Page 97 of Scatter the Bones

“I think that was the point,” I murmur, pulling my coat tighter around me. I should’ve brought gloves. My fingers are freezing. “Sometimes we worry too much about not making others uncomfortable at the expense of our own safety. And, let’s face it, he was weak. Too worried about being polite. Too busy following ‘the rules’ and waiting for someone to come save them.”

April snorts. “Couldn’t be me. I would’ve run that dude over with my car and gotten those kids the hell away from there.”

“Same.” I smile at her, the ache in my chest easing just a little. Today’s funeral was short and simple, and when April texted to meet for dinner and a movie, I didn’t hesitate. I needed the distraction. Her company and cheerful chatter. Needed someone who wouldn’t ask if I was okay, because I’m not sure how I’d answer right now.

“Want to grab some coffee?” April yawns. “I have a long drive home.”

“We could’ve picked a place closer to you.”

“Nah, I love that theater. Totally worth it.”

“You can stay at my place tonight, if you want,” I offer.

She hesitates, as if she doesn’t want to hurt my feelings by saying no. “It’s okay. I just need caffeine to keep me awake.”

“Fair enough.” I push open the door to the café and nod for her to go first. “I’m buying.”

“Deal.”

Inside, the place is busier than I expected this late. Probably other moviegoers needing a warm drink before heading home. Most of the tables are covered with chairs that have been flipped up for cleaning, so April and I slide onto two stools at the long counter instead.

I order hot chocolate, she gets a coffee. The cranky server drops them off quicker than expected, clinking the mugs against the wooden countertop with a hardthunkand a grunt.

As I wrap my hands around the warm ceramic, ready for my first sip, something flickers on the TV mounted above the counter.

Daniel Muldoon—Local Financial Planner Arrested in Suspected Serial Murder Case.

The headline screams across the television beneath a picture of his smug, all-too-familiar face.

My blood turns to ice.

The mug stays hovering near my lips, untouched. The room goes quiet in my head, the news anchor’s voice distant and warped, like I’m underwater. The string of suspicious deaths. The elderly women whose bank accounts were wiped clean.

They did it. They actually arrested Daniel.

That means they must have significant evidence against him, right?

April shifts beside me. “Margot?” she asks, her voice low, cautious.

I can’t tear my gaze away from the screen.

A sick part of me wants to revel in his downfall. But three—maybe more—women paid the price for Daniel’s destruction. I can’t take any satisfaction from that.

“Isn’t that…?” April gasps. “That’s Daniel, isn’t it?”

I nod once, still staring at the screen. “The police came to talk to me a few weeks ago. They questioned me about his grandmother’s death?—”

“Oh my God. Are you serious?”

“Yup, and a few other women. Friends of his grandmother’s, I think.”

I glance over and take in her shocked expression.

My face twists with disgust. “He held his grandmother’s funeral at our place—and referred the other two to us as well,” I add in a lower voice.

“You’re kidding. Why?”

“I don’t know.”

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