Matt:??????????????That’s true.
Ben:???????????????Why?
Matt:??????????????It was just a lot to handle at the time. Savvy—our friend, not just hers—was dead, and the police were already asking questions that … it was a lot.
Ben:???????????????The police were asking questions that made you suspect your wife had killed her friend?
Matt:??????????????Well … I don’t know. They were asking questions that made me uncomfortable. I shouldn’t have sent her away. I feel bad about it now.
Ben:???????????????Did you go see her while she was at her parents’ house?
Matt:??????????????Uh, once, yeah.
Ben:???????????????How was Lucy doing then?
Matt:??????????????I … think she was about the same. Sad. Confused.
Ben:???????????????What did you do while Lucy was at her parents’？
Matt:??????????????What do you mean?
Ben:???????????????Just, in general. It must have been strange, having your wife out of the house, right? What did you do?
Matt:??????????????The normal stuff. Went to work. I worked more, actually. The local media would sometimes pop up at my house so I stayed there a lot.
Ben:???????????????Did you stay with any friends?
Matt:??????????????I think I crashed on a buddy’s couch once or twice, yeah.
Ben:???????????????How about any women? Did you stay at the homes of any women? Or have them over?
Matt:??????????????I mean … it’s been five years. Like I said, I crashed on some couches. Maybe some were women.
Ben:???????????????I have two people who say they saw you regularly coming in and out of the house of a woman I’m choosing not to name here, for her sake.
Matt:??????????????Like I said, I stayed with some friends occasionally. Got away from the media.
Ben:???????????????They say the two of you had been sleeping together since before Savannah died.
Matt:??????????????I don’t know who these anonymous people are, and I don’t know why they think they know what I’m doing behind closed doors.
Ben:???????????????They also said that the woman started spending some nights at your house very soon after Lucy left.
Matt:??????????????Again, I don’t know why these people think they know my business.
Ben:???????????????So they’re wrong? Or they’re lying?
Matt:??????????????Yes, they’re wrong. And what does it even matter? How is it even relevant?
Ben:???????????????Good point. Let’s move on. How did you get home from the wedding?
Matt:??????????????I drove.
Ben:???????????????Even though you were, by your own account, pretty drunk?
Matt:??????????????Listen, it wasn’t a great decision. But yeah, I did. And I’d sobered up a bit by the time I left.
Ben:???????????????When was that?
Matt:??????????????Not long after Lucy and Savvy left.
Ben:???????????????But you didn’t see them?
Matt:??????????????No, they took the back road. I took the main road, like they told us to.
Ben:???????????????And you went straight home?
Matt:??????????????Yeah.
Ben:???????????????And you were alone the rest of the night? No one came and picked you up, later that evening?
Matt:??????????????You know what, I actually think I’m going to leave. This was a bad idea.
Ben:???????????????A neighbor confirmed to police that they saw you come home.
Matt:??????????????[muffled noises] I’m done.
Ben:???????????????That neighbor has since reached out to express regret about lying. They saw you, but another car showed up shortly after. They said it was a woman, and you two had an argument in your driveway.
Matt:?????????????[muffled noises, banging]
Ben:???????????????They didn’t know who the mystery woman was, but apparently you were shouting at her, and then she left. And then you got back into your car and drove away. So, you told the police you were home all night, but you were actually out during the time Savvy was murdered.
And that’s the end of the interview, folks. Matt left then, and I haven’t been able to get in contact with him again since.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
LUCY
I agree to go out to the woods with Ben, to the spot where Savvy was found. It’s not what I expected for our first interview, but I don’t have a good reason to say no.
And I really tried to think of a good reason to say no.
So now I am marching to the door of Ben’s hotel room, about to drive with this smug, lying podcaster to the scene of the crime.
“Hello.” Ben greets me at the door of his hotel room with a smile.
“Hello, asshole.”
Behind Ben, Paige lets out a cackle. She sits on the couch, bare feet casually propped up on the coffee table. I wonder whether the two of them are sleeping together.