“Really?” The reporter looks skeptical. “It’s a little hard to understand, from an outsider’s perspective, how in such a small, tight-knit community, a pregnant teenager could have gone unnoticed for so long. There are fewer than four hundred students at Clifford High School, isn’t that right?”

“Somebody knows,” the florist insists. “I mean, somebody has to know who had that baby. The girl’s boyfriend, or her parents, or someone.” She turns to her daughter. “I mean, I’d definitely know if you were pregnant, right?”

“Of course,” Claire agrees, as if this is a thing they discuss all the time. “And, I mean, I’m sure her mother knew she was pregnant, even if no one else did, but it’s not like she’s going to admit it.”

“Whose mother?” The reporter suddenly perks up. “Do you know who gave birth to Lullaby Doe?”

“Well, no one really knows, but we all kinda know, you know?”

The reporter frowns. “We can’t air unsubstantiated rumors—”

“It’s not a rumor,” Claire insists. “Just because we don’t have proof.”

“That is the definition of a rumor!” I shout at the iPad, and Landry jumps, startled by my outburst.

“I’m just sayin’, that Twitter account’s been right about everything else so far.”

The reporter swings the microphone back toward her own mouth. “You’re talking about the Crimson Cryer account?”

“It’s a cop. It has to be. Like a … a whistleblower. And if a cop says it’s the girl who called 911—” Claire suddenly turns to the reporter. “I can’t say her name on camera, can I?”

“Our policy is not to broadcast personal information about minors. We also don’t air unsubstantiated—”

“Not that it matters,” I snap at the screen, speaking over the reporter. “They just advertised that Twitter account on national television. Anyone who scrolls back through the Cryer’s feed will see the accusation against me. And I didn’t call 911. Coach Killebrew did.”

Landry’s still staring at the iPad. Amira is staring at me.

“So as you can see, there’s plenty of speculation here in town about what, exactly, happened three days ago at Clifford High. But one thing you can count on is that we’re going to be here, bringing you the latest developments, live. Shining a light on this tragedy, which has captured the heart of an entire nation. Back to you, Tom.”

Disgusted, I stop the video.

People seem to think that shining a light on something is always a good thing. As if that means things can finally be seen for what they are. But the truth is that sometimes bright light distorts familiar shapes. Sometimes it casts wild shadows that bear no resemblance to an object’s true form.