“They were only six. It’s good that they knew not to go into the water unattended,” Val said.

There was silence. Val didn’t know what to say next.

“That’s not it.” Bethany finally spoke. “They were afraid of the water.”

“Afraid of the water? Why?” Val asked.

“I don’t know. They loved to go in and splash when we were all swimming, but wouldn’t go near it unless someone else was there,” Bethany said and then took a deep breath. “While we were upstairs in Claudia’s room, we don’t know if someone came home that day or not. After we found the twins, what we do know is no one was there at that time.”

Melinda looked at Bethany again. She was holding something back.

“What is it?” Val asked of Melinda.

“Bridget was also in the house that day and no one knows where she was,” Melinda blurted.

“Mel!” Bethany yelled.

Val narrowed her eyes, confused. “Could Bridget have managed to get to the pool on her own?”

“If she was having a good day and was coherent, she might have. Back then she wasn’t as bad as she is now,” Melinda said. “Bridget loved the pool, so it’s a possibility. I always thought the twins must have seen someone they knew by the water.”

“Wouldn’t she have called for help if something happened to them while she was there?” Gwen asked.

“She could have been scared. Gabi looked for her after Melinda and I found the twins, she couldn’t find her. It wasn’t like her to hide, though,” Bethany said.

“I thought you said Gabi called the police after you found the twins. You jumped in the water got the twins out. The two of you left after that. At what point did Gabrielle check on Bridget during all of this?”

Melinda sat composed and took a second before she answered. “I think she went to check on Bridget as we went to the servants’ stairs to leave. It happened so long ago and the bad memory is such a blur now.”

And there was lie number two? “I don’t recall a mention of Bridget in the police report,” Val said. There was no documentation of another person in the house that day. Maybe the Morgans’ influence had something to do with that omission, but somehow Val thought she had been told another lie by these women. The sequence of events just didn’t add up.

“We left right after the twins came out of the water. So we have no knowledge what the police did,” Melinda said plainly.

“Well, there you have it,” Bethany said. “It was a horrible mistake. One I regret every day of my life. I hope we’ve cleared the air.”

Between odd small talk, the women finished their lunch. Once Louise cleared the plates, it became obvious Bethany was done hosting for the afternoon, and Val took the hint.