It's One of Us(72)

Peyton’s background? Records? What in the world?

Scarlett’s confusion must show on her face, because Darby nods once, twice, almost to herself, then sighs. Scarlett senses the shift in her mother, as if she’s come to terms with a horrible, inevitable truth. When she speaks, Scarlett is transfixed.

“Your brother spent some time in a facility in Maryland when he was a boy. He was exhibiting aggressive behavior after your birth. It started when he was five and continued until he was twelve. Medications didn’t help, only seemed to make everything worse. We went through a number of diagnoses, doctors, and numerous medications until I was forced to place him into a hospital that specialized in his behavioral issues. They suspected he was having a rare side effect to the psychotropic medications, which were causing him to have hallucinations, delusions, and manic behavior. They diagnosed him with drug-induced schizoaffective disorder. They immediately took him off the medications other various doctors we’d visited put him on. He was better within weeks, and exhibited no more signs of anger, delusions, or dysfunction in any way. I brought him home when he was thirteen, administering a single antidepressant med for a year, and then weaned him off everything. He’s been fine ever since. He was basically having an allergic reaction to the heavy-duty medication the doctors kept throwing at him, none of which he needed. He was simply adjusting poorly to a new presence in the home. He wanted more attention than I could give for a while there.”

Scarlett is staring. She knows this because the woman detective is ignoring her mother and watching Scarlett’s reaction instead. Scarlett doesn’t care. She feels betrayed that she’s just now finding out about this side of her beloved brother.

“He resented me? He had to be hospitalized because he hated me so much? You never told me that,” she said, and Darby shakes her head vigorously.

“Hey, that wasn’t the case, not at all. He was a little boy. Sometimes, kids don’t act like adults want them to all the time, and we rush to fix them when they aren’t broken in the first place. It was a time when doctors misdiagnosed any sort of negative behavior and put children on medications their bodies and brains weren’t capable of handling. Peyton was a little jealous of you when you first came. That’s totally normal. But his pediatrician convinced me it was something more. That he was sick. The medications caused the problems. Once we took him off of them, he was fine.”

The detectives are making notes as fast as their pens can scratch.

“But you didn’t tell me. You said he went to a special sleepover school.”

“Peyton and I decided not to share this, together. We didn’t want you to worry that you might go through the same thing someday.” Darby slides a comforting hand over Scarlett’s, and she can’t help but pull away, still too hurt, too confused, to want to be touched.

With another sigh, Darby turns to the cops. “I want this to be very clear,” she says, voice strong. “There is a terrible stigma associated with mental illness. If—if—Peyton is behind these crimes, I want it known Peyton needed exactly zero intervention after we discovered the problem was not organic but was being caused by his medications. This isn’t a well-documented syndrome, but you’ll find that the literature available is both fascinating and compelling. I even agreed to let the doctors use Peyton’s case for teaching, helping doctors and pediatricians recognize the signs of medication-induced schizoaffective disorder, so more children aren’t misdiagnosed and forever labeled. I would be happy to share the names of his treating doctors, who will confirm what I’ve just told you.”

The detective nods, his head bobbing in time with Scarlett’s heartbeats. “This is very interesting information, Ms. Flynn. We appreciate your honesty. Those names would be a great help. We’ll certainly want to talk to his doctors.”

“Fine. I’ll get them for you.”

“And you’re sure you don’t know where Peyton might be now?”

“I don’t. He apparently has dropped out of school and didn’t tell me that. He told his sister that he was going camping this weekend. Scarlett?”

Scarlett is too shocked not to answer. “He said he was heading to the Blue Ridge with friends. He went a few weeks ago, too, but this time they would be out of touch. His phone wouldn’t be working.” Her voice is flat. She notices Darby is trying—and failing—to hold it together. She scoots closer to her mom on the couch, puts an arm around her. “This has to be a mistake. Peyton couldn’t do this. I know my brother.”

Freak. Your brother is a freak.

The female detective looks at her phone. Someone’s been texting her for the past few minutes; the phone has been vibrating frantically in the woman’s pocket.

“Osley,” she says, and he breaks eye contact with Scarlett to glance at his partner.

“Channel Four is teasing an interview about to go live. Park Bender is going to talk to Erica Pearl. It’s on the station’s app, and it’s all over social media.”

“Park Bender?” Darby asks.

The cops exchange a brief glance, and the woman nods. “It seems Peyton has been in contact with both him and his wife. That’s how we got the sketch. He broke into Mrs. Bender’s work yesterday. She confronted him, and he left,” Osley says.

“But Peyton is camping in the Blue Ridge,” Scarlett says. If she says it enough, maybe it will be true.