“You mean you thought Ray Wallace made it all disappear?”

“I don’t like your tone, Serena. Not from someone who works for me. What sort of evidence do they have?”

“I can’t tell you.”

Peter frowned. “I could file a motion to stop the police from running any tests.”

“You could, but then it’s all out in the open. In the press. People will wonder what you’re trying to hide.”

“I already told you that I didn’t kill Laura.”

“Then you have nothing to fear.”

“It’s a little more complicated than that.”

Serena waited. Peter waved the waitress away from the table. He scowled and leaned back, folding his arms. “What did George Bush say? When I was young and stupid, I was young and stupid.”

“You sent Laura those stalking letters,” Serena concluded. “Didn’t you?”

“Okay, yes. You’re right.”

“Why?”

“Why? I went out with Laura, and she shut me down. I thought she was playing games, stringing me along. I was pissed off. So I started sending her those notes. It was a joke.”

“I saw one of the notes. This was no joke.”

“Give me a break, I was seventeen years old.”

“Don’t make excuses, Peter. You were terrorizing this girl.”

“Call it whatever you want. I didn’t kill her.”

“This isn’t just about sending ugly letters, is it? Finn was telling the truth. You attacked Laura that night in the softball field.”

Peter met Serena’s eyes. “I didn’t attack her. I went back to the field that night to get my baseball bat. I bumped into Laura coming out of the woods. Yes, I tried to kiss her, and yes, I may have pushed things too far. I thought she was playing hard to get. That’s all it was.”

“It sounds like rape to me,” Serena told him.

“I am not a rapist.”

“Yeah, rich boys never are.”

Peter’s face screwed up in anger. “I could have lied to you, and I didn’t.”

“Really? What choice do you have? You’ve painted yourself into a corner. You already told the police that you and Laura were making out in the field. You admitted the two of you were together that night.”

“The smart thing for me would be to say nothing at all. That’s what the lawyer in me says I should do.”

“Well, you’ve already started talking, so keep going. What happened after you accosted Laura?”

“The black guy broke it up. Knocked me out cold.”

“What happened after you woke up?”

“Laura was gone. So was the black guy. I had a splitting headache. I went home.”

“What about your bat?”

“I forgot all about it.”

“Was it still in the field?”

“I have no idea if it was or wasn’t. I didn’t look around for it. I didn’t even think about the bat. I just wanted to get out of there.”

“What else can you tell me about that night?”

“That’s it.”

“You don’t know what happened to Laura?”

“I don’t. As far as I know, the black guy killed her. That’s what I’ve thought all these years.”