There was a Vivian. Foster kid.”

“Last name?”

“I don’t know.”

“Anyone threaten Amy?”

Sharp, hawk eyes stared at him. “Not directly. Other than the wife’s stalking.”

Chapter Forty-Nine

Raine

Thursday, October 22, 2026, 12:30 p.m.

Molly sat cross-legged on the floor, staring, eyes glazed, at the characters tumbling across the TV screen. The false cheer of their voices grated.

I leaned against the kitchen counter and dialed the funeral home. Speaking in a low voice, I didn’t waste time. Molly would be at my side on the next commercial break.

“Yes, you can pick them up at the forensic center,” I said. “I’m not sure of the logistics.”

The man on the other end had a soft, practiced voice and assured me his company had done this before. There was a special parking bay for funeral home hearses ready to pick up the departed. I needed to talk to Gabe’s mother, but Maria and Gabe had cremation in their wills. When it came to the matter of cemetery plots, I hesitated. And then, for Molly’s sake, I said, “There’s a family plot on the Hale land.”

“I remember. We placed your parents there.”

“That’s right. I’ll bury Maria and Gabe there.”

“I have crews that can handle the logistics.”

“Thank you. Call me when you have them.”

“Of course.”

I ended the call just as Molly appeared in the doorway, staring with wary eyes. “I’m hungry.”

“Peanut butter and jelly okay?”

She nodded.

In the avocado-green kitchen, I set her at the table. Missed calls from Edith glowed on my phone, but I shoved them aside. I owed her a call. But first, my lawyer.