Chapters (95)
- Front Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Contents
- Video #1
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Video #2
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Forty-Eight
- Forty-Nine
- Fifty
- Fifty-One
- Fifty-Two
- Fifty-Three
- Fifty-Four
- Fifty-Five
- Fifty-Six
- Fifty-Seven
- Fifty-Eight
- Fifty-Nine
- Sixty
- Sixty-One
- Sixty-Two
- Sixty-Three
- Sixty-Four
- Sixty-Five
- Video #3
- Sixty-Six
- Sixty-Seven
- Sixty-Eight
- Sixty-Nine
- Seventy
- Seventy-One
- Seventy-Two
- Seventy-Three
- Seventy-Four
- Seventy-Five
- Seventy-Six
- Seventy-Seven
- Seventy-Eight
- Seventy-Nine
- Eighty
- Eighty-One
- Eighty-Two
- Eighty-Three
- The Final Video
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Cover
“On the night of her homecoming dance, a night that should have been filled with fun and laughter, a night that should have been exciting and joyous, Chloe Summers was traveling on this lonesome road, nestled in the car with her longtime boyfriend, Hunter Gifford. Two young people with not a care in the world. Two young people with their entire lives spread out before them like an inviting buffet of possibilities. All of it shattered in just one sudden, tragic instant.”
The camera zooms in even closer to the tree. Candles, flowers, and stuffed animals are scattered around the scene. A few handwritten notes are visible. The camera moves in on shattered chrome and glass. A black streak on the tree from the Charger.
“All of it leaves a devastated community with one heartbreaking question that there is not yet any answer to: Where. Is. Chloe?”
The piano chords ring like the most solemn church bell. It’s so loud they vibrate through the floor.
The scene shifts to downtown Bentley. A row of shops. The square.
“Who in this sleepy southern town knows the truth about what happened to Chloe? Who has the key that can unlock this darkest and most terrifying mystery?”
The shot lingers on the square for a long time. Too long.
The large digital clock across the room reads 10:15. I need to get home. And the movie seems so cheesy that I don’t want to have to give Daniel my honest opinion. And I don’t want to have to lie.
“Well, thanks for showing me that, Daniel. I think you’re off—”
“No,” he says, pausing the movie. “You can’t go. We’re not to the part I want you to see yet.”
“But I have homework to do. I’m still behind from the hospital.”
“You said you’d watch it, Hunter. Remember?” His voice drops lower as he turns back to the screen, so I have to strain to hear. “I think it’s the least you could do for an old friend.”
“Well…sure.…”
“I saw the way Chad looked at me tonight. Like I was the biggest loser on the planet.”
“Okay, I’m sorry.”
His guilt trip works. He is an old friend. My oldest. And maybe now I need all the friends I can get.
“Okay. But is it coming up soon?”
“Soon,” he says, brightening. “And it’s the part that’ll totally blow your mind.”
Twenty-Two
Shots of the school flash across the screen. Students driving their cars into the parking lot. Students walking the halls. Dozens of faces I recognize, but the shots linger too long, and the cuts are jumpy and unprofessional. The music remains dull and repetitious.
My mind drifts. What will school be like tomorrow?