Chapter 5
Violet
Of course.
A mix of grief and horror washed over me as I continued to process it all, my eyes glued to the table. My stomach turned over a second later, and I realized my hands were trembling on my lap.
Finally, I looked up at the others. “So… you think one of the Dionysus guys killed my sister?”
They all nodded.
“They might not have meant to hurt her when they started going after her,” Ginny said in a low voice. “But either way, she was obviously chased and pushed to her death that night.”
“And it’s just too much of a coincidence that she was on the List,” Dylan added, one brow rising. “A list of girls marked for being hunted that same day.”
“It had to be them,” Cherry said flatly.
Jeremiah nodded, his expression grim. “Then they covered it up. Used their connections in the police to smooth things over. Get it ruled as an accident while spreading whispers that it may have been a suicide.”
“And they’ve definitely got the power to do that, don’t they?” I said softly.
“Yeah. Unfortunately.”
I buried my head in my hands for a moment, sucking in a few deep breaths to calm my racing heart. Then I straightened and lifted my chin again. “Can you tell me everything that happened that day?” I asked. “After her name was put on the List?”
“Yeah, of course.” Jeremiah gave me a faint, sympathetic smile. “Honestly, she wasn’t all that worried at first. Not like most of the other girls who were absolutely losing their shit over it.”
“Although, there are always some girls who are uber-excited about it,” Ginny said, rolling her eyes. “They’re convinced it’s just a fun sex game, and they spend weeks fantasizing about finding their names on that list.”
I swallowed. “Was Calista one of those girls?”
Cherry shook her head. “No. She just wasn’t concerned about it.”
“I guess that was because she didn’t grow up around here,” Dylan said. “She hadn’t heard all the stories about the Dionysus Club and the reputation they have.”
“Anyway,” Jeremiah said, gesturing to the four of them. “We did grow up here, and we have heard all the stories. So we were worried. We tried to warn her, but she laughed it off at first. Said she was just going to live her life as usual.”
“We begged and pleaded with her, and eventually we managed to convince her to hole up in a motel room in Crescent Bay,” Cherry interjected.
“We smuggled her into the theater first so we could get her disguised. Wig, fake glasses, the whole thing. Then we took a taxi up to Crescent Bay. Made sure no one was following us and avoided surveillance cameras.”
“We even used my old neighbor’s name to book the room, just in case the Dionysus guys were tracking the activity of any friends or family members of List Girls,” Jeremiah said. “Because obviously, those are the first people most girls would run to for help.”
“She would’ve been safe there. I’m certain of it,” Ginny said, eyes flickering with sadness. “If she hadn’t left…”
She trailed off, and Cherry filled the silence.
“There was a Halloween party at a friend’s sorority house that night.
We all wanted to go, but at the same time, we didn’t really want to leave the motel.
But then Calista suggested putting on a full costume and coming with us.
She figured that would allow her to blend in without anyone knowing it was her.
Also, we’d be able to keep a close eye on her and make sure no one did anything. ”
My eyes widened. “So she went to the party with you?”
“No, she changed her mind in the end. Said she felt tired. But she insisted we go and have fun,” Jeremiah said quietly. “Like Ginny said, we were absolutely sure the motel was safe, and that no one had seen us there.” His voice grew tight. “So… we left.”
“I wish we hadn’t,” Dylan muttered, eyes glistening. “We should’ve stayed with her the whole night. Should’ve made sure she stayed.”
“We were scared about what might happen if she was caught, but we weren’t completely petrified,” Ginny added. “I mean, we knew the reputation of the Dionysus Club when it came to their enemies. But we’d never heard of a List Girl dying.”
I nodded slowly. “You thought something bad might happen if she was caught. But nothing that bad. And you assumed she was safe at the motel, too.”
“Yeah, exactly,” Jeremiah said. “But we were wrong, and we found out the hard way.”
“So what happened?”
Cherry took a shaky breath. “Around ten, I texted her to tell her I was coming back to the room because I had a surprise for her. I’d found some girls who said they had matching Plague Doctor costumes that they’d decided not to wear, and Cal and I had actually talked about getting those exact costumes before the whole List debacle started.
So I thought I could convince her to come to the party after all.
” She paused, hesitating. “But when I arrived, she wasn’t there. ”
“Did she leave a note behind?”
“No. She wouldn’t reply to my texts, either.
At first, I figured she’d just gone outside for some air.
Or food. Like we said before, she wasn’t super worried about the hunt, so it made sense that she’d take silly risks like that.
” Cherry’s voice was cracking slightly now.
“So… I waited. But she never came back, and she didn’t respond to any of my texts or calls. ”
“Or ours,” Jeremiah added, motioning to himself and the others. “Cherry called us when she finally realized Cal was missing, so we left the party right away and spent the rest of the night searching. But… you know how it ended.”
I frowned, piecing it together. “Hold on. You said the hunters can track phones. So how were you texting and calling my sister? Wouldn’t she have ditched her phone before you took her to the motel?”
“Oh.” Dylan’s eyes widened. “Sorry, we forgot to mention that we got her a burner phone. She left her real phone in her dorm before we took the taxi up to Crescent Bay.”
I blinked, mind still spinning. “That actually answers a huge question I’ve had for the last year,” I said.
“The police told my family she was clutching her phone in her hand when she fell, and they gave it back to us afterwards. But when my mom flew out here to pack up her dorm, she found her regular phone there. So this whole time, we’ve been wondering why she had two phones.
It’s actually one of the things that never added up to me about her death. ”
“Well, now you know why she had two,” Ginny said softly.
“I guess that’s one mystery solved,” I murmured, rubbing my left temple. “I tried calling the Blackthorne Harbor PD about it, and you know what they said?”
Cherry’s forehead wrinkled. “What?”
“They implied she may have had a secret drug habit, and that maybe she had a burner phone to contact dealers.” I scoffed, head shaking. “They refused to listen to me when I said that wasn’t possible. Total and utter assholes.”
Dylan sat up a little straighter. “I have an idea. Why don’t we compare notes with you, Violet?
We can tell you all the stuff that didn’t add up for us, and then you can tell us what didn’t add up for you.
I’m sure you have more information overall, as a family member, but seeing as we were actually there when it happened, there might be some things we know that you don’t. ”
“Good idea,” I said, nodding slowly. A hard lump was forming in my throat. “Do you want to go first?”
“All right.” He scrubbed a hand over his face and took a deep breath. “So, when we were all frantically looking for her, someone messaged me to let me know about some major commotion by the clock tower on campus. Somehow we all just knew it was Cal, so we raced over there, and—”
His voice cracked, and he abruptly stopped.
Ginny finished for him. “We saw her, Violet,” she said, voice trembling. “Lying there on the ground. It was the worst thing I’ve ever seen.”
The image instantly seared itself into my mind; my sister, lying there lifeless. Broken and bloodied.
My stomach lurched, and I could feel everything I’d eaten earlier threatening to come back up.
Dylan wiped his face and spoke up again. “She was on her back. That’s what got me,” he said. “I mean, who accidentally falls backwards through a tower window? Especially when they’re completely sober?”
“Exactly,” Jeremiah said. “The police told us the windows were super fragile. But they were installed all the way back in 1745, so they’ve survived literal centuries of storms with barely a scratch.
Yet we’re supposed to believe Calista tripped and fell right through one of them like it was just clingwrap? ”
Cherry shook her head. “The police told us that bodies can twist in the air as they fall, and that’s why she landed on her back even though she probably went out the window face-first. But that’s bullshit.
Even though it’s a pretty high tower, it only takes…
what? Five seconds to fall and hit the ground?
Maybe ten?” She paused, head shaking again.
“That’s nowhere near enough time for a body to magically twist all the way around like that. ”
“No way,” Dylan muttered, eyes flashing.
“Then there was the issue of her hands,” Jeremiah said.
“When we saw her body, we noticed that her right arm was splayed across her front, so the back of her hand was visible. It was totally clean.” He paused and leaned forward.
“If it wasn’t an accident, but instead a suicide like so many rumors said…
wouldn’t her hand be cut to ribbons from smashing the window out before she jumped? ”
Ginny nodded emphatically. “Yeah, it’s almost impossible to punch a window out without cutting yourself. Even if you cover it with something first. Like a jacket, or whatever.”
“Plus, who would ever believe that Calista could punch out one of those super-thick glass windows?” Cherry said, eyes wide.
“I mean, I know she was six inches taller than most girls, and she was also pretty strong because of all that Pilates she did, but even then… I just can’t see her being that strong. ”