The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden(37)

Chapter 31


Police transcript of interview with Madison Hartman:



“How long have you been friends with Olivia Mercer?”

“Practically my whole life. We became friends the first day of kindergarten. We were wearing the same dress and we bonded over it.”

“So you’re very close with her?”

“Uh, yeah! We’re best friends.”

“Did Olivia ever give you any indication she might run away?”

“No. Never. Olivia would never run away. She wouldn’t do that to her parents.”

“Did she do drugs or alcohol?”

“Are you kidding me? Olivia was a good girl. One time, me and Aidan—that’s my boyfriend—offered her a drink of some beer Aidan swiped from his dad’s stash, and she wouldn’t touch it.”

“If she were planning to run away, would she tell anyone about it?”

“Yes! She would tell me… But she didn’t run away. I’m telling you. There’s no way… It was Liam. That bastard, Liam Cass.”

“You think Liam is the one responsible for her disappearance?”

“I don’t think he is. I know he is.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Um, because Liam is a crazy person?”

“Why do you think he’s crazy?”

“Okay, well, I wasn’t totally sure before. I mean, there were rumors about him. Like, I went to a different middle school than he did, but people sometimes talked about that English teacher and what they thought he did to him. Some kids believe he did it, although I honestly didn’t believe it until now. Do you guys know about that?”

“Yes. We know.”

“I mean, mostly it was just a vibe I got from him. Obviously, he’s pretty cute, but he just seemed so phony. Like, a lot of girls thought he was really charming, but I just thought he was a fake.”

“How so?”

“So here’s an example. One day, I saw him messing around with some of his friends before first period, and then he was late for class. I had first period with him, and the teacher asked him why he was late. He told her his mom was driving him and she had a flat tire and that’s why he was late.”

“A lot of kids tell lies.”

“Yeah, I know. I mean, I lie to teachers or my parents all the time. But they always seem like they sort of know that I’m lying. It’s hard to tell a really good lie to an adult in a believable way. But Liam was so good at it. He looked right into the teacher’s eyes and said it with a straight face, and the teacher didn’t even suspect for a second. I would have believed it too if I didn’t see him outside messing around. You know? And there was other stuff too.”

“Like what?”

“Like I was at the athletic field after school because I was waiting for Aidan to finish football practice, and the track team guys had a meet. Liam was racing and he lost, and I could tell he was really pissed off about losing. He walked right up to this fence and kicked it so hard, it broke. I was kind of shocked at how angry he seemed.”

“Did you tell that to Olivia?”

“No…”

“Why not?”

“Well, because last year Aidan punched a wall and broke his hand, so I thought if I told her that story, she’d bring up the story about Aidan and act like it was no big deal. Or tell me I should break up with Aidan.”

“Olivia told you to break up with Aidan?”

“Yes… I mean, not in a serious way. But she didn’t like him.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. She thought he was a football player thug, but… what does this have to do with Liam?”

“Has Aidan ever been violent towards you?”

“No! Never! Aidan isn’t perfect, but he’s a good guy. Not like Liam.”

“Was Liam ever violent toward Olivia?”

“No. He could be really nice when he wanted to be. That’s what I’m saying—he was such a fake. And she was totally taken in by it. She was so into him… and she’s not even like that. She doesn’t get that into boys. He totally did a number on her.”

“Do you think he had any reason to hurt her?”

“No. I mean, she already wanted to go out with him, and I bet she would’ve done just about anything for him.”

“So why are you so certain Liam is responsible for her disappearance?”

“Because he’s crazy! Crazy people don’t need a reason to do something crazy, right?”





Chapter 32


Erika



When I get back home, Jason says Liam hasn’t come out of his room since the cops left, so I decide I should go check on him. It’s a relief when I knock on the door and he tells me to come in.

Strangely enough, I find him at his desk, hunched over one of his textbooks. He’s reading and outlining the book, as if this was any other day. As if the police hadn’t been here, only hours earlier, essentially accusing him of murder.

“Liam?”

He doesn’t look up from his textbook. “Yes?”

“What are you doing?”

“Studying. I have a history test tomorrow.”