Page 118 of Darkwater Lane

Suddenly, I understand the implications of what we’re listening to. I never hung up the call. So, unless the emergency operator did—which is incredibly unlikely—it would have continued recording. Which means, it would have caught the conversation I had with Madison.

My heart begins to pound so hard in my chest that my entire body thrums with it.

Madison confessed before she jumped into the lake. And we have a recording.

I shift to the edge of my chair, barely breathing as I listen. There’s the catch of the motor, the slap of the hull against the lake’s surface as I sped after Madison and Sam. I know what’s coming and brace myself. Even so, the gunshot causes me to jolt. I swallow, my throat thick at the memory of Sam stumbling back and falling.

On the recording, I scream. I swallow thickly, listening as I cut the engine and shout for Madison to drop her weapon. Then another splash.

“That was her gun hitting the water,” I inform them. I glance toward Diakos. He nods, saying nothing—not wanting to interrupt the playback.

I note the way he watches me and try to school my features, but I can’t. I’m nearly giddy with relief. This recording will prove Sam’s innocence. Mine as well.

I lean back in my chair as the conversation between Madison and me plays out. Some words are drowned out by the splash of water against the metal hull, but not so much that we can’t hear most of what’s said.

I hear myself shout at her to get in the other boat. I hold my breath, seeing it all in my head. The way she moved toward the side, how she leaned out over the water. Then the push that sent my boat drifting away.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I hear myself scream. I wince at the rage in my voice. It’s even more evident when I demand again that she start the engine. At least I’m pretty sure that’s what I’m saying; it’s harder to hear, the words drowned out by the waves hitting the hull.

The next part comes through clearly though, at least enough of it: Madison saying, “Are you going to…shoot me?”

Diakos’s focus on me is razor sharp. I realize that it’s impossible to hear the taunt in her voice on the recording. If you can’t see theway she’s holding her arms wide, the way she’s standing and waiting, practically crooking her fingers at me in invitation, then you might miss the implication of her words.

In fact, if you don’t know what you’re listening for, you might just think she’s begging for her life. Which is really, really bad for me.

After that, it’s hard to hear much of anything. The lake slaps against the boat, the sound of it echoing in the small conference room. I know Madison and I were still talking at this point. This is when she ended up confessing to all the murders.

Except the boat with my phone has drifted too far away.

I squeeze my eyes shut as I move closer to the recorder, struggling to make out our conversation.

I might hear voices, but it’s difficult to tell, and I certainly can’t pick out any words. My stomach churns, my breathing tight.

Diakos reaches forward to end the recording, but I pull the machine out of reach, clutching it to my ear. “She confessed,” I tell him. I sound desperate because I am. “This is when she said she killed all those men for me.”

From his expression, I can tell Diakos wants to believe me, but I’m not sure he actually does. I shake my head as the hope I’d felt earlier congeals into something sour. “There has to be something you can do. Some sort of audio filter you can run this through to amplify our voices.”

He takes the recorder from me. “We already did. This is the best we could get.”

I press my fingertips against my temples and take a deep breath. I’d hoped the recording would be the easy way out of this mess. But if anything, it only makes things worse.

I swallow back bile, my stomach churning.

“I’ve already spoken to the DA,” he says. He taps his fingers against the table again, and I wonder if he recognizes it’s a tell—something he does before delivering bad news. I brace myself.

“I’m sorry, Gwen. The DA plans to press charges against Sam.”

Anger and frustration rise up my neck, burning my cheeks. I expected Sam to be a suspect, but I figured that would just mean an investigation. That once the police sorted through all the evidence, they would realize Sam’s innocence. “For what?”

“Kidnapping. Assault. Attempted murder.”

I gasp in shock and outrage. “What?!” It’s worse than I thought it might be. “But he didn’t do any of that,” I argue. “Weren’t you listening to what I said earlier?”

Diakos looks at me with pity. “We have it on tape.” He gestures to the recorder on the table. “Madison, in her own words, saying that he came to her house and held her at gunpoint. We have the rope tied around her ankle, and your own admission that the other end was tied to a cement block.”

“She did that to herself,” I protest.

Diakos presses his lips together. I can tell he’s choosing his words carefully. “A jury won’t believe she did it to herself.”

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