She pulled into the parking lot by the shore, then her phone buzzed in her lap. She glanced at it, then put it down and focused on me, her blue eyes earnest. “Really.”
Her phone buzzed again, and I caught Jane’s name on the screen. I shouldn’t distract her when she was already so worried about Jane. So instead of hashing out the same conversation about the love potion that I’d already had with myself a million times, I opened the door. “Thanks for the ride, Lizzy, and the talk.” A tiny smile tugged at my lips. Maybe there was more to hope for than I’d let myself believe.
“Will you need a ride home?”
“I’ll figure something out. Thanks.” I shut the door and turned toward the ocean, a new resolve settling in my chest. Beneath the pulsing Halloween music, the waves crashed against the shore like a promise, wild and full of possibility.
The lighthouse’s beam swept across the crowd, briefly illuminating a cluster of my classmates and other AHCC students roasting marshmallows by the fire. A moment later, they were just silhouettes again, the beam flashing out to sea. A group of people danced to “The Monster Mash,” and the rest hung around chatting and drinking. The surf pounded against the sand, then ebbed away, filling the air with a briny scent.
Instead of braving the crowds and gossip, I pulled out my phone and texted Jaxon, then I followed the trail up to the base of the lighthouse on the cliff. At the top, I tugged my jacket tighter and sat with my back against its salt-crusted walls. The wind flattened the tall grasses nearby.
Up here, the sea’s salty tang filled my nose, and I smiled. Things had been so crazy that I hadn’t made it to the lighthouse in a while even though it was one of my favorite places in town. Watching the ocean always calmed me down, and the night seemed filled with promise. Maybe I’d find more than just answers tonight.
Jaxon appeared a few minutes later and sat next to me, close enough that he partially blocked the breeze. “Hey Kitty.”
“Hey. Thanks for meeting me,” I said. “It sounds like things have been crazy for you. How are you holding up?”
He hesitated and shoved his hands into his jacket pockets. “Okay.”
I chewed on my lower lip, debating how to start. But I wasn’t good at subtlety or finding the right way to question people, so in the end I just said, “I heard from the girlthat Graham met with the night he died that you two had a roommate dinner planned and that you’d been fighting a lot.”
His brow furrowed. “Graham said that we had plans?”
“Yeah,” I said. “Didn’t you?”
“Well, we didoriginally, but I canceled dinner after my basketball game got moved.” He pulled out his phone and opened an email, showing me a message about the game’s updated schedule. “I even have a few photos from the game.” He fiddled with his cell for a moment, then showed me some shots of him and his team. The time stamp at the top confirmed his story. If Jaxon hadn't met Graham for dinner, he wouldn’t have had time to poison anything.
“Why would Graham lie about that?”
“I don’t know,” he said, slipping his phone back into his pocket. “Maybe it was just an excuse to get out of there.”
“Or maybe he was meeting someone else.” My thoughts flashed to that extra cup of tea Graham had ordered. Since his planner had been empty the rest of the night, there was no way to figure out who he’d met. Could it have been the mystery girl again?
Jaxon leaned his head back against the lighthouse and gazed up at the stars.
I studied them too, tracing the shape of the Big Dipper with my gaze before asking, “Was he also lying about the fact that you guys have been fighting?”
Jaxon sighed. “No, that wasn’t a lie. I didn’t want to tell the police because I knew it would look bad if I admitted that I’d been fighting with my roommate and then he shows up dead, but the truth is I was hoping to find a new place to live for next year.”
“What happened? I thought you guys got along.”
“We used to, but lately we’ve had a hard time seeing eye to eye.”
“About what?” It wasn’t my business, but I couldn’t back down now after asking Jaxon to meet me specifically to gain answers.
“All sorts of things.” He sighed. “They seem sort of silly now, and it was nothing serious enough to want to hurt him. I just wanted to move out.”
We sat for a minute in silence, and I plucked a piece of dead grass and shredded it. The clouds skittered across the sky, revealing the moon hanging low.
“Had Graham said anything lately that stood out to you? Or do you know if he was seeing someone in the last month or two?”
“He seemed a little stressed recently, and I’m pretty sure I heard him arguing with someone on the phone last week, but I don’t know who it was.”
Jaxon’s phone rang, and he looked down at it, then back at me. “I’m sorry. I’ve got to take this. Do you mind?”
“No, go ahead.” I waved him off.
He started to walk away, then came back and passed me a small bag. “I meant to give this to you earlier, but I forgot. I found this jewelry while doing laundry and figured it was yours.”
