The Zero Night by Unknown
Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-09-01T21:00:02+00:00
* * * * *
When nearly half an hour passed after Cat went into the library, Serena began to think that Delaney Candis had decided to skip their meeting. Then she spotted a girl getting out of a blue Highlander SUV in the library parking lot, and she recognized Delaney from the investigation two years earlier.
The teenager had grown up in the time since then. She was very attractive, with a willowy build and slightly messy brunette hair down to the middle of her back. She wore a white-and-yellow blouse and what looked like a Ragstock skirt in a sunny shade of orange. Her brown eyes reflected a keen intelligence, so Serena wasnât surprised to hear that Delaney was in a battle with Cat for the top spot in class. In pictures, Serena had also seen the girl wearing a warm, magnetic smile. But looking at her now, she saw no smile, just nervous apprehension.
âDelaney, Iâm Serena Stride,â she said as the girl approached her near the red brick walls of the library.
âYes, I know.â
âI appreciate your meeting me.â
âWhat is this about?â
âIâve been reviewing the case file about your motherâs death, and I have a few more questions.â
âMy mother died two years ago,â Delaney said in a strained voice. âWhat other questions do you have? Why are you bringing this up now?â
Serena hesitated. Other students kept passing in and out of the library doors near them. âDo you mind if we go somewhere else to talk? This might be a little easier with more privacy.â
âFine. Whatever.â
They headed down the sidewalk away from the library. Serena made small talk, but otherwise, they didnât say anything to each other. At the Swenson engineering building, they turned right and headed toward the university stadium. There was a large stretch of green grass near the stadium parking lot, and Serena led them there. The sun was high in the blue sky overhead.
Serena had been debating exactly what to say, but she decided to be honest with the girl about everything. There was something about Delaney that made her think she would respond better to the truth than to anything else.
âI want you to know something right up front,â Serena told her. âIâm an alcoholic, like your mother was.â
The surprise on Delaneyâs face was obvious. She hadnât expected a confession like that. âOh. Okay.â
âMy own mother was an alcoholic, too,â Serena went on. âShe was also a cocaine addict. Thereâs a strong genetic component to addiction, and I got the family disease. Iâve struggled with it my whole life. I hear youâre very smart, so I assume youâre smart enough to know that youâre probably at high risk, too.â
âI donât drink,â Delaney said. âAnd I donât intend to start. No drugs, either.â
âGood for you.â Serena looked away, squinting into the sun as she figured out what to say next. âWhen I was a teenager, I ended up taking care of my mother most of the time. I did a lot of things to make her happy.
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