As soon as we cross into the United States, Leo calls his dad who has some news of his own. Damien LeFeaux admitted to lying on the stand in exchange for having his outstanding grand theft warrants reduced to minimal charges and his DUI case dropped altogether. When faced with the proof of his lies, LeFeaux gave up everything. He agreed to recant his testimony if Mr. Nash can make it so he doesn’t serve any extra time for lying on the witness stand.

Leo tells his dad what we learned from Mrs. Wheeler and how she’s willing to testify to what she saw. Leo gives Mr. Nash the license-plate number of the detective who took her statement and then didn’t add it to the case file. We also tell him about our suspicions that this detective may have harassed Cassandra before her death and he may be the real killer.

“If there’s a cop behind this, then we’re talking about a whole other level of danger here,” Mr. Nash says. “You kids be careful. I’ve got a friend at the DMV who can run the plate, but I’m concerned if we do there could be some kind of alert set up by the owner of the car that lets him know if anyone runs it. I’m going to have to see how we can go about this in the safest way possible. He’s already onto you guys. He knows you’re getting close. If he suspects for one minute that you found Mrs. Wheeler…On second thought, I have a better idea. It’s time to bring in the lawyers to see what they can do. You kids stay safe. I’ll call you as soon as I know something.” He hangs up.

“I can’t believe it,” I say. “I can’t believe we’re so close. I need to see Beau. I need to tell him what we’ve found out. I just can’t believe it.”

Leo chuckles and takes my hand. “It’s too late to go out to the prison today and we’re not on the list for tomorrow. You could call, but it’ll probably be faster to send him a letter.” He brings my hand up and kisses it. “I can’t tell you what it does to me to see you smile like that.”

I lay my head back on the seat rest and study his profile. Haloed by the low, late-afternoon sun, he’s breathlessly handsome. I can’t believe I’m sitting here with him. A few months ago I never would’ve imagined I’d be interested in someone like him, let alone have a relationship with him. I didn’t think I needed anyone in my life. I had Beau and Jamie and a handful of work acquaintances. I had my case files and more than I wanted to handle with my parents.

I realize now that I had nothing, nothing to call mine. Everything I did, from the way I dressed to how I spent my time, revolved around getting Beau freed. I’m not sorry about it. At all. I wouldn’t change a damn thing except to find Mr. Nash’s agency sooner…and Leo.

The summer’s almost over. We’re closer than I’ve ever been to accomplishing my goal. I can’t help but look toward the future. My future. What will I do with myself if I’m not spending every waking moment on Beau’s case? What am I going to do when Leo leaves for school? How can I go back to the way things were before I met him? I don’t think I can be that person again. I didn’t realize it then because I was so obsessed, but I was lonely. Instead of doing something about my loneliness, I dug myself deeper into Beau’s case.

There’s something solid and real between Leo and me. I know there’s a word for how I feel about him, but I can’t bring myself to say it, let alone accept it. Not yet. I’ve come to depend on him in a way I can’t depend on anyone else…even Beau. My brother’s in a place both mentally and physically that’s so far from where I am that I wonder if he’ll ever find his way back. His words echo in my head about finding a life for myself. I’m close, so close, to finding that life for both of us.

Chapter 32 Leo

Dad’s right. If we’re talking about a cop murdering Cassandra we’re in way over our heads here. How am I going to protect Cora from a professional? I can’t show it, but I’m scared shitless. This guy has gone to great lengths to stop our investigation. He’s a murderer, for fuck’s sake. If he finds out we’re onto him, really onto him, there’s no telling what he’ll do. We’re just going to have to lay low until Dad and his attorney friends can work their magic.

I think Mrs. Wheeler’s notebook might have given us even more than I originally thought. The first time the license plate appears in Mrs. Wheeler’s notebook could provide us with the date Cassandra initially called the police about the strange things happening around her apartment building. I don’t think I was far off when I told Cora that I think this whole thing started with that call for help.

The cop who killed her must’ve been the one to respond to it. I’m guessing by his subsequent visits to her apartment that he gave Cassandra his business card to call him directly if there was any more trouble. Just like I called it—Hero Syndrome. The more problems Cassandra had, the more reasons she had to call him. He created her need for him to come to the rescue. According to Mrs. Wheeler’s notebook, he created that need more than ten times in a two-month period. That’s more than once a week.

Cassandra’s phone records would show her calling the cop’s number. That would’ve come out in the investigation. He had to have known that. How did he get around it? A burner phone, maybe? He could’ve written his burner cellphone number on his business card when he gave it to Cassandra. My private line. Special for only you. If you need me I’ll be here in a flash. Call me. Anytime.

I can see it. He thought he was smart using the burner phone. He didn’t count on Mrs. Wheeler’s notebooks. She was smart not to tell him. It probably saved her life. She puts him at Cassandra’s apartment too many times to excuse away. The unidentified hair in Cassandra’s bed must be from him. He lucked out there. They never ran it for a DNA match, but when they do it will put him in her bed. He could claim they had a romantic relationship. Who’s alive to say they didn’t?

It would cause a lot of problems for him though. Especially with the hidden witness interview. At the very least, it could create reasonable doubt for Beau. The cop is another potential suspect who was never interviewed. A suspect who tampered with the case. That alone could cast enough suspicion to reopen the case against Beau.

We’ve got all the pieces. We just need to reveal the final player.

We grab some food at a drive-through restaurant and head for my friend Mike’s place. He was cool to let us stay here for as long as we need to. That need is greater than ever. With his state-of-the-art security system, it’s the safest place we could be.

Cora’s been very quiet since we talked to my dad. I wonder what she’s thinking. I imagine a lot of the same things that have been going through my head. It’s weird to be at a complete standstill. There’s nothing to do but wait. Everyone’s been found who needed to be found. We’ve pulled all the threads we can pull in the case. It’s now up to my dad to do what he did for Maurice Battle—contact the legal group that works on cases like Beau’s. It’s now in the hands of lawyers.

It feels strange to me to be in waiting mode. I can’t imagine what it must be like for Cora. I want to fast-forward to the day Beau gets released from prison, not just for Beau and Cora, but for me too. Because on the day he’s free she’ll be free too. And then maybe, just maybe, she’ll give us a chance.

“How long did it take?” she asks, as we go through the front door of Mike’s place.

I turn off, then reset the security system. “How long did what take?”

“To free Maurice Battle.”

“Longer than you’d think. Too long. Nearly six months.”