Page 44 of Into the Light

“I’m sorry, man. She was found earlier this morning. She’s dead.”

The wind had been knocked out of me with those two words. I didn’t know what to think, or how to feel. I tried to make my mouth form words, but I kept coming up blank. None of this made sense. I shook my head, not comprehending.

“I don’t understand. What happened?”

Theo looked around again, then leaned forward even closer.

“Look, I’m not supposed to say anything right now. I could get in major shit if it gets out that I did, okay?”

I nodded, still not sure what was going on.

“I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this. But it’s a homicide.”

I don’t know how I stayed upright when my knees felt weak at those words. My gut churned and nausea consumed me.

“I saw the texts to you on her phone. I know you know her, and you’ll tell me how later. But that makes you a person of interest right now, so I’m not supposed to be talking to you about it.”

If I thought I felt sick before, that pushed me over the edge. I bent down, then squatted on the ground so as not to lose my balance. My head hurt, my throat constricted. Everything was spinning. What the fuck happened?

I vaguely noticed Theo calling out for something, and then a moment later, he squatted down next to me and handed me a bottle of water.

“Are you okay, man?”

“I’m just confused. Why would anyone want to kill Annie?”

“I’m going to find out, I promise you. But it might get worse before it gets better.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that, she was a tourist here. She checked in alone, and from what people saw, she traveled here alone. You’re the only connection to her that we know about. So I need you to be honest with me, and trust the process, okay?”

I’d been friends with Theo for years, anddidtrust him. But where I came from, cops couldn’t be trusted and those feelings came back in a harsh way as I stood back up and looked around at the whole operation. Someone from the newspaper was here, a photographer was taking photos and the crowd on the sidewalk had their phones out.

The other officers and deputies were going in and out of the building, bags of evidence under their arms. The coroner arrived in a white van.

Back in Eastie, scenes like this were common. But no one cooperated with the police. No one knew anything, even if they did. I didn’t want to let those old experiences taint me, muddy the waters of my life here, and the people I knew were good and honest.

But I couldn’t help it. This was wrong, on so many levels. I didn’t know what happened to Annie, but I knew, without a doubt, that I was about to be blamed for it.

twenty-two

ELLIE

News always traveled fastin Moon Harbor, so it was no surprise that my phone notifications blew up at the mere inkling of a murder on Harbor Street. But what I didn’t expect was to see multiple texts from various townies that all said the same thing.

Rafael had been arrested.

When the first text came through, I thought it’d been some kind of sick joke. But then another, and another. And when Cheryl McClintock called to say the same thing, I almost dropped my phone. I rushed to the window of my shop, where I could see the Sheriff’s Department across the street. There was some kind of hubbub going on, because a bunch of cruisers had just pulled in, but I couldn’t see the parking lot.

“What the fuck?”

I texted the girls’ group chat and waited for Sara or Alex to respond. They surely heard something, too. Especially Sara. The Witch’s Brew was a constant haven for gossip.

I chewed on my nails and ignored my stomach ache. I would go crazy if I just sat here. I had no customers in the shop, but that could change at any moment, so I took advantage of the quiet and put the ‘closed’ sign up. I grabbed my bag and walked out, locking the door behind me. My phone buzzed with a text.

Alex: What the hell is happening?

Sara: Theo said Raf is with him, but refused to elaborate. I’m

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