Chapter 27
IMOGEN
The bloodstained rope changed everything.
The last place Marta looked when searching Imogen’s room was under the bed.
She got down on her stomach and swept her arm to grab hold of an item she could only just reach.
When she pulled it out, she let out a little gasp and let go of it as if it were burning her fingertips.
She scrambled to her feet, stumbling backwards in her haste.
Imogen’s heart was in her mouth. She glared at the rope as if it were going to announce who had hidden it under the bed. She felt like she was spinning out, her thoughts flying by too fast to snare them. When she looked up again, Marta and Bernie were staring at her.
“Don’t look at me like that, I had nothing to do with it.
I have no idea how that got there. Do you think I’d be so stupid?
Hiding evidence under my own bed? It’s not even really hidden!
Obviously, one of you put it there and you’re trying to pin this on me.
” The fact that no one was saying anything was making Imogen nervous.
She locked on to Marta and directed her next comment at her.
“I would never hurt Celeste, she’s my friend.
She’s Milly’s mom, for god’s sake. This is absolutely going to destroy Ari .
. .” As she said it, she realized that it was true. An ache bloomed in her chest.
“I guess we don’t have any way of knowing how it got there,” said Marta.
“And that was my whole point when I said this was a bad idea,” said Imogen. “We actually do find some crime-scene shit, and it’s like, now what? It doesn’t mean anything! Either of you could have put it there.”
“So I guess we’re finally letting go of the ‘stranger on the island’ fantasy,” said Bernie.
“Fine!” Marta sounded like she was near tears. “It was a stupid idea. I’m sorry. Doing a search just seemed better than doing nothing, but you’re right, we don’t know what we’re doing. Maybe we should stop.”
Imogen accepted the apology with a shrug, relieved that no one was taking the rope as definitive evidence that she’d had anything to do with Celeste’s death. She exhaled noisily through her nose. “Okay, this may sound strange, but I actually don’t think we should stop the search.”
“What?” Bernie raised her eyebrows in surprise.
“One of you put that rope underneath my bed. I bet you—whoever you are—would love it if we stopped looking. So let’s go. I want to tear the place apart. What if there’s incriminating shit everywhere, huh? We’re not stopping at my room.”
Marta looked scared. “But what’s the point of it all now?”
“I think the point is to see what other nasty bits and pieces are stashed around the cottage.” Imogen didn’t give them a chance to disagree, she simply turned on her heel and stalked down the hallway toward Marta and Celeste’s room.
“Don’t you want to know if someone has a knife hidden under her pillow? ”