Detective Donally nodded. “She says that after she called Sarah that morning—the call that we have logged on both of their cell phones—she decided to go to the park to meet Sarah and talk more.”
I watched Dad’s face as he squinted skeptically, a look he took on when he thought someone was feeding him a lie. “Oh really?”
“That’s what Paula claims currently,” the detective went on. “And she saw someone there, acting suspicious.”
“Who was it?” Mom leaned in and asked. “Someone we know?”
“It was Nico,” Detective Donally said. He waited a beat, as if pausing for a reaction from us. I continued to trace the pattern on the pillow without looking up.
“So?” Sarah said, looking from Mom to Dad for a reaction. “Nico goes to the park all the time. We were just there today on our bikes, right, Nico?”
I nodded and glanced up for a moment.
“I agree, I don’t see quite where this is going,” Dad said. “Does this help the investigation at all?”
“Well, Nico told us she was home all afternoon on that day, so there is a discrepancy in her statement,” the detective pointed out.
Dad let out a laugh. “There is a discrepancy with Paula’s statement. First she’s not at the park, now she is. And four years later she decides to share this information? This is nonsense.”
“Paula is wrong. Nico wasn’t at the park that day. Isn’t that right, Nico?” Mom’s eyes were unreadable, the same way they had been when I asked her about Sarah, about the differences that I knew she had noticed. She didn’t blink under the watchful eye of the detective.
I just nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
Dad added, “And Sarah is back now. Why does it matter where Nico was that day, or what she did?” He was so calm and collected. The news from the detective was not a surprise to him, either.
“That’s the other thing. Paula seems to believe that—well—” He paused, looking at Mom carefully. “She thinks this isn’t actually Sarah.” Before Mom and Dad could even react, he went on, “Paula says that the girl we all think is Sarah is actually an imposter, a stranger who has assumed her identity.”
“That is ridiculous!” Mom laughed. “And I think we all know where this is coming from.” She looked over at Sarah. “Tell the detective about Max and Paula, why she might say these terrible things about you and your sister.”
Sarah quickly explained the relationship between the three of them, how Paula had been dating her boyfriend when she returned home and how awkward things had been between them. How Paula blamed Sarah for Max breaking up with her. She went on to add that Paula had been cold to her since coming home for the summer—the two former best friends had seen each other only a few times. “I definitely got the idea she was not happy with me,” Sarah added. “I mean, I can hardly believe it, after everything that’s happened, but she still seems mad at me for stuff from years ago.”
The detective nodded. “While I understand that, Paula gave us a list of discrepancies—between the Sarah that she knew and Sarah now. It’s everything from her fingernails to her height and stature. I have to tell you, the list has raised some questions.” He held out a piece of paper to Mom, but she shook her head, refusing to touch it.
“I think we can all agree that Sarah has changed, and honestly I think a lot of this is very hurtful to her, to be compared to her old self—my God! Look at what my daughter has been through.” Mom looked over at Sarah as if to check that she was okay. “How can we stop Paula from saying these awful things?” Mom asked.
“Well”—the detective took in a breath—“we don’t usually run a DNA test if the family confirms a missing person’s identity, and they are, uh”—he stumbled here—“still living. But we could.” He looked over at Sarah. “We would need your approval, of course. Then we could put these questions to rest.”
Mom sat stone-faced for a moment, and Dad didn’t move. But Sarah suddenly spoke up: “Sure, I’ll take a test,” she said, shrugging as if it was no big deal.
“Now wait a minute, Sarah has to give DNA to prove who she is? She’s Sarah! I mean, just look at her! This is getting crazy.” Dad leaned forward in his chair.
The detective glanced over at him. “It will take only a few minutes, the test is painless, a swab in the mouth.”
“Fine, when? Tomorrow?” Mom said in clipped tones.
“I could take her down to the station now, have her back to you in an hour at the most.” Detective Donally stood and looked over at Sarah again.
“Whatever is easiest,” Sarah said calmly, without looking at me.
“No,” I heard myself say.
Every head in the room turned to look at me.
“I have something to tell you.” My voice didn’t even sound like my own.
“Nico, don’t,” Sarah said quietly. “You don’t have to.”
But she had no idea what I was about to confess.
SARAH