hovering around his mouth. One hand rested lightly on Hayley’s hip, and he watched her with undisguised hunger.
“You get a name?” Veronica looked up at Hayley’s friends. Both of them shook their heads.
“No. But Hayley spent the whole night all over him. There are more pictures,” Bri said.
Veronica scrolled through. One showed the two of them pressed tight together on the dance floor, Hayley’s legs between the unknown boy’s. Another showed her whispering in his ear, one hand on his chest.
“You took these?” she asked Bri. Bri’s already pink cheeks darkened.
“She asked me to,” she said, shrugging. “I took them with her phone, actually. You’re looking at her Facebook page.She put them up that night.” Bri fidgeted with a gold bangle bracelet at her wrist. “I mean, she seemed to be having a really good time. We were happy she was on the rebound.”
“On the rebound?”
“Yeah,” Melanie broke in. “She and her boyfriend, Chad, broke up the week before spring break. She almost didn’t come with us. She’d been in her room crying her eyes out for a couple days.”
Veronica sat up a little straighter, the words jabbing sharp and sudden into her brain. “Why’d they break up?”
“They got in a huge fight over the phone when she told him she was coming to Neptune for spring break,” Melanie explained. “He goes to Stanford and his spring break is two weeks past ours—he didn’t want her running off to Neptune unsupervised. Whatever, they’ve broken up about five times this year. We were all hoping it’d take this time, but none of us had much faith.”
“Not a fan of Chad?” Veronica raised an eyebrow. Melanie just rolled her eyes.
“We told her time and time again she should get rid of the guy. He’s a creep. Controlling, patronizing. He’d tell her what classes to take and didn’t want her to party without him. He didn’t like her hanging out with us. He thinks we’re trashy,” Melanie said.
“We
are
kind of trashy,” Bri cut in. Melanie flipped her off. A beat later, both girls laughed. It sounded too high pitched, right on the edge of hysteria, but when they’d settled down they both looked a little calmer.
“Anyway,” Melanie said, taking a deep breath. “We were all kind of rooting for this guy at the party. He was the anti-Chad.”
“But if he had something to do with her going missing …” Bri’s voice trembled. “I mean, if he was the one who … who took her, or whatever …”
“Did you see them leave together at any point?” Veronica asked. Both girls shook their heads.
“But like I told you,” Melanie said, “that night is pretty hazy.”
Veronica looked at the phone again. The photos had been uploaded to Hayley’s Facebook at 11:57 p.m. on the night of the party. If what Ella said was true and Hayley and Chad’s relationship had been mercurial at the best of times, it seemed likely that in the wake of their breakup Hayley was making damn sure Chad saw just how much fun she was having.
Veronica pulled up an e-mail Mac had sent her an hour ago with Hayley’s phone records. Throughout the day there were a bunch of texts to her friends and one to her sister. Then at 12:13 a.m., she’d received a phone call from a number registered to Chad Cohan that lasted exactly fifty-three seconds. There was no activity after that.
“Has anyone spoken to Chad since Hayley went missing? Did anyone call him to let him know?”
Melanie gave a humorless bark of laughter. “Oh, he called me. Told me it was my fault Hayley was missing because I was the one who lured her down to Neptune. I told him if he was so worried he should come down, help us look. You know what he said?” She adopted a lilting, smug voice. “ ‘She’s not my responsibility anymore, Melanie. She made that abundantly clear.’ ” For a moment, she looked angry; then all at once her face crumpled. Her eyes went shiny with tears, and her lower lip started to shudder.
“You get a name?” Veronica looked up at Hayley’s friends. Both of them shook their heads.
“No. But Hayley spent the whole night all over him. There are more pictures,” Bri said.
Veronica scrolled through. One showed the two of them pressed tight together on the dance floor, Hayley’s legs between the unknown boy’s. Another showed her whispering in his ear, one hand on his chest.
“You took these?” she asked Bri. Bri’s already pink cheeks darkened.
“She asked me to,” she said, shrugging. “I took them with her phone, actually. You’re looking at her Facebook page.She put them up that night.” Bri fidgeted with a gold bangle bracelet at her wrist. “I mean, she seemed to be having a really good time. We were happy she was on the rebound.”
“On the rebound?”
“Yeah,” Melanie broke in. “She and her boyfriend, Chad, broke up the week before spring break. She almost didn’t come with us. She’d been in her room crying her eyes out for a couple days.”
Veronica sat up a little straighter, the words jabbing sharp and sudden into her brain. “Why’d they break up?”
“They got in a huge fight over the phone when she told him she was coming to Neptune for spring break,” Melanie explained. “He goes to Stanford and his spring break is two weeks past ours—he didn’t want her running off to Neptune unsupervised. Whatever, they’ve broken up about five times this year. We were all hoping it’d take this time, but none of us had much faith.”
“Not a fan of Chad?” Veronica raised an eyebrow. Melanie just rolled her eyes.
“We told her time and time again she should get rid of the guy. He’s a creep. Controlling, patronizing. He’d tell her what classes to take and didn’t want her to party without him. He didn’t like her hanging out with us. He thinks we’re trashy,” Melanie said.
“We
are
kind of trashy,” Bri cut in. Melanie flipped her off. A beat later, both girls laughed. It sounded too high pitched, right on the edge of hysteria, but when they’d settled down they both looked a little calmer.
“Anyway,” Melanie said, taking a deep breath. “We were all kind of rooting for this guy at the party. He was the anti-Chad.”
“But if he had something to do with her going missing …” Bri’s voice trembled. “I mean, if he was the one who … who took her, or whatever …”
“Did you see them leave together at any point?” Veronica asked. Both girls shook their heads.
“But like I told you,” Melanie said, “that night is pretty hazy.”
Veronica looked at the phone again. The photos had been uploaded to Hayley’s Facebook at 11:57 p.m. on the night of the party. If what Ella said was true and Hayley and Chad’s relationship had been mercurial at the best of times, it seemed likely that in the wake of their breakup Hayley was making damn sure Chad saw just how much fun she was having.
Veronica pulled up an e-mail Mac had sent her an hour ago with Hayley’s phone records. Throughout the day there were a bunch of texts to her friends and one to her sister. Then at 12:13 a.m., she’d received a phone call from a number registered to Chad Cohan that lasted exactly fifty-three seconds. There was no activity after that.
“Has anyone spoken to Chad since Hayley went missing? Did anyone call him to let him know?”
Melanie gave a humorless bark of laughter. “Oh, he called me. Told me it was my fault Hayley was missing because I was the one who lured her down to Neptune. I told him if he was so worried he should come down, help us look. You know what he said?” She adopted a lilting, smug voice. “ ‘She’s not my responsibility anymore, Melanie. She made that abundantly clear.’ ” For a moment, she looked angry; then all at once her face crumpled. Her eyes went shiny with tears, and her lower lip started to shudder.
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