Page 21 of Dead Man's Hollow
“She does usually have a sort of constipated look on her face, but I think in this case, she’s genuinely clueless. She was out of the house by the time Heather started getting wild.”
“Not just that, though. All this stuff about what a happy family they were,” Michelle says.
Lynn cuts her a look. “Weren’t they?”
They stop at the crosswalk and wait for a car to pass. Michelle notices, not for the first time, that the driver barely glances at them. For years, they endured catcalls and wolf whistles during their walks, but for the past eighteen months or so, it’s been like they’re invisible. She thinks she’s probably supposed to be upset or at least sad to know she’s past her prime. But honestly? It’s a freaking relief to be able to take a walk without worrying about being harassed—or worse.
She sighs and turns back to Lynn’s question. “Well, I guess I don’t know if they were unhappy, but they were kind of weird.”
“Weird how?”
“Strict. Remember the eighth grade camping trip?”
“Yeah. It rained the entire time.”
“Do you remember that Amy didn’t come?”
“I thought she had some sort of gymnastics meet or a softball game or something. I don’t know.”
“My aunt was working in the middle school office then. Her mom called and said they couldn’t afford for her to go.”
Lynn gives her a confused look. “Wasn’t it like twenty-five bucks?”
“Yeah. And my aunt said there was a fund for kids who needed help. She told Mrs. Ryan the school would cover it, and she refused. Aunt Beth got the sense that the money was an excuse.”
“Maybe they didn’t like the idea of one of their girls going away overnight. It’s not that strange.”
“Not now,” Michelle agreed. “But in 1989?”
She shrugs. “So they were a little overprotective. But they might have had their reasons.”
“They might have, but it’s clear that at least Diana—if she’s being honest—didn’t know what Heather was up to.”
“Diana was away at school. She wouldn’t know that Heather was cutting loose unless Amy told her. But I don’t know why you’d dime your sister out.”
“Not to your parents, but you might call your older sister and say, ‘Look, I’m worried.’”
“I don’t know if Amywasworried. Did she know Heather had a whole secret life?” Lynn finally says.
Michelle turns to gaze out over to the lake while she considers the question. The setting sun glistens silver on the water. “She had to have heard about some of it, don’t you think? The entire school heard about the beef between Heather and Kelly Marcus. That was only, what, two months before the party in Dead Man’s Hollow.”
Lynn nods. “If she didn’t hear about it, she’s the only person in the whole school.”
Heather and Kelly had argued in the girls’ locker room. They were two grades behind Michelle, Lynn, and Amy, but word spread quickly. Allegedly, Kelly stole a tennis bracelet from Heather’s locker. Michelle never heard if it was confirmed to be true. But seeing as how Heather spray-painted ‘THIEF’ across the hood of Kelly’s VW Rabbit and Kelly claimed not to know who’d done it, she’d always assumed Kelly had taken the bracelet.
“But if Kelly did steal Heather’s jewelry, maybe Amy figured she got what she deserved.”
Lynn raises an eyebrow at that. “Some people might. But Amy?”
“I don’t know. We all did things that, in retrospect, were risky, foolish, and stupid.”
“We did. Not Amy. Think about it. Can you remember a single dangerous or dumb stunt that Amy pulled?” Lynn asks.
Michelle searches her memory but draws a blank. Finally, she shakes her head. “No. I can’t. Amy was squeaky clean.”
“Exactly. With Amy and Diana as older sisters, Heather had a lot of incentive to keep her recklessness on the down low.”
“So, we’re back to the same question—should we call the tip line or send an email?”
