Holly did remember it because it was one of the few times she and her best friend had fought. She’d thought Sophie was being mean and irrational, and frankly, a snob. ‘Do you have any idea how difficult it is to move somewhere new in high school?’ she’d asked.

To which Sophie had replied quite snippily, ‘No, and neither do you.’

‘Exactly. So, why don’t we be the ones to give her a chance, give her a group to belong to?’

As the memory flooded back, Holly placed her head in her hands. She’d been the one to invite the monster into their inner circle. If she had only listened to Sophie at the time, maybe all of this could’ve been prevented. Or at least the part with Jersey.

‘Stop it!’ Sophie released her grip on Holly’s hand to smack her own down on the nightstand, rattling the lamp, but she succeeded in getting her friend’s attention. ‘Neither of us is responsible for Leigh Ann Wolfe’s actions,’ she said with a heavy emphasis on neither.

In her heart, she knew her best friend was right. Her head, however, wasn’t convinced. She wasn’t sure she ever would be.

‘She’s right,’ Isaac said, appearing in his sister’s open doorway. His skin was tanned a dark brown, and his hair had sun-kissed golden streaks running through it in a look some of Holly’s friends would’ve paid hundreds of dollars to achieve. The camping trip with Trevor appeared to have done more to help her brother than his weekly therapy sessions. Ever since he’d returned, she’d seen more glimpses of the brother she remembered before he’d been kidnapped, though every once in a while, such as now, the memories that haunted him darkened his eyes.

‘It’s not your fault or anyone else’s. Just like it’s not Mom’s fault Timmy was kidnapped, not her fault that she didn’t somehow magically know her little brother was still alive. Just like it’s not anyone’s fault that Evan Bishop… did to me what he did to get to Mom. Some people are just bad, and the unlucky ones who cross their paths pay the price.’

The way he poured his whole heart into those words turned Holly into a blubbering mess of tears. She shoved herself off her bed and crossed the room to wrap her brother into a tight hug, surprised when his hold tightened around her as he consoled her.

When they finally stepped back from each other, Holly smiled up at her ‘little’ brother. ‘After that speech, how am I supposed to call you my dumb kid brother?’

‘Guess you’ll just have to start telling the truth, introducing me as your hot, smart, younger brother.’

Sophie threw her head back and laughed. Wiping her eyes, she said, ‘I needed that.’

Holly couldn’t decide if the expression on Isaac’s face was one of insult or relief, and then Sophie’s phone rang.

After checking the screen, she yanked her phone up and answered. ‘Hey, Jersey… No, that’s fine… Of course, we’ll come pick you up. When are they discharging you?’