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Chapter one

I’ left to lose That’s why I didn’t care that Bennington, Vermont, looked like a postcard for autumn in the country The two-story bed-and-breakfast I pulled up to was no different It even had a white picket fence and a steady swirl of sunset-colored leaves drifting down from the many trees in the yard

My picturesque surroundings were in stark contrast to how I looked If I hadn’t been exhausted froht’ve cared that reasy mud Or that ets to worry about, I didn’t even bother to cover ainst the downpour as I left my car and ran into the bed-and-breakfast

“One moment!” a cheery voice called out fro red hair came down the hallway

“Hello, dear I’m Mrs Paulson Are you—oh, my, you’re soaked!”

“It’s nothing,” I said, but she bustled out of sight, returning moments later with a towel

“You sit down and dry yourself off,” she ordered in the sa tone rief had s you didn’t realize you’d one

“Thanks,” I said, deterer Then I pulled out the Ziploc bag I’d carried around ht’ve stayed here the weekend before last”

As I spoke, I pulled out a picture of my sister, Jasmine, and her boyfriend, Tommy

Mrs Paulson got a pair of glasses froe antique desk and accepted the picture

“Oh, what a pretty girl,” she said, adding kindly, “just like you But I’ve never seen either of them before, sorry”

“Thanks,” I said, although I wanted to scream

I’d spent the day showing Jaston, yet no one had recognized h The last texts she’d sent caton, but the police already hinted that they thought she’d sent thehteen-year-old who’d gone on a road trip with her boyfriend My sister ht be impulsive, but she wouldn’t have disappeared for over a week unless she was in real trouble

I stuffed her picture back into the plastic bag and rose, so upset that I barely registered what Mrs Paulson was saying

“can’t let you go back out in that, dear Wait here until the rain stops”