She supposes the advantage was that one could park near the greenbelt, far away from the house, and walk along the path until reaching the backyard and going into the house. There was no fence—several of the houses on the greenbelt didn’t have them. And Winding Creek didn’t use resident stickers, even though the greenbelt and the creek were the private property of the collective neighborhood, owned jointly through the home owners’ association.

She goes through the backyard, and the back door is unlocked.

Marland sits on the carpet, looking furious. There’s a thin glow from a lamp to light the room.

“Well,” he said. “It seems like the police have been at your house. I hope you’ve kept our deal. Otherwise video of your daddy creeping around the neighborhood hits the police servers.”

“I’m not working for you,” she said. “And I’m wondering exactly why you’re so insistent on it. Why me?”

“I heard the investigators are looking at your dad. I guess you’ve got a lot on your mind.” The words were like ice on her spine.

She was scared, but she had to do this. He was underestimating her and maybe she was overestimating herself, but she had no choice.

“You texted a threat to Danielle before she died, on the phone you gave Ned. She found out about the drug deals. She told you no. And you threatened her, and she ended up dead. If you don’t leave me and my family alone, I go to the police.”

“That’s your theory?” He doesn’t seem rattled by her announcement. It’s not what she expected. “Listen, do you know why I want to work with you? You don’t take the pills. I’ve tried to work in Lakehaven before. You need a sober kid on the ground. Too many of them sample the merchandise. They’re unreliable.” He seems utterly unfazed by her threat.

“No. Why don’t you go find someone who actually wants to work for you? Again: Why me?”

He takes a step toward her. And he loosens the scarf around his throat. Maybe he was warm. Maybe he meant to hurt her.

She takes a step back. “I found the phone in her house, while going through her stuff.”

“Where was it?”

“In a blazer jacket pocket in her closet.”

He looks almost rueful and Julia realizes: he was in Danielle’s house at some point, maybe looking for the phone.