“Yes,” said Roma.
“Had you ever met Lucy Masterson?”
“I’d heard Bobcat was boning an older woman,” said Roma. “But I’d never met her, no.”
“What is your relationship with Robert Fontenot?”
Roma rolled her eyes. “Oh my God,” she said. “He’s not my type. He’s a weirdo. I mean nice, but more like a computer than a person. Have you seen Rain Man?”
“And Charlie Bailey?” Salvatore moved the conversation forward, not engaging.
“What did Charlie say about me?”
“How do you and your brother get along?”
“I wish he were dead.”
Salvatore remained calm. He’d heard a lot worse. “Why’s that?” he asked.
“Because my parents love him more than they love me,” said Roma. “I’d kill him if I could. But you can’t lock me up for that, now, can you? For wanting to kill someone? For dreaming about a world without my perfect little brother?”
Salvatore changed tack. “Have you ever taken drugs?”
Roma shrugged. “Of course,” she said. “But never Oxy. That’s what she died of, right? We’ve all watched the Snapchat ads, Detective. We know about Big Pharma and the Sacklers and not getting addicted to opioids.”
Salvatore recalculated, putting aside the fact that Roma was fifteen, feeling as if she might be capable of anything.
Had she been to his house, planted the phone?
Why would she incriminate herself?
Had her brother planted the phone, knowing Roma had it out for him?
Had she been in contact with Salvatore’s children?
The thought of Roma contacting Joe made Salvatore’s heart race. “What do you think happened to Lucy Masterson?” he asked.
“Clearly, she was an addict,” said Roma. “I think she OD’d.”
“Did you sell her the drugs?”
Roma’s lip curled. “Why would I sell drugs? My parents buy me whatever I want.”
Salvatore looked at her. “Because you wanted Bobcat to yourself?” he ventured.
“Please,” said Roma.
“Who do you think sold her drugs?” said Salvatore.
“Charlie’s the only one who doesn’t have money,” said Roma. “I don’t know—maybe he took my phone. He has a sad old phone with a cracked screen.”
“Anything else? I’d really appreciate your insight here, Roma.”
“I see what you’re doing,” said Roma.
“What am I doing?”
“You’re trying to appeal to me, win me over by asking my opinion.”
Salvatore laced his fingers across his belly. “Or,” he said, “I really don’t know what happened to Lucy Masterson. And you might have insight I don’t have, so I’m using you to get it.”
“What if I’m using you right back?” said Roma, a smile playing at the corners of her lips that made Salvatore’s stomach turn.
“So you think Charlie took your phone and sold drugs to Lucy…then took her swimming and watched her sink? Or tried to save her but failed?”
“Yeah,” said Roma. “I guess. All I know is that Charlie needs money, and none of the rest of us do.”
“OK,” said Salvatore, standing. “Thank you.”
“Can I go now?” said Roma.
Salvatore turned before leaving her alone in the room. “Oh, no,” he said. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“You’ll be sorry,” said Roma.
“Thank you for your time,” said Salvatore, closing the door behind him, happy to be out of her presence.
Someone had planted the phone, Salvatore knew. But the evidence was clear and simple: Roma Brownson had sold drugs to Lucy Masterson, who had died of an overdose.
All Salvatore had to do was nothing and the case would be solved.
-9-
Whitney
WHITNEY TOOK THE QUIZ when Roma was five years old. She found it in a magazine. She was halfway through a strong cup of coffee and the nanny had just arrived to play with the twins. She grabbed a pencil from the mug on her desk and curled up on the couch.
IS YOUR CHILD A FUTURE PSYCHOPATH?
1. Is your child cruel to animals?
Many future serial killers express their anger using animals. Look at the below photo of Jeffrey Dahmer—who went on to receive fifteen life sentences—as a little boy with his kitten. He has his hand around the kitten’s neck!
Jesus. Whitney averted her eyes from Dahmer’s freaky childhood grin but checked YES. Roma had thrown the family cat in the pool the week before, and （according to the former nanny, who had quit） shoved it away from the side every time it tried to get out. Roma, said the former nanny, had watched the cat drown.
2. Does your child love fire?
Pyromania is another bad sign. Like cruelty to animals, making fires is a way for a budding psychopath to express anger and defiance.
Whitney bit her lip and checked YES. Roma had been stealing matches and setting fires outdoors for a long time, and the week before, she’d lit her twin brother’s stuffed frog on fire and tossed it into Xavier’s “big boy bed.” Luckily, the nanny who’d quit two nannies ago had smelled the fire and grabbed Xavier before the fire reached him.
3. Does your child wet the bed?
Many children who are later identified as having “callous and unemotional traits” wet the bed for longer than is considered normal. The humiliation of being a bed wetter, as well as parents’ well-meaning attempts to make the child stop, can lead to explosive anger and the inability to handle it in a healthy way.
Oh, dear. Whitney placed a neat “X” in the YES column. She and Jules had done everything to try to stop Roma’s bed-wetting: promising her candy, buying a mattress that set off a gentle alarm when wet, restricting liquids after a half glass of water at dinner. But nothing worked. Roma almost seemed proud every morning as she announced, “My bed wet! Bad girl!”
4. Does your child enjoy breaking rules?
Every child breaks a rule or two, of course! But a worrisome trait to notice is if your child violates rules and gets joy and adrenaline from doing so. Future psychopaths can only feel when they do something bad and get away with it. Normal life doesn’t provide them with enough serotonin and happiness. So watch out for a child who seems happiest when they have stolen another kid’s toy, or deliberately done something you have told them specifically NOT to do!
Whitney thought of the dog gate Roma had left open, allowing their pup into the street; the bills Roma had hidden, driving her father nuts; the times she’d opened the front door and toddled out, despite the rule that she was not allowed outside by herself.
Whitney checked YES.
5. Does your child lie without remorse?
All kids lie! They lie to get out of trouble and to avoid punishment. But when your child lies for NO REASON, this is a concern. Children with callous and unemotional traits can lie with confidence, and they lie because they get pleasure from tricking others.
Whitney penciled YES, remembering the time a neighbor called to express her sympathy for Roma’s beloved grandfather dying of cancer. （Roma’s fabrication.） Whitney once stood right next to her daughter as Roma described a nonexistent pony named Sam. And she could never forget Xavier running to her in abject terror, believing Roma’s lie that she and Jules had adopted him and were considering “sending him back.” Whitney could still see Roma’s lopsided grin as she watched her mother try to convince her son that he was her son.