Suddenly I remembered Adam and what Travis said about the background check website. I’d been so focused on Cris and everything I’d seen at their house that day, that I’d somehow forgotten about Adam.

‘Yes. Cris’s cousin Adam is their other top suspect, although he willingly gave a DNA sample to them. I’m not sure if that’s from confidence of being innocent or some level of twisted arrogance. I called him and he kinda gave me the creeps. I don’t know a whole lot about him, so Travis gave me information on how to do a background check. I’m going to see if there’s anything in his history that may also match up with the killer’s profile and make him a more viable suspect.’

‘Honey, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You should leave this to the FBI and stay out of it.’

‘But Mom, I need to know if it’s Cris. And besides, doing an anonymous background check from the safety of my living room won’t put me in any danger. I can’t go on not knowing the truth.’

She paused for a long second. ‘I know you want to believe in your grand uncle and are building a relationship with him but at the end of the day, there’s a chance it could be him, Lizzie. I know that’s not what you want to hear and I’m sorry, but this does worry me. I want to support you in learning where you came from but this is too dangerous. You need to be really careful.’ She watched as I rubbed my lips together like I’d just put on lipstick, something I did when I was trying to work something out. ‘Honey, are you sure you don’t want to come home? Even just for the night? I know it’s getting late but you can sleep here and tomorrow we can have a girls’ day. We could see a movie and get our nails done. What do you say? We’d love to see you.’

‘No, that’s okay. Thanks anyway, Mom. I’m just worked up. I’ll be fine. Andie will be home later to keep me company, so I won’t be alone all night. And Travis is staying with us right now just to be on the safe side, so he should be getting home soon too. I’ll call you tomorrow if I need anything, promise.’

My mom inhaled and exhaled through her nose, clearly upset that I was choosing to stay in Brooklyn. ‘Okay, well if you need anything at all, let me know. We’re here for you no matter what.’

I smiled for the first time since I left Cris’s place. ‘Thanks, Mom. I’ll keep you in the loop now, I swear.’

‘Love you, sweetie. Please be careful,’ she said, her eyes watery.