Page 55 of The Lies I Told
Richards shook his head. “You were set up, Marisa.”
I’d never felt manipulated. I’d blamed the entire night on my string of bad choices. The idea that Jack had set me up was unsettling enough to pivot the conversation in a new direction. “What about greed?”
“The money Clare was carrying at the time of her death was found in your discarded jeans downriver. But Clare’s inheritance from your mother was sizable and was split between you and Brit. You both were set up to inherit at age thirty.”
“Brit wouldn’t kill either of us for money. Brit was our second mother.”
Richards didn’t argue. “Your father was cut out of your mother’s will.”
“He was given use of the house until I turned eighteen; then it was sold, and the proceeds went into the trust.” Mom had often joked that Dad married her for her money. I shifted. “I know my parents had marital problems and split up a couple of times when I was in elementary and middle school. But Dad would’ve had no reason to kill Clare over money he had no claim to.”
“Your car accident was in January. Two months before your thirtieth birthday.”
“Yes.”
“And the paramedics believed there were drugs in your system.”
My fingers curled into fists. “I didn’t take any drugs. I know for a fact.”
Richards cocked his head. “But you don’t remember, right?”
“I know I wouldn’t have fucked up. Iknowit.”
“Okay, then how did the drugs get in your system?”
“I don’t know. I don’t remember anything around that time.” My unease was growing. “The only person who would’ve inherited my share was Brit.”
“And if she died, who got what was left?”
“The church.”
“Have you looked at your car accident report?”
“Not yet. Are you saying my accident is connected to Clare’s death? That’s a big stretch.”
“I’m grabbing at straws,” he said. “I do that just to shake things up or get a reaction.”
What kind of reaction was he looking for in me? “Why haven’t we talked this candidly about Clare before?”
“This is the first time that I’ve seen you truly sober. All the other times I smelled the booze on you. Why waste my time with someone who’s out of control?”
I reminded myself he was talking to me now. “I want to know what caused my car accident. My cell phone went missing around that time.”
“Maybe it got thrown under the seat of the car or wedged in a tight spot.”
“Brit said it was never found.”
“Brit said.”
“Why do I have faint memories of a man speaking to me and reaching past me?”
“Is that true?”
“My brain got pretty scrambled because of the accident, but it feels true.”
Richards drew in a breath, rested a hand on the car’s closed laptop. “Watch your back, Marisa. If the accident is connected to Clare, and that’s a bigif, keep your head on a swivel.”
“I will.” I stepped back.
