“Emmett, what the fuck?” He hits both hands against the glass again. He’s right beneath a cluster of little painted hearts on the window, like they’re growing out of his head, which should be funny, but I can’t find the humor in any of this right now.
“I’m sorry. I should have just called.” I take a step toward the door, toward Keaton, and wonder whether anyone will help if he jumps me. Emmett might call the cops, at least.
I’m sure the cops would take their sweet time showing up. And they wouldn’t be on my side when they got here.
“No.” Emmett reaches for me, like he’s going to stop me, but his fingers only lightly touch my arm. “It’s okay. You can stay.”
Keaton stomps away, and I let out a slow breath. “I think it’s best if I bolt before he comes back.”
“Yeah, okay.” Emmett looks disappointed, but he walks to the window and peers out. “He’s going into the restaurant with his buddies.”
I pull open the door and take a step out. Emmett follows me, quickly glancing down the street to where Keaton had been. Still clear.
“Nina’s been meaning to call you and invite you over for dinner,” he says. “Why don’t we do that soon? I’d love to catch up.”
I turn, confused. “Are you and Nina…”
“Oh! Yes.” He smiles. “We’re dating. For a few months now.”
Of course they are.
I force a pleasant expression. “Sure. Dinner would be great.”
If he notices that I’m disappointed, he doesn’t let on. “It was great to see you, Lucy.”
I turn away before I embarrass myself further. “You too, Emmett.”
Listen for the Lie Podcast with Ben Owens EPISODE 4—“THE AMNESIA DEFENSE”
Lucy went to stay with her parents after she left—or was kicked out of—the home she shared with Matt. Joanna walks me through those couple of days after the murder, because I’m still unclear about why everyone became convinced Lucy was the one who killed her friend.
Ben:???????????????So it was Matt throwing Lucy out that made people think that Lucy was the one who murdered Savannah?
Joanna:??????????That started it, yeah. But it was the stuff with her parents that really sealed the deal for most people.
Ben:???????????????What stuff?
Joanna:??????????I don’t want to say too much, because I love Kathleen and Don. They’re good people. But, listen. Kathleen was telling the entire town that Lucy would never hurt anyone right after it happened, and then a couple days later she completely changed her tune.
Ben:???????????????How so?
Joanna:??????????She started getting weird and cagey. Completely stopped defending Lucy. Apparently she said some very weird stuff to Savannah’s family. And Don refused to talk to anyone. Still won’t.
Ben:???????????????He won’t talk about Lucy at all?
Joanna:??????????Nope.
I heard this from several people, so I started to ask around about the Chases.
William:????????Yeah, we got a Starbucks a few years ago, which is fine, I guess. But only go there for coffee. Don’t buy any of those stale muffins or breads or whatever they sell. Go over to Daisy Street Bakery for any of that.
That’s William, one of the bartenders at the bar Norma recommended to me. It’s a quiet night, and William, who has lived in Plumpton for every one of his fifty-three years, is happy to talk to me. He’s a tall, broad man, with a gray beard that extends several inches past his chin. He would be intimidating if not for the friendly smile.
He tells me all about Lucy’s family. Her grandmother, Beverly Moore, was born and raised in Plumpton. She had three children—Keith, Kathleen, and Karen. Keith and Karen both live in Houston now, but Kathleen returned to Plumpton after finishing college. She brought her fiancé, Don Chase, with her. They got married, had Lucy, and opened a bakery together—Daisy Street Bakery, which numerous locals have mentioned to me.
William:????????You talk to them yet? Kathleen and Don?
Ben:???????????????Not yet, no.
William:????????You should. Don don’t talk to no one about Lucy, but Kathleen will talk to you for sure. She’d be happy to.
Ben:???????????????You think so?
William:????????Oh yeah. Kathleen’s real chatty. She ain’t got nothin’ to hide.
Ben:???????????????What about Don?
William:????????What about him?
Ben:???????????????Does he have something to hide?
William:????????Welllll … listen, this is just town gossip, but you’re trying to get to the bottom of this, and I respect that.
A lot of folks think that Don knew more than he let on. He was shifty back then, let me tell you what. And I don’t blame him one bit. If it had been my daughter, I would have protected her no matter what.
Ben:???????????????You think Lucy remembered something and told him?
William:????????I don’t believe the amnesia defense for a minute, first of all. But, yeah. She told her daddy, and he did what he had to do. That’s what I think. That’s what a lot of folks think. And, well, there was the thing about Kathleen and Savvy’s mom, Ivy.
Ben:???????????????What thing?
William:????????I probably shouldn’t say anything, but someone’s got to tell you. Apparently, Kathleen basically told Ivy that she knew Lucy was the one who killed Savvy.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
LUCY
The mood in the house this evening can only be described as hostile flailing.
I can tell the exact moment when Mom starts listening to episode four, because she’s suddenly calling everyone in town. I can only make out a few words as I creep past her bedroom door and down the stairs, wincing at every creak—“irresponsible” and “outrageous”—but the constant chatter never ends.
“I don’t know!” Mom’s voice is really loud now. “He was so nice when I spoke to him, and now he’s acting like Don and I know everything. I did an entire interview with him months ago, told him anything he wanted to know, and he hasn’t aired a word of it!”
I grab my purse from the counter and slip out the door. I need to be elsewhere just in case she realizes who’s really to blame for all of this (me).
Dad is strolling up the front walk, sweat wilting the collar of his white shirt, and I almost run smack into him.
“You’re in a hurry.” He looks … amused, which is unexpected, given Mom’s mood. Even if he’s not listening to the podcast, there’s no way she didn’t immediately text him upon starting today’s episode.
“Sorry.” I step around him and say, “I’m going to Grandma’s,” even though I hadn’t actually decided on that. But it was what I always did, as a kid. Run away before the screaming gets too loud to ignore.
“Lucy.”
I stop and look back at him.
“If you’ve remembered something, and you want to talk to someone, you can still talk to me.”
I open my mouth, but nothing comes out. I’m not sure what I expected, but that wasn’t it.
“I…” He sighs and slides his hands into his pockets. He looks sad, which is an emotion I haven’t seen in him in a long time. I’ve forgotten what he looks like when he’s not just a little bit scared. “Maybe I didn’t handle things right. I don’t know. But I meant what I said back then. It’s okay.”
“It’s okay.” I could still see Dad, five years ago, tears in his eyes as he gripped my shoulders. “If you remember something, you only tell me, okay? Whatever it is, it’s okay. I promise. But you can only tell me. Understand?”
I remembered looking at him, at the hard set of his mouth, at the wild desperation in his eyes, and realizing that he thought I killed Savvy. He was sure I killed Savvy, actually.
I guess five years hasn’t restored his faith in me. And who can blame him, honestly?
“Do you ever imagine bashing your parents’ brains in? I thought about that a time or two. That’s normal, right?”
“You’ll be my first call for sure,” I say, and turn to walk to my car.
Listen for the Lie Podcast with Ben Owens EPISODE 4—“THE AMNESIA DEFENSE”
Savannah’s mother, Ivy Harper, hadn’t mentioned anything about Kathleen Chase confessing to her that Lucy had killed Savannah in our first interview, so I went to talk to her again. I asked her about those days right after the murder.
Ben:???????????????Thanks for sitting down with me again.