The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden(32)

“Some of the people from track team were hanging out at Charlie’s. She was there too.”

“Was it a date?”

“No.”

“I see.” Rivera nods. “And that’s the last time you saw Olivia?”

“Yes.”

“Do you have any idea at all where she could be right now?”

“No,” he says without hesitation. “I’m really sorry. I wish I did.” And then, in an incredibly sincere voice, “I’m worried about her. I really hope she’s okay.”

“We do too,” Rivera says.

And then it looks like they’re about to get up. And maybe this is over. Maybe they have absolutely nothing on Liam, and he was telling the truth when he said he barely knew Olivia. Maybe they’re just going around and questioning everyone in the school. Maybe this is nothing but routine.

But then just as she’s about to get up, Rivera sits back down again like she thought of something she had forgotten. “One more thing, Liam,” she says.

He raises his eyebrows. “Yes?”

“One of Olivia Mercer’s neighbors saw her in her backyard at around two in the morning, talking to a teenage boy.”

My stomach sinks. This isn’t over after all.

“Do you know who that boy was, Liam?” Rivera asks.

He doesn’t answer, but his body stiffens almost imperceptibly.

Rivera smiles grimly. “After some of your friends told us you had brought Olivia to that diner yesterday, we showed the neighbor a few of your school photographs. And guess what? She was able to correctly identify you. She also was able to identify the Toyota that is now out in your driveway.”

Liam’s eyes widen for an instant, but he quickly regains his composure.

Rivera leans in and looks him straight in the eyes. “Would you like to revise your answer to the question I asked you about when the last time you saw Olivia Mercer was?”

Liam opens his mouth like he’s about to answer, but before he does, Jason jumps up from the sofa. “No! No more questions. Not without a lawyer.”

“We’re just trying to find the whereabouts of a sixteen-year-old girl, Mr. Cass,” Rivera says flatly. She looks at Liam. “Liam, if you can tell us where she is—”

“Liam, don’t answer them.” Jason glares at Rivera, a vein standing out in his neck. “This is a sixteen-year-old boy. He’s a great student and a great kid. He did not do this.”

“With all due respect, Mr. Cass—”

“No, you listen to me.” Jason points a finger at them. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him this upset. Even during the times I was most freaked out about Liam, he always seemed so calm. If I wasn’t so panicked myself, I would think it was a little bit sexy the way he’s protecting Liam. “My son has told you everything he knows. If you want to speak to him again, it will be with our attorney present.”

Rivera rises from the love seat and Murphy follows. “As you wish, Mr. Cass.”

It isn’t until the officers are gone that I feel like I can breathe normally again. Of course, this whole thing was a disaster. It is now confirmed. Liam was visiting Olivia Mercer last night. He was probably the last person to see her alive. And he lied about it to the police.

“What the hell, Liam?” Jason snaps at him.

Liam had been maintaining excellent eye contact while the officers were here, but he finally drops his eyes. The mask of affability he usually wears is gone, and he looks absolutely miserable. I almost feel sorry for him.

“Liam,” I say quietly as I sit down beside my son. “Do you know where Olivia is?”

He shakes his head. Lying again. I wish Jason hadn’t stopped the officers from questioning him. I wish they had done their police thing and wormed the answer out of him.

“But you were at her house last night…?” Jason prompts him.

Liam’s Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows. “Yes. I was there. Okay?”

“You took my car?” I ask.

“Yes. I’m sorry.”

Jason runs a hand through his graying hair. I think he got ten new gray strands during the last twenty minutes. Of course, if not for my hairdresser, I’d be all gray now, thanks to my son. “What were you doing there?” he asks.

“I just…” Liam squirms on the sofa. “I like her, okay? I wanted to see her. And she came down and… you know…”

Jason frowns at him. “No. I don’t know.”

Liam’s ears turn pink. “We made out a little. That’s all.”

“And then?”

“And then Mom called. So I came home. And that’s it.”

Jason narrows his eyes at Liam, but I can tell he believes the story. He was genuine in what he told the police officers. He does not believe his teenage son could possibly be responsible for the disappearance of a young girl. He knows Liam is capable of lying, but he doesn’t know what else our son is capable of. Only I know the truth.

“Go to your room,” Jason says to Liam.

Liam doesn’t need to be told twice. He jumps off the sofa and scrambles up the stairs. I wish we could keep questioning him, but it won’t make a difference. Whatever else he knows, he’s told us all he’s going to.

Jason drops his head back against the sofa and lets out a long sigh. “We have to get him a lawyer, Erika. This doesn’t look good for him.”