Page 95 of What They'll Say About Us

"Good luck," I said as I ended the call.

Despite his suggestion to sit tight, I couldn't just do nothing. I couldn't talk to Hale or Ray, but I could talk to Sloane. If Nate had lied about talking to Sloane, maybe he'd lied about other things. It would be good to know when he actually went to the lake, and who was the last person to talk to him.

Starting the engine, I pulled out of the lot, needing to put some distance between myself and Nate as I had an odd feeling that I'd misread him. As I drove to Sloane's house in Glencoe, I kept an eye on the rearview mirror. There were a few times when I thought someone was following me, but just as I was about to panic, they turned or changed lanes and passed me, just ordinary people going about their day.

I really needed to get a grip on my imagination.

On the way, I got a call from Alina, but I let it go to voicemail. While I had promised to stay in touch with her, with Ray talking to the police, I didn't want to take the chance of compromising the investigation in any way.

As I neared Sloane's block, I gave Morgan a call and filled her in on what Colton had told me and what I'd learned from Carrie and Nate. "I want to talk to Sloane once more," I finished. "She can tell me what she knew about Nate's weekend plans. I feel like maybe he's someone that is sliding under the radar."

"The boyfriend is usually always the first suspect."

"It was the first time he expressed to me how poorly Paige was treating him, how he felt like she cared about Hale and the theater more than him."

"It could have been a crime of passion. But maybe you should let Colton handle it."

"I'll let him handle Nate. But if I can get more information from Sloane, that might help clarify some things."

"So, you'll talk to Sloane and then you'll come back."

I hesitated. "I don't know. It depends on what she says. I've also had this weird feeling about Liam, like did he point me to Ray because he wanted me to look in a different direction?"

"I think you're starting to overthink, Tessa. There's nothing that links Liam to Paige's death."

"The unanswered texts, and he was home alone."

"You were home alone with an unanswered phone call."

"But I know I didn't do it."

"I thought you were starting to trust Liam."

"I was. Maybe I am overthinking. Anyway, I'm at Sloane's house. I'll call you before I go anywhere else."

I parked in front of Sloane's home. There was no car in the driveway, but, hopefully, she was home. I put my phone in my bag, then headed up to her front door. A moment later, she answered my ring, looking far different from the sophisticated woman in a stylish dress and full makeup that I'd seen the last time I was here. Today, she was dressed more like the girl she'd used to be in jeans and a T-shirt and with sneakers on her feet. There were dark circles under her eyes, and a hollowness to her cheeks, which aligned with her thin frame. She might have everything she'd ever wanted, but she didn't look all that happy, at least not today.

"Tessa," she said, a mix of weariness and anger in her voice. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you. Can I come in?"

"The baby is sleeping. Garrett is working, and my nanny had to leave early. I just got Grace to stop crying and take a nap, so…"

"I promise not to wake her up. I'm not leaving until we talk. It won't take that long."

"Fine." She sighed and waved me into the house. "Let's go into the backyard. I don't want to disturb Grace."

We went back to the gazebo where we'd spoken before.

After taking a seat on the bench, Sloane said, "I listened to your podcast from this morning. I can't believe you found that video of Paige talking about the play. It made her feel so alive to me. And that made me so sad."

"It was hard to see her full of joy," I agreed. "And to notice that as the pictures went from early in college to the last few weeks of her life, she really changed."

"I don't think I realized how much until I saw the photos." Clearing her throat, she added, "I can't believe that detective is dead. Do you think Professor Hale killed him?"

"I don't know, Sloane. He certainly had motive."

"Why are you here, Tessa? I don't know anything. You know more than me."