โFuck, you scared me,โย Ash said, clutching one hand to his strawberry- covered heart, backing into a rake. Gasping and backing away from that too.ย โWhat, the reporters screaming my name didnโt give you any pre- warning?โย Bel stepped carefully around the tarp-covered lawn mower.ย โSo,โ
she said, cradling the phone.ย โMy dadโs missing.โ โI saw on the news.โ
His eyes clouded, catching hers when she glanced over, like he was hurt somehow, that she hadnโt told himย ๏ฌrst.
โWhat happened?โย he asked.
โWent missing Saturday night. His phone is o๏ฌ. Looks like he packed a bag and his passport, but he didnโt leave because of the stress, he wouldnโt do that.โย She didnโt pause, leaving no gap for dissent or Ashโs devilโs advocate, the devil playing for Rachelโs side.ย โRachel is behind it, I know she is, and heโs in danger. We have toย ๏ฌnd the truth, we have to save my dad.โ
โHeโs really gone?โ
โHeโs gone.โย Her deepest fear made real in two tiny words, bottomless and cruel. Her lip quivered, a bite behind the surface of her eyes. She held it back. Not here, not in front of Ash, for fuckโs sake.ย โGuess the Prices have a
thing for disappearing,โย she said with a cynical sni๏ฌ, hiding behind it.ย โBe my turn soon.โ
โIโm sorry, Bel.โ
He reached for her hand, but there was no time to hold hands, no reason it would help.
โAre you recording?โย she asked, stepping back.ย โShould I be?โ
Bel nodded, waiting as heย ๏ฌipped out the view๏ฌnder, the beep as he pressed record, giving her a thumbs-up with his spare hand.
Bel held up the phone, showing the camera.ย โRachelโs phone,โย she said.
Ashโs eyes widened.ย โHow?โ
Bel enjoyed that look on his face.ย โCarterโs inside distracting her. We donโt have much time. Have toย ๏ฌnd whatever Rachel and Mr. Tripp are hiding. He knows something, why else would he lie, slam the door in our faces? Heโs been sick o๏ฌย work all week; maybe he knows what Rachel did to my dad, maybe he helped her.โ
โOK.โย Ash stretched the word across a few trailing seconds.ย โSo now you want me to capture evidence ofย youย committing a crime?โ
โIโve done worse.โย Bel blinked.ย โIโd do much worse toย ๏ฌnd him.โ
She tapped the phone screen. The background lit up, an old photo they had in a frame; Rachel with baby Bel balanced on her hip, looking at each other, a smile creeping across Rachelโs younger face. It was that womanโs secrets Bel wanted, pre-disappeared Rachel, as well as the older one inside the house.
Bel swiped up. It tried Face IDย ๏ฌrst, the screen juddering when it didnโt recognize her, prompting for the passcode instead, bringing up the keypad. Belโs thumb moved across, pressingย 5, 6, 7ย andย 8.
The phone unlocked.
โIโm in,โย she said, Ash drawing closer, pointing the camera down to record the screen.
Bel pressed the green speech bubble to open all of Rachelโs text conversations. An unopened message from Sherry ten minutes ago:ย Can you
make sure Carter is home for dinner, thx.
Moving down the list, she saw Carter, Je๏ฌ, a few noti๏ฌcations about Amazon deliveries. Belโs name below those, and she was surprised to see that Rachel had entered it right,ย Bel,ย notย Anna.
And thenโbingoโJulian Tripp.
Bel opened the message thread, straightening the phone so the camera could see too. She scrolled up to the start, eyes circling.
Theย ๏ฌrst was from Rachel, last Tuesday:ย Hi itโs Rachel Price, I got my new phone set up, just texting everyone so they have my number.
Mr. Tripp had replied four minutes later:ย Hi, Rachel. Was so nice to see you, pretty surreal actually. I hope youโre settling back into normal life, let me know if thereโs anything I can do. Would be great to meet up, weโve got sixteen years to catch up on. I was even married for a while!
โSixteen years to catch up on,โย Ash read out from the screen.ย โAnd he tells her he was married. Sounds like they werenโt in contact while she was disappeared, doesnโt it?โ
โI guess.ย Butโฆโย She sharpened the word into a point.ย โHeโs clearly hiding something about Rachel. About her disappearance.โย She read out Rachelโs response:ย โYes, we should catch up sometime.โ
โPretty blunt,โย Ash said.ย โLike she doesnโt want to see him.โ
Mr. Tripp texted again, two days later, a large gray bubble. Ash read it out:ย โWas great bumping into you at the store. Hope youโveย ๏ฌgured out that lock! I donโt want to bring this up again, but I do really need it back ASAP. I know things are probably complicated right now, but let me know.โย Ashย ๏ฌnished, staring down at the screen through the camera.ย โWhatโs he talking about? What does he want back?โ
โI donโt want to bring this up again, but I do really need it back,โย Bel read it out again, leaning on the words di๏ฌerently to see if the meaning was any clearer.
โSomething he gave Rachel, before she disappeared?โย Ash said.ย โAnd now he wants it back.โ
Bel moved on to Rachelโs reply, herย ๏ฌnal message to him.ย โLetโs talk about this another time.โ
Julian had sent one last message, Friday morning.ย โOK,โย Ash read,ย โbut itโs pretty desperate. Let me know.โ
โFuck sake,โย Bel groaned.ย โThis is it? Why canโt people label their cryptic conversations better? How are we going toย ๏ฌnd out what theyโre talking about?โ
โText him?โย Ash said uncertainly.ย โWe could text him now, as Rachel. He wonโt talk to you but heโll talk to her. The old cat๏ฌsh routine.โย He looked at her, over the camera, eyes glassy and wide, dropping for half a second to look at her mouth.
Bel thought about it.ย โNo. He might take too long to reply. I have to head back soon or Rachel will think somethingโs wrong. And then if he replies later, when Rachel has the phone back, sheโll know I took it, what I did. She canโt know Iโm onto her.โย There was more to say, but she didnโt want to say it, didnโt want to put it into words and make it real that way. That Rachel was dangerous, that Rachel scared her, that Rachel had already taken too much and Bel didnโt want to give her a reason to take more.
But Ash nodded, as though she had said all those things and he understood. Which was stupid, really, because he didnโt know her at all and she wished heโd stop pretending. But still he kept nodding, a new glint in his eye.
โNo, but you canย callย him,โย he said.ย โAre you on crack?โ
โNo, listen. Youโll probably punch me for saying this, but you and Rachel sound almost exactly the same. You literally have the same voice. You can call him as Rachel, pretend to be Rachel, and he wonโt know, as long as you play it right.โ
โI canโtย beย Rachel.โ
โYes, you can, you can do this.โย He sought out her eyes in the gloom.ย โYou delete it from the call log after and Rachel will never know. Thereโs nothing to lose if he doesnโt buy it. But you only have a few minutes and you need these answers.โ
She did need these answers, for Dad, but there was no wayโฆ
โScared?โย Ash said, pushing her and she knew it, but she was pushed all the same.
โI ainโt scared of shit.โย She unlocked the sleeping phone.ย โI can be Rachel,โย she said, more to herself, as she clicked on Julian Trippโs contact info, thumb hovering over the blue call button.ย โIโm Rachel,โย she whispered as she dared herself and thought of Dad, pressing her thumb down.
Calling Julian Trippโฆ
The double ring of the dial tone against her ear.
โPut it on speaker,โย Ash hissed, steadying the camera.ย โItโll help mu๏ฌe your voice.โ
Bel pressed it onto speakerphone, a click as she did, the dial tone cutting out. A buzzy silence in its wake.
โHello, Rachel?โย Mr. Trippโs voice rattled from the speakers.
Bel cleared her throat, watching Ash as she became Rachel, taking her cues from him.ย โHi, J-Julian. Sorry I havenโt gotten back to you yet, been a crazy few days. I donโt know if youโve heard about Charlieโโ
โI did hear about that, actually, Iโm sorry. Any idea where heโs gone?โ
That meant they could rule Mr. Tripp out, didnโt it, for having anything to do with Dadโs disappearance? Ash noted her pause, nodded her on.
โNo,โย she said,ย โI think itโs just been a very stressful situation for everyone. The police think heโll come home soon.โ
โWell, thatโs something then, I guess,โย Mr. Tripp replied, and it was working; he really thought she was Rachel.ย โSoโฆ,โย he said, leaving a trail for her to pick up.
But Bel didnโt know how. She glanced at Ash, his lips parted, half formed around a word that might have beenย message.
โSo about your message,โย Bel said,ย โI thought it would be better to
actually talk it through.โ
โNo, I understand.โย Mr. Tripp sni๏ฌed.ย โAnd Iโm sorry to ask again so soon. Itโs just, itโs a lot of money, you know.โ
Belโs heart thudded against her ribs, eyes snapping to Ash.ย Money,ย she mouthed. Mr. Tripp had given Rachel money before she disappeared. This changed everything.
How much?ย Ash mouthed back, jabbing hisย ๏ฌnger toward the phone.ย โRachel, you OK?โย Mr. Trippโs voice chimed through.
โNo, itโsย ๏ฌne,โย Bel sni๏ฌed.ย โI understand. Umโฆitโs been a long time, a lot has happened, I canโt remember how much it was exactlyโฆโ
Ash screwed his eyes and Bel crossed herย ๏ฌngers that she hadnโt messed up already.
โIt was three thousand bucks, Rachel.โ
Her heart abandoned her ribs for her throat. She thumbed the mute button, hand shaking.
โHoly fucking shit!โย she shouted, a laugh getting in the way, breaking up her voice.
Ash caught her laugh, sti๏ฌed it.ย โKeep going,โย he whispered, just as Mr. Tripp said:
โRachel? You there?โ
Bel unmuted it, wiped the smile o๏ฌย her face.ย โSorryโโย she said, but Mr. Tripp didnโt let herย ๏ฌnish.
โI know itโs awkwardโฆembarrassing to ask for it, but I always thought youโd pay me back when you could. Then I thought you were dead, like everyone else. But now youโre notโฆyou know, life hasnโt been the easiest. I got medical bills to pay o๏ฌ. Debts. Borrowed a lot of money too. It would really help, if you could pay me back.โ
โNo, sure,โย Bel said,ย โI understand,โย even though she didnโt, even though a tiny part of her wanted to take Rachelโs side over his, a man more interested in getting his money than his old friend back from the dead.ย โThings are a bit complicated, Iโve only been back a week and a half. But youโll get everything youโre owed, I promise.โ
An intake of breath down the line, too deep, almost on the verge of tears.ย โGod, thatโs such a relief. Thank you.โ
โSure.โย Bel bit back what she really wanted to say, what Rachel might have too.ย โYou didnโt ever tell anyone, about the money, did you?โ
Ash screwed his face again, eyes and mouth.
โNo, course not. I didnโt tell the police, I was scared theyโd think I had something to do with you going missing, which I obviously didnโt.
Especially as Iโm the one who found your car, who found Bel. But it wouldnโt have helped anyway, the money had nothing to do with that man snatching you out of the car, right?โ
โRight,โย she said, running it over in her head, her thoughts becoming Rachelโs.ย โNo, itโs good you never told them.โย Bel took a breath, stepped out onto shakier ground.ย โWhen did you give me the money again, it wasnโt long before, was it?โ
โThatโs why I kept it secret. You asked me on the Friday, and I gave the cash to you after school on Monday, when I drove you home.โ
That was it, the moment Aunt Sherry had seen, a line being crossed. But maybe sheโd read it wrong, and the reason theyโd lookedย cozyย was because one was passing a huge amount of cash to the other, their little secret.
โThat was only two days before shโI went missing?โย Bel said. Ashย ๏ฌapped his hands, and sheย ๏ฌapped hers back, mouthing for him toย shut up.
โExactly,โย Mr. Tripp said.ย โSo you arenโt mad, that I didnโt tell anyone?โ
โIโm not mad, Julian.โย Bel pulled a face.
Silence, saliva ticking around his mouth, down the other end of the phone.
โRachel?โย The sound of her name cut through Bel.ย โYes?โย she answered to it.
โI know itโs not really important, after everything youโve been through. But itโs always played on my mind, the not knowing. You never told me what the money was for. Only that you couldnโt access your own money, and you needed it, it was an emergency.โย He sni๏ฌed.ย โWhen I gave it to you, you said I was aย lifesaver,ย which I thought was just one of those things people say, a thank-you. But after you disappeared, I wondered if it meant something else, and that youโd been wrong, that the money hadnโt saved your life.โ
Bel stalled, searching Ashโs eyes for what to say. He didnโt know either, shrugging behind the camera.ย โI canโt say.โ
โCome on, Rachel.โย Mr. Tripp sni๏ฌed.ย โI knew something wasnโt right. You hadnโt been yourself for weeks, months, even. Jumpy, paranoid. Losing weight, your clothes getting baggy. Stopped coming to Wednesday Wine
Night after school. You needed the money and you were scared. Who were you scared of, Rachel? You didnโt know the man that abducted you. I always thought it was Charlie, it made sense when he was arrested for killing you. I was so concerned that Monday, I put a traโโ
โYouโre wrong,โย Bel snapped, speaking from her own gut, not Rachelโs.ย โI was not scared of Charlie.โ
Mr. Tripp paused.ย โWell, you were afraid of someone. Who was it?
Charlieโs brother?โ
โJe๏ฌ?โย Bel narrowed her eyes.ย โWhy would I be afraid of Unclโโย She stopped herself, slapping a hand to her mouth.
Ash screwed his face, one eye open, staying very still. Bel tried:ย โI mean, I donโt thinkโโ
โAnnabel, is that you?โย The speakers rattled with his voice, a dark, crackling edge to it.
Bel jabbed the red button to hang up, holding the phone away from her, like it was counting down to explode.
โOh well,โย Ash said, somehow out of breath, standing still.ย โYou were bound to fuck up at some point.โ
Bel navigated into the call log, deleting the top entry to Julian Tripp, disappearing all trace of what they just did, her skin alive and electric.
โYou donโt think heโll tell Rachel?โ
โProbably not,โย Ash said.ย โWe just caught him, he admitted to withholding information from police so he wouldnโt look suspicious. I reckon heโll want to keep this as quiet as we do.โ
Bel felt some comfort in thatย we.ย A comfort she resented immediately, feeding it to the knot in her stomach. There was noย we.ย Bel only had one person, and he was missing.
โWorth it,โย she said, clicking the bones in her neck.ย โThree thousand dollars in cash two days before she disappeared. Thatโs a slam dunk, right? Enough to start a new life somewhere, isnโt it? To disappear yourself?โ
Ashโs mouth twitched.
โWe just proved it, didnโt we?โย Belโs eyes glittered in the dark.ย โThat Rachel Price wasnโt abducted; she chose to leave. She planned her own
disappearance.โ
Ash hesitated, chewed his lower lip.ย โNot enough for the police or a court of law. I actually think itโs illegal to record someone on the phone without their consent in the US. Weโll let Ramsey worry about that. Butโฆย yeah, I think we maybe just did.โ
A smile pulled at the edges of Belโs mouth. She gave in, shooting a wink at the camera in Ashโs hands.ย โI knew it.โ
โBut we still donโt know where she went. Why she left. How. Why sheโs back.โ
โWe will. We have to, toย ๏ฌnd my dad,โย Bel said, tucking Rachelโs phone up her sleeve.ย โI should go, already been too long.โ
โOK.โย His lips parted like he wanted to say more, but he stopped himself.
โSee ya later, alligator.โย Bel waved him o๏ฌย like he was anybody else, heading for the door.
โIn a while, crocodile,โย Ash responded, recording her as she walked out of the garage, into the low evening sun.
The reporters scrambled.ย โAnnabel,ย please.โ โAnnabel,ย wait.โ
She ignored them, unable to shift that smile, covering it with her other sleeve.
โWhereโs your father gone?โย CNN shouted.
Up the steps, Bel unlocked the front door and pushed it open.
A sweet vanilla smell wrapped her up as she walked through the house.ย โBack.โย She hung in the kitchen doorway, watching as Rachel and
Carter both turned, a similar look in their eyes and warmย ๏ฌush in their cheeks.ย โSorry,โย she said, before anyone could ask.ย โMs. Nelson wouldnโt shut up. Lonely, I think. How are the cookies?โ
โDone,โย Carter said sti๏ฌy.ย โAlready in the oven.โ
Bel shifted her face, pretending to look disappointed. Rachel smiled at her.
โWell, you didnโt miss out on the eating part,โย she said.
โOr the cleaning up,โย added Carter.
Bel took the hint, stepping into the room, edging toward the table.ย โHow long do they have left?โย she asked, hoping the right person would answer.
Rachel bent to look at the timer on the oven and Bel didnโt hesitate. She straightened her arm and slid Rachelโs phone out, placing it where sheโd found it, shielded behind the Tupperware, rotating it to a diagonal.
Bel snatched her hand away just in time.ย โFour minutes,โย Rachel said, turning back.ย โSmell amazing already.โ
Bel joined Carter at the sink, rolling up her sleeves. Carter shot her a look, and Bel shot one back, blinks instead of words.
She heard a hu๏ฌย of air behind her, not quite a sigh, not quite a gasp, just a breath that hitched halfway through.
Bel turned back.
Rachel was standing beside the kitchen table, looking down at it. At her phone.
Bel stopped breathing.
Rachelโsย ๏ฌngers trailed along the wooden surface, over to her phone. And in one small movement, she spun the phone from one diagonal to the other,ย ๏ฌnger tapping beside, studying it.
Rachel glanced up without warning, catching Belโs eyes. She gave her a smile, vanilla sweet and warm.
Bel smiled back, tight-lipped, without teeth.
