I’ll admit it was hard to sit there and wait. I knew what she was doing, prying, going through all our things, but unlike most people, I’d managed to develop an astounding amount of patience over the years. Waiting for the man you love to recognize what’s in front of him will do that to a person. I could’ve laid in the grass for hours, watching, waiting.

It took Lily a while to give up and come outside, exactly as I knew she would because there was nothing for her to find, and my heart didn’t begin to race until she entered the garage, which I’d left open for her, too. I had to time this part exactly, make sure I gave her enough leeway to spot the misplaced rug—another little breadcrumb—and climb down the ladder, but I couldn’t give her enough time to come back up until I was ready.

Everything had worked out according to plan. Well, almost everything. I’d hoped the fall off the ladder would be fatal. I’d read somewhere killing someone almost accidentally felt different from doing so with absolute intent, say with a gun or a knife. Either way, I’d smiled when I’d heard her cry out as I’d slammed the trapdoor shut.

Back at the house I’d called Ash, packed a bag and made sandwiches for the trip, and then I’d contacted Patrick. He hadn’t been too happy about extending my time off, but I’d begged him to give me four days, not two, so I could “surprise Ash with more of a road trip.” Four days would turn into five or six once I’d taken a knife to the tires on my car, blaming it on the local Brookmount youth, and making sure we were delayed coming home. Of course, that was without the cops asking Ash to stick around. He’d remained adamant he wanted to speak to them, and I’d somehow have to convince him otherwise. I couldn’t risk him having to stay there and me returning home alone. Whatever the outcome, without water, Lily—whose phone I’d use to text Patrick in a little while, informing him she was leaving town and quitting her job, another indication of her guilt—wouldn’t last until we got back, and then all I needed to do was give Ash a few benzos one night to make sure I wouldn’t be disturbed while I got rid of her, her phone, which I’d already switched off, and her car, before anyone realized she was missing. Other than her landlord, would anybody even care?