Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
S carlet and Nathan spent every day out of doors, scouring the island, working on the documentary. Later tonight, they had plans to watch the “cult” from a distance as the sun burst in pinks and yellows behind them and the bonfire shimmered along the sand.
This afternoon, they interviewed a married couple on the island who’d lost their daughter recently—presumably to the same group they were after. Nathan had discovered their post on Reddit, pleading with the community for information about where their daughter might have gone. Nathan and Scarlet had set up their camera in the well-tended living room of the mini-mansion in Siasconset and asked questions of the parents. When was the last time you heard from your daughter? How old is she? Did she mention any men? Did you get the sense she was dating them? Did her style change before you last saw her?
The parents were mystified. They’d sent their daughter money but demanded she come home; they’d said they would stop sending money if she didn’t. But still, they worried, and they sent more money along. How could they not? They loved her so much. They wanted her to be safe.
“Thank you for talking to us today,” Scarlet said as she cut the camera.
The mother rubbed her temples and glanced at her husband. “We’ve been too embarrassed to say anything. But we realized it’s better to say something than never see her again.”
Nathan tucked the camera into his bag. “My sister disappeared, too.”
Scarlet was surprised that he confessed this.
The mother gasped. “How is your mother handling it?”
“She won’t talk about it,” Nathan admitted.
The father wrapped his arm around his wife’s shoulders and held her close. He eyed the camera, Scarlet, and their car outside.
“We don’t know what they’re up to,” Nathan said. “But we think they’re close.”
The husband gasped. “In Nantucket?”
Scarlet squeezed Nathan’s arm. She didn’t want them to make a fuss or contact the police until they knew more. We can’t let them slip away.
“We’re not sure,” Nathan said. “But we’re on the verge of breaking it wide open. We’ll have enough to get the girls out of there. I’m sure of it.”
Scarlet was surprised at how open and honest he sounded—especially because much of what he said was a lie.
I wonder if he’s lied to me, Scarlet wondered, then shivered.
They left the mini-mansion. It was nearly six, and the air was different, tinged with orange and smelling of grills and bonfires. Scarlet imagined hundreds of families across the island, showering the sand away, preparing for dinner. She imagined mothers ordering their children to wash their hands and set the table.
She thought of her own mother, whom she hadn’t heard from since she’d left New York City. Because Nathan was driving, she sent a text.
SCARLET: I miss you. I hope your work is going well.
Catherine didn’t write back right away.
Nathan pulled into a gas station about a mile away from town. Scarlet’s car was on empty, and they wanted to get snacks for their stakeout later. They’d resolved to park at a greater distance than before so as not to draw attention to themselves.
“What kind of snacks do you want?” Scarlet asked, clambering from the passenger seat and stretching her arms over her head. “Twizzlers? Doritos?”
Nathan removed the nozzle from the tank and slipped it into the gas notch on the opposite side of the car. “Twizzlers, yes. Doritos? Too messy.”
Scarlet giggled. They’d fallen into a nice routine together, one demanded of people who didn’t know each other well and who’d been forced into proximity.
One day, I walked into a cinema in Greenwich Village, and my entire life changed, she imagined telling someone one day. But then again, it wasn’t like she and Nathan had even kissed—except for that very first time.
It wasn’t that she didn’t think about it.
But they had so many other things to fight for.
And the fact that they still weren’t any closer to figuring out where the girls were staying was frustrating for them both.
Especially for him, she knew. This was his sister. He was terribly worried.
And he wanted to make his parents proud.
Suddenly, a station wagon pulled into the gas station and buzzed to a stop at the gas tank farthest from them. Scarlet hardly glanced at it.
“I’ll pick something else out,” Scarlet said after a pause. “Twizzlers and a surprise snack.”
“Great.” Nathan offered a sad, tired, sunburnt smile and continued putting gas in the tank.
Scarlet headed for the glass door of the gas station and entered the air-conditioned chill. She grabbed a couple of beers for later, plus some diet soda and Twizzlers.
When she was perusing the chips, her eyes lifted, and she peered across the aisles and through the dirty, streaked windows.
The man who’d gotten out of the station wagon wore all black.
Scarlet froze with panic. People wear black all the time, she reminded herself. It might not be anything.
Scarlet crept to the counter with her snacks and spread them out. Nathan was done putting gas in the tank and had returned to the driver’s side, where he tapped his hands on the steering wheel and sang along to the song on the radio.
The gas station employee returned from breaking down boxes to scan Scarlet’s items. The man in black strode inside and flashed a hand to the employee before disappearing behind the aisle of peanuts and beef jerky.
Scarlet couldn’t breathe. Is he in the cult?
“You having a good one?” the gas station employee asked Scarlet.
“Sure thing. You?” Scarlet’s voice shook.
Scarlet paid for the gas and the items and gathered the plastic bag. She could feel the man in black behind her; he was like a black cloud.
“How you doing, Bobby?” the man in black asked the employee. It was clear he’d been here several times before.
“Not bad, Kid.” The attendant looked at Scarlet in a way that said she’d been standing there too long.
Scarlet forced a smile and said, “Night!” then stepped into the muggy evening. Being as casual as she could, she turned on a dime and headed for the trash can near the station wagon. She wanted to see inside.
Once there, she shelled her things of its plastic bag and glanced into the back seat of the station wagon. Sure enough, there they were: three young women. Their hair was long and wavy; their eyes were straight ahead. They looked as though they’d time-traveled from another era.
One of them was Ivy’s friend from high school. The original one she’d seen that day at the coffee shop.
I should run over there, throw open the station wagon door, and tell them to come with me.
But what about the others?
Scarlet’s tongue felt thick, as though she’d bitten it. She hurried back to her car and got inside as delicately as she could.
“What did you decide on?” Nathan asked, turning the music down. He prepared to start the engine.
Scarlet kept her eyes straight ahead and said, “They’re in that station wagon.”
The air in the car crystallized. Nathan sat up straight.
“Don’t make any false moves,” she ordered. “We don’t want them to think we’re onto them.”
“They just come to the gas station like this? Out in the open?”
“They’re not doing anything illegal,” Scarlet reminded him.
“That we know of,” Nathan spat.
They remained quiet. The man left the gas station, whistling to himself, and got into the station wagon. Once there, he revved the engine and crept out.
“I want to follow them,” Nathan muttered.
Scarlet inhaled sharply. She was terrified. But this was the only way.
We have to find out where they live.
“Just be careful,” Scarlet said. She guessed Nathan had never stalked anyone before. But then again, what did she know about him, really? What does anyone know about the first person they kissed?
“Get the camera,” Nathan muttered as he crept out of the gas station parking lot and turned right, following the station wagon from a great distance.
Scarlet hurried to pull the camera out of its case. She set up a messy shot of the road, then turned to record Nathan, his hands firm at the steering wheel.
Nathan narrated for a bit. “We just had a fortuitous encounter. We’re after them, following at a comfortable distance. We don’t want them to get the idea we’re following them. But they’re going to lead us right to their lair.”
Scarlet laughed, although it sounded strange and sinister. “Lair is a good word,” she said.
Nathan chuckled, too. They were jittery and wild.
They drove in silence after that. Scarlet kept the camera pinned to the station wagon, which was a good quarter of a mile ahead of them. They were driving the speed limit, presumably because they didn’t want to get pulled over.
Scarlet wondered, What happens when we find the house? Do we storm in and get everyone out? What if they don’t want to go? Do we ask them why?
Documentary making was an art form. It was also fast and loose, apt to change at a moment’s notice. She had no idea what would happen next—in life or in the movie.
Suddenly, the station wagon bucked off the main road and down a ditch. Scarlet let out a cry of alarm.
“Where are they going?”
“We’re going to find out,” Nathan said darkly.
“We can’t go down that ditch—” Scarlet began.
But already, Nathan twisted the tires and charged after the station wagon down a little side road that took them into a shadowy forest. Scarlet reached over and squeezed Nathan’s wrist.
“They’ll see us coming,” she breathed.
Nathan’s forehead bubbled with sweat. He cut the engine and exhaled. He knew she was right.
“Let’s follow the road on foot,” he suggested.
“We have to move the car,” she said.
Nathan grimaced. He revved the engine and reversed up the ditch and onto the road. He then drove up five hundred feet, put on the blinkers, and cut the engine again. Scarlet’s stomach ached. She wasn’t sure what they were getting themselves into. She reached into the back seat and removed a baseball bat she kept back there—just in case.
Nathan gave her a firm nod. They had to keep going.
Nathan and Scarlet walked through the shadows of the thick woods. Neither of them spoke. But Scarlet’s mind was awash with thoughts like I was raised in the city! I wasn’t meant for this!
We’re going to figure out what they’re up to. We’re going to save them .
What if they capture us, and we never see the light of day again?
Throughout, Nathan filmed the walk carefully. “We’ll want the footage,” he promised.
Scarlet knew he was right. Again, she felt grateful for the power he lent every situation.
Fifteen minutes later, the trees cleared, and they could make out a fifteen-foot fence that surrounded what looked to be several acres. It was difficult to make out what was on the other side. Scarlet squeezed Nathan’s hand. She was terrified.
“What are they doing back there?” she breathed.
Nathan set his jaw.
Together, they stared at the locked gate. It was not clear what they would do next. But Scarlet took the camera and filmed all she could.