Page 166 of Serenity Falls

Hatchett crouched down next to me. ‘I’m really sorry we had to put you through that, but we needed everything to be as convincing as possible.’

‘What? Why?’

‘Serena, you need to listen to me very carefully. Davey did almost drown in the pool. Thank God, he was pulled out before it was too late. But what happened, it wasn’t an accident. Someone tried to deliberately drown Davey.’

‘Someone?’ I stared at Hatchett. ‘It was that sick little freak Owen, wasn’t it?’

I can see in Hatchett’s face that I’m right.

Rage coils in my gut. ‘I told Mom I didn’t want him coming round. Told her to keep him away from Davey.’

‘Okay, you need to calm down.’

‘Calm down? You just told me he tried to kill my son. Has he been arrested?’

Hatchett and Gravelot exchange glances.

‘Not yet,’ Hatchett says.

‘Well … why not?’

‘I think you know why, Serena.’

‘Because of his dad? Because his dad is some high-up Conservator that little freak gets away with it? He won’t stop. He’ll do it again.’

‘No, he won’t. Rest assured, Owen will be taken care of.’

‘Then—’ I look around, feeling confused. ‘What’s going on?’

Hatchett sighed. ‘You ever think about how perfect things are here in Serenity? How there’s never been a crime, not a serious one, in twenty years? That’s remarkable, don’t you think?’

I swallowed. ‘I guess.’

‘And there’s a reason for that. The Conservators make sure that nothing bad ever happens here …’ He paused. ‘Even if it does.’

I stared at him, trying to let this sink in. ‘They cover up crimes?’

‘Mostly, they root out trouble before it starts. They make sure that those who would seek to disrupt the harmony don’t remain here. But yes, sometimes, they need to change the narrative of certain events.’

‘Change the narrative.’ I laughed hollowly.

‘It was Harold Winsom’s dream. Perfect towns and communities. Everyone living in harmony. And it has to stay that way.’

‘Or what?’

‘Or the Winsom Corporation will shut us down,’ Gravelot says.

Something cold settled in my belly.

‘You ever wonder about the other Winsom towns?’ Hatchett asked.

‘Not really,’ I admitted.

‘There were seven, originally. Only one of them – aside from Serenity – is still running under the Winsom umbrella. The others failed to live up to the Corporation’s vision. So they pulled the plug, left them to survive on their own. Two are virtual ghost towns. The others, well, they’re just like any other town – plagued by antisocial behaviour, crime, drugs.’

I stared at them in horror. ‘So, in order to maintain appearances, you’d cover up the attempted murder of a child?’

‘Justice will be served, Serena. But in our own way. It’s for the good of Serenity. For everyone. When the Flood comes—’