Page 3 of Amethyst

“Right, Max.” She doesn’t seem to be looking directly at me. Her gaze doesn’t seem focused on anything in particular. “I’m sorry. I’m Jenna’s Aunt Mary. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

“I didn’t recognize you—” I stop and gape at her.

Of course. Susanna’s older sister, Mary. Her eyes are swollen and her nose red, and her gray-blond hair is falling out of a messy bun. She’s wearing black leggings and a large Dartmouth sweatshirt. Jenna must have bought it for her during her visit to the campus.

I swallow.

“The prom,” Mary continues. “It’s tonight?”

I tighten my grip on the plastic container holding the corsage. “Yeah. Jenna and I just talked about it this morning. She was going to babysit this afternoon and then be home by three to get ready.”

“Oh my God…” Mary’s face twists as her eyes glisten with more tears.

My breath catches. “What? What’s going on? Where are Dick and Susanna?”

“They… They’re with the police.”

“What do you mean?” The back of my neck freezes.

Mary pauses for what seems like forever. Then, “Jenna didn’t come home, Max. She didn’t come home from the babysitting job.”

The words… I couldn’t have heard them right. They hang in the air, almost visibly, trying to force their way into my brain.

“What?” I ask numbly.

Mary swallows audibly. “We talked to the Garretts, who she was babysitting for. They got home around two thirty, and Jenna left. But she never came home.”

Mary’s face blurs, and I draw in a deep breath, trying to calm myself. “Wait, wait, wait… Was she driving? Walking?”

“The Garrets live a few blocks over. She must have walked, because her car and her bike are still here.”

No. No, no, no.

The plastic container makes a crackling sound under my intense grip. “This can’t be happening. Jenna wouldn’t do anything like this. She knows tonight is prom.”

“No, she wouldn’t. Which means…”

My heart drops into my bowel. “An accident. Oh my God.”

“If it were an accident, Max, we’d have found her by now.”

“How? How would you find her?” I shake my head. “Just… Where is she? Where the fuck is she?”

Mary holds the door open. “Why don’t you come in, Max?”

I can’t move. Can’t talk. Can’t—

“No accident. Jenna wasn’t driving,” I finally eke out.

“But she could have—” Mary wipes her brow. “The police have combed all the routes between here and the Garretts. There’s no trace of her.”

“Are you saying… Are you saying she ran away?”

That’s not possible. Jenna and I just spoke this morning. We talked yesterday after school. She showed me a picture of her dress—and I knew how gorgeous she was going to look. She kissed me on the cheek and said she couldn’t wait.

No.

Jenna’s happy. She loves her parents. She’s doing well in school, and she’s excited about Dartmouth.

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