“What—” he started, then jumped back when he recognized it. It was Delilah’s old lip gloss case. He’d seen her play with it countless times.

There was blood on it.

“Where did you find this?” Mateo wanted to shake her. “Did you get it from Maria?”

“I’m sorry,” Lily whispered again.

“Don’t be sorry, just tell me.” Mateo was talking so fast he tripped over the words. “Why do you have this?”

“I’m sorry about Brandon, too.” She held her hands out in front of her face, studying them. “How did I get out of the bathroom?”

“What are you talking about?” Mateo couldn’t decide whether to call the cops or take her to the health center, but he tried, once again, to sound gentle. “Why were you leaning out the window, Lily?”

She mumbled so low he had to lean in close to hear.

“I was just following her,” she whispered.

“Following who?” The corridor was empty.

Lily shook her head. “She had a candle.”

This was useless. “Tell me what’s going on, Lily.”

Lily didn’t move. Her face didn’t change expression, but there was a new undertone in her voice that made goose bumps form on Mateo’s skin. “I could ignore them before, but they’re stronger now. It’s getting harder.”

“‘They’?” Mateo said. “Who’s ‘they’?”

“There was blood before.” Lily stretched out her arms in front of her again and turned them over, examining her smooth, pale skin. “Where did all the blood go?”

If Lily was really as crazy as she was acting, she needed more help than Mateo could give her. Well, the nurses at the health center would know what to do.

“Tell you what,” Mateo said. “I’ll walk you back down to your room.”

Lily didn’t move. When Mateo put a gentle hand on her back, though, she came with him easily enough.

“Have you ever seen the girl?” Lily asked as they climbed down the stairs. It was slow going. She leaned on Mateo so hard he felt his ankle buckling. He wished he’d had time to wrap it up before he’d run into her.

“Can’t say that I have,” he said.

“The little girl who skips on the lake. Sometimes there are others with her. Sometimes she tells you to come for a swim.”

Mateo stopped walking. “Who are you talking about? Not—not La Llorona?”

“I don’t know her name.” Lily stopped too. “That other one had the candle on the stairs. The one in blue. She’s the one who told me about the blood. About how pretty it would look on the grass.”

What? “Whose blood, Lily?”

Lily ignored him. Her breath was coming in huffs. They were nearing the second-floor landing.

“I went to the cemetery last night,” Lily said. “I just want them all to leave me alone. I just want Maria to be Maria again.”