Page 69 of The One Before

“I’m almost finished here. I’ll have it to you by noon.”

“Don’t bother. I’ll walk across the street and eat at Nectar.” He retreats too quickly. This was an attempt to figure out where I am. “You could join me there, if you’d like.”

“I would, but I promised Beth we’d video chat this afternoon. She wants to show me what they’ve done with the nursery.” I pause, trying to gauge his response. “I can call her later tonight, if you’d like.”

“No. Catch up with her. I’ll see you at the house tonight, okay?”

As I slide my phone into my leggings, I see a car pull into the parking lot. Much to my delight, it’s Bailey. I give her a head start before I approach. She sits on her familiar bench, but this time she doesn’t have a laptop or notebooks. She’s waiting.

“Morning,” I say. “Mind if I sit?”

“I’m expecting someone.” She looks away, her mind thinking about other things.

I sit beside her on the bench anyway. “I’m the person who wanted to meet you here.”

She turns, a look of confusion on her face. Last week when I called Helena, I’d asked her to write down everything she could about Laura and her disappearance. I told her to include what she knew about Coop’s involvement. Using the mailing address onTheFalls Reportwebsite, I instructed her to send the information to Bailey. I’d sent my own anonymous message shortly after, telling Bailey to meet me in the park.

“You’re the person who sent over the information about the Laura Price disappearance?”

“Technically, Laura’s mother did. Helena.” I take another look around the park, making sure we aren’t being watched. “I told her to write down everything she knew and send it to you.”

“But why? What am I supposed to make of this?” she asks. She shifts to better face me, like she’s shedding her skin. “Cooper Douglas is connected to the disappearance of Laura Price?”

“Helena seems to think so,” I say, staring ahead at the empty park. I still can’t shake the feeling someone is watching.

“And you’ve actually met this woman?”

“She posed as our event planner the first several times we met,” I say, rolling my eyes. Even now, I feel foolish about the whole ordeal. “She eventually confessed her true intentions and told me everything about Coop and Laura.”

“Do you believe her?”

I look down. I’m hesitant to come forward with what Coop told me until I know I’m completely safe. I don’t think he would hurt me, but it’s hard to say what a person might do when the possibility of punishment lingers so close. I know how things ended up for Laura.

“I think Helena’s story is compelling. That’s why I’m coming to you. We must think alike, even if we disagree at times. Right?” I look down. I know Bailey is blindsided by my presence, trying to figure out my motive in all this. Last time I saw her, I berated her for what she wrote about Coop. Today serves a different purpose. “You see, I lied to you the first time we met. I didn’t leave my job to come here. I was let go. I got caught up in chasing a story over facts, and it cost me a career I loved. I’m not doing that this time. And I don’t want you to do it either.”

Bailey’s posture relaxes. She leans into the park bench, staring at the empty jogging track before us. She looks drained and defeated. “Why did you have to tell me all this?”

“I knew you’d investigate. And you clearly have it out for the Douglas family. I thought you’d enjoy the opportunity to take Coop down.”

“It’s just…” She stops talking and looks away. Something is weighing heavy on her, and I’m afraid I’ve made a mistake. “I don’t want to hurt Regina.”

Coop had mentioned Bailey’s friendship with his sister, but I wouldn’t think that would be enough to interfere with her chance to break this story. “You didn’t seem to care when you wrote that Celia article last month.”

“I know. She was angry about that, but she understands what I’m doing withThe Falls Report. I’m shattering the glass ceiling built around her family and all these other Whisper Falls fakes.” She looks down and cracks her knuckles. “This is different. I don’t know if she’ll forgive me.”

“If Regina’s your friend—”

“She’s more than my friend.” She looks at me and hunches her shoulders. “We’re together.”

“Oh.” I wasn’t expecting that. All the snide remarks about Regina and her love life take on a new context. If I’d known they were involved romantically, I’d never have roped Bailey into this. “She never told me.”

“We’re discreet. I can’t say our relationship is a secret, but we don’t broadcast it. Josephine’s not keen on her only daughter being a lesbian.”

“I see.” The longer I’m around this family, the more secrets come to light. I lean back and pinch the bridge of my nose. We’ve reached an impasse, and I’m not sure how to proceed. “Have you told Regina about any of this? What you’ve been looking into?”

“No. I feel guilty enough researching Cooper behind her back. Celia’s case is different. The whole town has talked about that for years. If Cooper is involved in something else… it will break her heart.”

“Have you talked to anyone else about this? Learned anything?” I ask, trying to steer the conversation away from emotional attachments. Back to the facts.

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