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Back When the Stars Go Dark Save as PDF
Chapters (83)
  1. Epigraph
  2. Maps
  3. (prologue)
  4. Part 1: Signs and Vapors
  5. (one)
  6. (two)
  7. (three)
  8. (four)
  9. (five)
  10. (six)
  11. (seven)
  12. (eight)
  13. (nine)
  14. (ten)
  15. (eleven)
  16. (twelve)
  17. Part 2: Secret Things
  18. (thirteen)
  19. (fourteen)
  20. (fifteen)
  21. (sixteen)
  22. (seventeen)
  23. (eighteen)
  24. (nineteen)
  25. (twenty)
  26. (twenty-one)
  27. (twenty-two)
  28. (twenty-three)
  29. (twenty-four)
  30. (twenty-five)
  31. (twenty-six)
  32. (twenty-seven)
  33. (twenty-eight)
  34. (twenty-nine)
  35. (thirty)
  36. (thirty-one)
  37. (thirty-two)
  38. (thirty-three)
  39. (thirty-four)
  40. (thirty-five)
  41. (thirty-six)
  42. (thirty-seven)
  43. (thirty-eight)
  44. (thirty-nine)
  45. Part 3: Time and the Maiden
  46. (forty)
  47. (forty-one)
  48. (forty-two)
  49. (forty-three)
  50. (forty-four)
  51. (forty-five)
  52. (forty-six)
  53. (forty-seven)
  54. (forty-eight)
  55. (forty-nine)
  56. (fifty)
  57. (fifty-one)
  58. (fifty-two)
  59. (fifty-three)
  60. Part 4: The Bent Grove
  61. (fifty-four)
  62. (fifty-five)
  63. (fifty-six)
  64. (fifty-seven)
  65. (fifty-eight)
  66. (fifty-nine)
  67. (sixty)
  68. (sixty-one)
  69. (sixty-two)
  70. (sixty-three)
  71. (sixty-four)
  72. (sixty-five)
  73. (sixty-six)
  74. (sixty-seven)
  75. (sixty-eight)
  76. (sixty-nine)
  77. (seventy)
  78. Dedication
  79. (acknowledgments)
  80. (author’s note)
  81. BY PAULA MCLAIN
  82. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  83. What’s next onyour reading list?

I’m just heading back toward the village when Will’s cruiser passes me going the other way. I see him in my rearview, turning in to a dirt pullout, and find a spot to park myself, walking to meet him halfway.

“I’ve been looking for you all over, Anna. One of the patrol teams up in Montgomery Woods found some items of Shannan’s, one of her shoes, a bracelet, her pocketbook with money inside, a few hundred dollars. So this wasn’t theft, but we knew that.”

“Any fingerprints?”

“Unfortunately, no. There was a camera, too. No usable prints, but we processed the film inside and might have something to go on from the time and date stamps.”

Pressure materializes at the base of my skull, as if actual hands are squeezing there. I try to ignore the feeling. “Where are they now? Can I see them?”

“Sure. I’ll make you a copy. I’m headed back to meet Drew Hague and the polygraph technician if you want to follow me.”

“I’ll do that, but I should tell you that I had a long talk with Emily this morning. Seems like her father also could have been the one to hurt Cameron.”

“You told her about your suspicions, then?”

“I did.”

“How is she now?”

“Pretty shaken up. Make sure the technician asks Drew about holidays in particular. Christmases in Malibu. The father’s name is Andrew Hague, Bowling Green, Ohio. Emily says he’s not traveling these days because her mom is so sick, but we have to rule him out anyway.”

“Understood. Let’s check in later. And you should get some rest if you can. You look awful.”

“I don’t care how I look, Will. I just want those photos.”

He seems reluctant to back down. “I don’t suppose I can insist?”

“Not a chance.”

—

As soon as I have the photos from Shannan’s camera in my hand, I spread them out on the floor of my cabin, looking for signs or clues in the images. Most are silly, spontaneous throwaways—Shannan’s bare feet with a gnarled dandelion between two of her toes. A six-pack of beer on a patch of grass. A blurred nature picture that could be of anything, shot almost anywhere. Part of Shannan’s bare leg, the shutter having clicked the picture by accident, maybe.