“Yeah, but the worst part is he’s so caught up in his grief over Lori leaving him that he’s not really paying much attention to Olive. I hear she barely showed up at school the whole final semester. She somehow managed to ace most of her tests and handed in homework from time to time, so she got passing grades, but from what I hear, it’s lucky they’re letting her move on to tenth grade in the fall. I’ve got a friend in the guidance department there.”

“And Dustin doesn’t know this?”

“If he does, he’s not doing anything about it. He’s made it pretty clear that it’s not my place to step in and give my opinion. I’m actually heading over there after this to check in with him, see what Olive’s up to. Make sure they’ve got food and stuff.” She sat up straighter, pocketed the baggie of weed and the lighter.

“Wait, they might not have food?” Helen said.

“Last time I went over, Olive was having frozen French fries for dinner because that’s all there was in the house. It’s not a money thing. Dustin works. He just doesn’t have it together enough to shop and cook and be a single dad. Lori, she kept that house together. Dustin and Olive, they’re kind of floundering.”

“Wow, I had no idea,” Helen said. She thought about Olive stealing their stuff, setting the fire in the middle of the night on a school night, obsessed with buried treasure like a much younger kid—of course she didn’t have a good home life. How wrapped up in her own shit was she to have missed it?

They were quiet a minute, staring out at the yard, at the line of trees beyond it, the path that led down to the bog.

“Nate and I will try to do more to help. Ask Olive to stay for supper whenever she’s here. She’s such an amazing kid. So smart and helpful.” Riley nodded at her, looked grateful. “I hate to think of her not doing well in school,” Helen continued. “Maybe there’s something we can do to help with that, too. Nate and I were both middle school teachers, so we’re certainly up to doing some tutoring. We can offer to catch her up if she’s missed a lot of school.”