“Uh, Rylie?” Antonio said to my left.
“What?” I snapped back.
“You just—”
He pointed, and I expected to see something I’d run over, but instead, I found that I’d managed to back the boat into the dock like I’d seen the other rangers do so many times before.
“I did it,” I practically screamed.
I jumped up and down as Antonio secured the boat with ropes to the dock. When he came to a stand, he smiled down at me. “You did it. See that wasn’t too hard was it?”
I fought the urge to throw my arms around his neck. “Thank you for helping me get out of my head.”
“Any time,” Antonio said.
23
Babbitt sat in the passenger seat of my car as I called Luke. After staying up all night replaying Garrett kissing raven-hair, I finally decided I had to tell Luke what I knew. The phone rang five times before his voicemail picked up.
“Luke, it’s Rylie. I have so much I need to tell you. It’s about Garrett. He’s not innocent. I thought he was but he’s not. I have statements from witnesses. Please call me.”
I pushed the end button and looked over at Babbitt. “I hope you like raven-hair because your daddy is going to jail for a long time.”
Babbitt let out a low yowl. I patted his head, feeling sorry for the sweet ball of fluff. Everything had been so perfect. Garrett and me, Babbitt and Fizzy. How stupid was I? How many guys had to cheat on me before I found one who wouldn’t?
When I pulled up to Garrett’s house for the last time, yet another woman stood at his door. But this one didn’t seem to have a key as she was knocking. Her legs were as long as a super model’s, and her hair was a beautiful shade of honey brown.
“He’s not here,” I said stepping out of the car.
The woman turned, and Babbitt bounded up to her.
“Hello Babbitt,” she said, her voice older than her face let on. “And Rylie, I presume?”
“Yes.” I held out my hand confused.
“I’m Babbitt’s grandma, Helen,” she said, affectionately scratching Babbitt behind the ears. “Garrett’s told me so much about you.”
Did he tell her about raven-hair too?
“It’s nice to meet you,” I said. “I was dropping Babbitt off. I don’t think Garrett and I are going to be seeing each other anymore.”
“It’s all this police business isn’t it?” she asked. “He’s innocent, you know?”
“I thought so too, but I don’t think I know him like I thought I did.”
“Garrett’s a good man, the best of all my boys by far. In fact, he’s always taking care of the others. There’s no way he killed anyone. He’s never even had a speeding ticket.”
I wondered if she knew her son might have multiple personalities and probably had killed Boy Boy? I decided I wasn’t the person to break the news to her.
“Oh, I’m glad you’re here. I have a gift for you, from Garrett.” I had completely forgotten the box in my trunk. I let Babbitt into the house before she followed me down to my car.
“That’s so sweet of him to have my gift already,” she doted. I did my best not to roll my eyes. Why wasn’t he here greeting his mother instead of with one of his many girlfriends?
I clicked the button on my key fob, and the trunk popped open.
“What is that smell?” she asked immediately recoiling and covering her nose with her hand.
I inhaled deeply and instantly regretted it. The smell of something rotting made my insides heave. Had I left my leftover lunch in my work bag?
“I’m sorry, it’s probably my old lunch containers.” I pulled the box from the trunk and handed it to her, slamming the lid down before more of the smell could escape.
“I think the smell is coming from this box,” she said doing her best not to gag.
She was right. The smell hadn’t dissipated at all.
“Maybe you should open it,” I said. Garrett hadn’t mentioned it needed to be kept cool or anything.
She peeled back the tape and lifted a black duffle bag from inside the box.
Before I could stop her, she unzipped the bag. It only took two seconds before she vomited all over what I knew she saw.
It was the bag missing from Garrett’s boat. The bag Boy Boy had been carrying with hair sticking out on the trail cams. The bag containing the dead woman’s head.
24
“We have to turn this over to the police,” I said, zipping the bag back up without looking inside.
“My son, Garrett. H-he’s—” She wretched again.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket again and dialed Luke’s number. Again, it went to voicemail. “Luke, seriously. Call me. I have evidence you need to see.”
I popped the trunk again and put the bag and the box back inside. Just the thought of driving around with a severed head in my trunk made me sick.
“Helen, we should probably go inside and wait for the police,” I started but before I could take a step in her direction a silver car with black tinted windows came barreling down the road at us.
“Helen?” I reached out for her hand as she was still crouched on the ground heaving.
The car was not slowing but picking up speed.
“Helen,” I yelled and yanked her by the arm out of the way just as the car flew past us. “Get in the car. Now.”
I don’t know if it was my tone of voice or nearly being run over, but she listened. I fired up Cherry Anne, tearing away before the car could make a u-turn and come back at us. I turned down a side street away and gunned the accelerator.
“Is someone trying to kill me?” Helen finally said, her perfectly makeuped face streaked with trails of tears and vomit.
“I don’t think you, per se.” I didn’t want to consider they were trying
