“But then he called you that Saturday night. What did he say, Emilia? I think it was the reason he was murdered.”

“It’s like you said. He called . . . late. He sounded a little drunk and said he was going to jail. I thought maybe he was asking me for legal help or something, and I was like, After all these years, you come to me for help? But then he told me—”

She stopped herself again mid-sentence, leaving Lindsay to guess again. “He told you that he shot Richard Mullaney,” she said. “He’s gone now, Emilia. This has to be the reason he was killed. Please trust me. I want to help.”

“I was in total shock. He said he and some friends were partying in some fancy house while the family was out of town. He saw some pictures and realized the dad was the guy from the camp—Hitch. Alex freaked out and started throwing things and breaking stuff. He was leaving when Hitch pulled into the driveway, got out with a gun, and told him to freeze. Alex charged at him, and the gun went off. He could tell that Hitch was dead, and there was nothing he could do, so he just ran. The next day, he went back to that cop he knew when we were kids. The cop told Alex that it wouldn’t matter if the shooting was an accident, or even if we could prove what Hitch had done to me. It was felony murder, no matter what. So that’s why Alex left town.”

“To start over,” Lindsay said. “From all appearances, he was never a suspect in Richard Mullaney’s murder. So why did he call you and say he was going to jail?”

“Because he was turning himself in. He said that something happened recently that made him realize he was still living in limbo, and he had forced others to do so as well.”

“What others?”

“I asked him the same thing. All he said was that he had to make it right. I kept pressing him to see if he was sure, and he finally said he was, and that he was going to hang up before he changed his mind. Then he was gone. Days went by with no news, so I thought maybe he came to his senses.”

The other line was beeping again, coupled now by a knock on the front door. “Linds, we really need to go if you’re going to make the court hearing. Is everything okay?”

On the phone, Emilia was asking if Lindsay needed to take the incoming call. Lindsay repeated how sorry she was for Emilia’s loss, but she knew the words sounded hollow. “Would it give you any comfort to know that you weren’t the only girl that Mullaney targeted?”