The Perfect Son by Freida McFadden(68)

It’s an excellent plan. I can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

That’s the fun part.





Chapter 59


Olivia



I still can’t wrap my head around it entirely. Mr. Cass. Liam’s dad. I had seen him once before when he was picking Liam up early from school, and he seemed really nice. And for a dad… well, he’s pretty hot. Really hot. He looks so athletic and muscular and has a nice smile, whereas my dad is balding and has a potbelly.

So when he told me to get into the car, of course I did it. I was worried about Liam. And there was no reason to suspect Mr. Cass wanted to harm to me. He was Liam’s dad, after all.

If people are wondering what happened to me, they must be blaming Liam. He’s the one I had a date with that night. I bet anything my nosy neighbor Mrs. Levy saw us kissing that night. If I never reappear, he’s the one who will get blamed. If anyone goes to jail for this, it will be Liam.

“Dad,” Hannah says in a choked voice. “Please don’t do this.”

Do what? Does he have a gun? A knife? I wish I could see what’s going on out there.

“Hannah.” He speaks in that bland, calm voice that he used when he was asking me what it was like to starve to death. “Do you know what you’re doing? You’re ripping apart our family.”

“I swear to God, don’t come any closer.”

“Hannah. Come on. I’m your father. She’s nobody.”

“Dad…” Hannah is sobbing now. “Please…”

“I’m going to make this so simple for you, Hannah. She’s not getting out of here alive. There’s no chance. The only one who has a chance is you.”

My heart is beating so quickly, my chest is starting to hurt. “Hannah,” I say. “Don’t listen to him. He’s evil.”

“Would you like to finish her off, Hannah? I’ll pull her up and let you do it.”

“Please, Daddy, don’t…”

He laughs. It’s a sound I’ve come to despise over the last several days. “I’m just kidding. I know you can’t do it. You’re not like me. You’re so much like your mother, it’s disgusting.”

I can barely make out Hannah’s face in the shadows. Her cheeks are streaked with tears.

“I’m afraid this all has to end tonight,” Mr. Cass says. “For both of you.”

And Hannah screams.





Chapter 60


Erika



“Mom.” Liam shakes my arm, growing urgency in his voice. “Please. Just drive.”

I have no reception out here. Every bone in my body is screaming that I should call the police. But then what? My son is here. My daughter is apparently here. Something terrible is going on, and I can’t imagine sitting here in this car and twiddling my thumbs until the cop show up.

Liam is not going to kill me. Sometimes I’m not sure what he’s thinking, but I know that much. He would never hurt me. And the only thing I can hear in his voice right now is fear. He’s scared of something.

But what?

And why on earth is Hannah’s bicycle out here? I can’t figure it out.

So I push on, into the woods, following his directions. I drive another five minutes on this dirt path, and finally a cabin comes into view. The cabin is dilapidated—the wood is splintered and dirty, falling apart in places. The front door is hanging by only one of its hinges. It looks like it’s been abandoned for years. Except for two things:

The dim light coming from inside.

And the Prius parked right outside.

I don’t know why Hannah’s bicycle is out here. But I can’t even begin to imagine why my husband’s car is parked here when he’s supposed to be at work.

“Liam,” I say slowly. “What is going on? No more games. Tell me right now.”

He takes a deep breath. “Dad went out last night and Hannah followed him. She said he came here— she showed me directions she wrote down. She told me she was going back tonight and I wanted to come, but she was worried I’d get in trouble if… well, if she found something really bad. But I was sitting in my room and thinking about Hannah and… I thought Dad might…”

I stare at him. “Might what?”

He frowns at me. “You know Dad is crazy, right?”

I get a horrible sinking feeling in my chest, like my whole world is collapsing on itself. “What are you talking about? Your father is the most normal man I’ve ever met.”

He snorts. “You don’t see it, I guess. I do. I always have. That’s why it scares him so much when I… well, you know. He sees himself in me. But I’m not like him. Not as much as he thinks, anyway.”

“This is crazy,” I whisper. “Why are you telling me this?”

“I thought you knew.” Liam blinks at me. “All those years. You didn’t even… I mean, I don’t know what he’s doing all day, but he’s not at work. I called his company once when I needed to reach him, and they told me he’s never there. You never suspected…?”

No, I never suspected anything. Ever.

But there were all those late nights. All those “business trips” he always had to take. I always accepted it blindly. There was that time I worried he was having an affair, but maybe it was something much worse than that.