“It’s almost like Marty was the game master—overseeing everything,” I say. As soon as the words are out, Liv’s and my gazes meet and my stomach drops. “She can’t oversee anything without eyes.”
“Oh shit,” my sister says as she sits back down.
“Has anyone told the police about this game?”
“Unless one of the girls or Julie confirms it, it’s just speculation. Maybe I’m making up something that isn’t there. Maybe I don’t want Julie to be one of Coach’s conquests; instead, he was hers.”
My mind is going a million miles a minute. “If Marty oversaw, maybe on Saturday night, Julie came on to a perpetrator?” I say, thinking aloud. “That could justify the sexual nature of the assault.”
“This is what you do, isn’t it?”
“Kind of,” I reply. “Consulting and research. I help brainstorm ways to make the scenes and stories more plausible. Of course, what I do is fiction, and the people aren’t really dead.”
“And there aren’t killers and sexual deviants on the loose.”
The sound of a slamming car door comes from behind the cottage. I lift one finger, carry my wine glass, and walk back into the house. I stop at the back screen door and peer toward the uncovered back-door window. When I turn, Liv is behind me.
“Is that his vehicle?” she whispers.
“Blue truck. That would be Keith Gilbert’s.”
“Who did we hear earlier?”
“Probably him. Maybe he just went back out to his truck for something.”
“People are talking about him. Have you heard any of the rumors?”
I nod. “I have, and I just met him, but I think they’re wrong.”
“What kind of a conquest would it have been to seduce Coach’s older brother?” Her eyebrows raise. “The day after Coach’s funeral.”
I let out a sigh. “I don’t want to think about that, about Julie doing that.”
“Yeah, it’s making me kind of sick.”
The clock over the stove catches my attention as I set my mostly empty glass on the counter. “Liv, I’m glad you came, but with all this happening, you should go home before it gets dark.”
“The real reason I came out here wasn’t to spill the stuff about Julie. I honestly don’t know if it’s what I think it is.”
“You came to get away from Mom and Dad?”
She scoffs. “I came to ask you to come with me. Grab some of your things and come stay with Matt and me.”
Not her too. “There are locks here. Besides, you gave me a lot to think about.”
“Jillian, there were locks when we used to phrog out here.”
“I’m fine,” I repeat. Besides, I want to give this new information some more thought. Maybe Becky knows ofother instances with one or more of these girls. I don’t say that. Instead, I lean forward and give my sister a hug. “Thanks for worrying about me.”
“I’m going to call when I get home.”
“Okay. I’ll have the cottage secure. I promise.”
She reaches out and places her hand on my arm. “I’m glad you’re home, and Mom is too, even if she hasn’t said it. It’s time we all move forward.”
The lump in my throat doesn’t allow me to verbally respond. Instead, I force a smile and nod. “Call me.” When I reach for the windowed door to the back stoop, it opens. “I thought I locked that after you came in.”
Liv’s eyes open wide. “Get your stuff and come with me.”
