“WHAT DO YOU THINK it means?”
Max stayed close to Ivy as they searched the festival grounds.
“What are you talking about?” Ivy was understandably distracted as she scanned faces.
“The fact that these are the three girls missing,” Max prodded. “Do you think that’s somehow significant?”
Ivy shrugged, unsure how to answer. “I think it’s probable that Mackenzie is hiding because she doesn’t want to be part of the pageant. This isn’t her thing and her mother is making her do it.”
“That sounds familiar. Is that why you’ve bonded with her?”
“I’ve hardly bonded with her,” Ivy scoffed.
“But you have. She’s the one you’re most protective of. She’s the one you like to talk to. She reminds me of you in some ways.”
“She reminds me of me in some ways, too, which is why I’m not terribly worried about her,” Ivy said. “She’s probably faking sick or coming up with some other scheme to get out of the pageant. That’s what I planned to do back in the day.”
“That means you’re worried about Sadie and Peyton,” Max surmised. “Do you think they’re in this together?”
Ivy tilted her head to the side and considered the question. “I don’t know. That didn’t even occur to me.”
“What did occur to you?”
“I think Sadie is definitely involved, and it makes sense,” Ivy replied. “She’s manic about this pageant. To her, life will surely end if she doesn’t win the title. Her mother has drilled that into her head to the point where Sadie actually believes she’ll be kicked out of the family if she doesn’t win. I’m guessing that means Simone has given her instructions and Sadie believes she has no choice but to follow them.”
Max snorted, disbelief flitting through his eyes. “Why would she possibly believe that?”
“Because it’s what happened to Sarah,” Ivy answered without hesitation. “Sarah didn’t win the competition like she was supposed to. Simone melted down. Sarah left town right after that and I’ve never seen her since. Have you?”
“I … .” Max broke off, racking his brain. “Now that you mention it, Simone doesn’t ever mention Sarah. All she talks about is Sadie. It’s as if she only has one daughter. I almost forgot about Sarah.”
“I think that’s on purpose. Sarah distanced herself from Simone after the meltdown when she lost the pageant crown. She was embarrassed. I also think it was an escape of sorts because Simone was abusive.”
“Now, wait a second,” Max cautioned. “Granted, I haven’t spent that much time around Simone, but from everything I can tell, she’s a doting mother.”
“There are different types of abuse. What I saw the day Sarah lost the pageant was definitely abuse.”
“Maybe Simone got a little … crazy … that day,” Max conceded. “She didn’t hit her or anything, though.”
“She pulled her hair. I saw it. Also, sometimes verbal abuse is worse than being smacked around,” Ivy noted. “Trust me. When Maisie and Ava went after me, I would’ve much rather taken a punch in the face than what happened.”
Max’s lips turned down. “I want to punch them, too.”
“You should probably refrain from that. You could go to jail.”
“I’ll hold your purse while you do it.”
“That’s a better plan.” Ivy patted Max’s shoulder as a form of solidarity. “I know you don’t want to hear it, but I think Simone has a few diagnosable personality disorders. Narcissism is the big one, but she’s a borderline sociopath, too. She doesn’t care about her daughters as much as she cares about the accolades they can arrange to be heaped on her.”
“But … through the pageant?”
“I’m not saying it’s rational or anything. I think somehow Simone has convinced herself that life begins and ends with this pageant. I can’t explain it, but it’s become glaringly obvious that she’s twenty slices short of a loaf.”
Max tilted his head as he considered the statement. “She is a bit manic.”
“Yeah, although she was with you when my house was vandalized.” Ivy tapped her bottom lip. “Maybe that’s where Peyton comes into play. Maybe Peyton is the one who came to the house.”
“That’s a possibility, but you’re overlooking the obvious answer,” Max countered. “Simone came to my house to make dinner. It was just the two of us, and now that I look back, I can’t help but wonder if she was purposely setting up an alibi.”
Ivy was intrigued. “Because she sent Sadie to do her dirty work?”
“Sadie wasn’t with us and Simone said she was hanging out on her own and doing homework,” Max replied. “The thing is … it’s winter break. Why would Sadie be doing homework when she doesn’t have to go back to school until Monday?”
“Not everyone has the same dim view of school that you do. Maybe she wants to get ahead.”
“From what Simone said, Sadie is planning on getting through life on her looks, not her smarts. Simone almost seemed proud of that when she said it. I should’ve realized something was off then.”
“You should’ve realized something was off the minute she smiled at you,” Ivy muttered under her breath. “That’s hardly important, though. I want to know where Sadie and Peyton are. I left Aunt Felicity and Hannah in charge of the girls. They’ll be fine. The most important thing is to find Sadie and Peyton. I don’t know that they’re both involved, but I’m going to bet Sadie at least knows what’s been going on.”
“Then let’s split up,” Max suggested. “You have your phone and we can cover more ground if we separate. It’s the middle of the day, so it’s not like either of them is going to attack. If you see them, keep your distance and call me. I’ll do the same.”
Ivy smiled, happy to be back on the same side as her brother. “That sounds like a plan.”
“Let’s do this.”
SIMONE WOULDN’T STOP twisting and shifting in the backseat of Brian’s cruiser as they headed toward Shadow Lake. The longer she remained caged, the more irrational she became.
“I’m going to sue you guys for entrapment,” she volunteered, letting loose with a low cackle as she leaned back in the seat. Her hands were cuffed behind her and she made the occasional groaning noise as she tried to free herself, but otherwise she went through stretches where she wouldn’t talk and only stared.
“Good luck with that.” Brian was blasé. “We’ll help you find a place for Sadie to stay when we get back to town. Maybe she can visit her father or something.”
The snort Simone almost choked on was derisive. “Her father won’t take her. I won’t let him. He says she’s spoiled and wants her to talk to a therapist … like I would allow that.”
The more Simone raved, the more insane Jack found her to be. Something about the way she carried herself set his teeth on edge.
“Maybe Sadie can stay with your other daughter,” Jack suggested, playing a hunch. “She’s not that far away, right? I believe her name is Sarah.”
Brian slid Jack a sidelong look, something unsaid passing between them. “I almost forgot about Sarah,” he said after a beat. “She doesn’t visit much, does she? Do you visit her?”
“Sarah is no longer a part of my family,” Simone replied. “She’s … on her own.”
Jack stilled. “You cut her out of your life because she lost the pageant?”
“She cut me out of her life because she blamed me for losing the pageant,” Simone corrected. “Oh, she said it was because I pushed her to the do the pageant and treated her unfairly, but I knew what was really under it.”
“I’m not sure you did,” Brian hedged. “From what I remember of Sarah, she was a good but troubled girl. She had a wild side and got caught at the occasional field party. She wasn’t terribly bad, though.”
“She clearly wasn’t good enough to win the pageant,” Simone argued. “Of course, the fix was in that year. My enemies made sure that Sarah couldn’t win. I won’t allow that to happen with Sadie.”
/> “Enemies, huh?” Brian wasn’t impressed. In fact, he was internally debating whether they should call a psychiatrist to chat with Simone before they questioned her. She was that far gone. “Who are these enemies?”
“It’s everyone. It’s the entire town. Ivy is the ringleader.”
Jack cast a dubious look over his shoulder. “If you think Ivy cares what you do with your time … or about that stupid pageant … you’re woefully mistaken.”
“She does care,” Simone argued. “She’s always hated me. That’s why she came after my pageant.”
“She doesn’t care about that pageant. She hates that pageant.”
“She only says things like that to throw you off track,” Simone argued. “She wants you to believe she’s above it all, but she’s still bitter because she blames me for losing the crown.”
“That’s not what she blames you for,” Jack snapped. “She blames you for giving Maisie and Ava the idea to take photos of her when she was naked. What kind of adult does that, by the way? What kind of adult encourages kids to prey on other kids?”
“I only told them to do that because I was certain they would lose if they didn’t step up their game,” Simone argued. “Ivy had no talent, but everyone thought she was pretty. She pretended she didn’t notice, but I knew she was playing a game. She was also a sentimental favorite. She could’ve won if they weren’t careful, and you don’t want someone like Ivy to win.”
Jack clutched his hands into fists on his lap, frustration warring with curiosity. “I don’t know what that means. Why don’t you want someone like Ivy to win?”
“Because she’s not a pageant person,” Simone replied, not missing a beat. “Pageant people should win pageants. Ivy didn’t want to be there. She certainly shouldn’t have won the pageant. She looked down her nose the entire time she was there. Did you know that?”
“No, but it doesn’t surprise me.”
“She didn’t want to be there and she could’ve won,” Simone continued. “That’s not how the world is supposed to work. Only people who want to be in pageants, work hard for it, should win.”
Jack shifted so he could face Brian. “Do you believe this?”
“She’s clearly off her rocker,” Brian said. “I think she might need more than a lawyer when we hit town.”
“That’s what I think, too. We should probably swing by the clinic and see if Dr. Nesbitt has any suggestions.”
“That right there is a fabulous idea.”
“There’s a reason I told Sadie to watch out for Mackenzie Sutton,” Simone offered from the back. “She’s like Ivy. She has no talent and shouldn’t be there, but she’s different, and sometimes the judges go the wrong way when they vote simply because someone is different. I refuse to let that happen to Sadie.”
“You don’t need to worry about Sadie,” Brian offered. “We’ll make sure she’s taken care of.”
“Sadie knows how to take care of herself,” Simone said. “She’s done it before. Heck, she’s doing it right now. Someone needs to take care of Mackenzie before the pageant starts. Sadie realizes that. She came up with the idea on her own. That’s Sadie’s job … and she always does a good job.”
Jack balked. “What do you mean? Is Sadie going after Mackenzie?”
Simone finally returned to reality enough to realize that she’d said too much. “I want a lawyer.”
“Yeah, well, I have a feeling you’re going to need a straightjacket,” Brian said, his gaze snagging with Jack’s. “As for you, maybe you should call Ivy and warn her to look out for Mackenzie.”
Jack dug in his pocket for his phone. “You read my mind.”
IVY WAS ABOUT TO GIVE up the search and return to the barn when she saw a hint of movement on the far side of the structure in question. Fresh snow fell throughout the night, although not enough to cause road headaches, and two sets of tracks were evident in the snow when she got to the barn door.
“Is someone behind the barn?” Ivy called out.
No answer.
“Listen, I saw someone walk behind the barn.” Ivy opted to change tactics. “If you want to practice or something, you can do it inside. I don’t want anyone catching a cold before the pageant.”
Everything on the side of the barn remained quiet.
“Fine.” Ivy heaved out a sigh and stepped in the fresh snow. “I’m coming around. If I find some sort of pervert – or teenage boy with wandering eyes, for that matter – I’m totally going to start knocking heads.”
Ivy was mildly amused with the threat when she rounded the corner, her eyes going wide when she pulled up short and found Mackenzie Sutton on her knees. The girl looked ragged, as if she’d been through some sort of terrible ordeal, and Sadie stood next to her with a wicked-looking knife in her hand.
Caught off guard, Ivy wasn’t sure what to say and her fingers faltered when the phone in her pocket started buzzing. “What’s going on?”
“I’m so glad you finally found us,” Sadie drawled. “I was starting to think you never would.”
“But … what are you doing?”
“Winning,” Sadie replied. “I’m a winner. This is how you win. Now, if you’ll have a seat next to your friend here, we’ll get this show on the road.”
Ivy wasn’t sure it could happen, but things were officially worse than she imagined they could be.
Now what?
Twenty-One
Ivy had trouble finding her voice, and when she did, she couldn’t rationalize what she was seeing.
“What are you doing?”
Sadie, her young face lit with a demented glee that made Ivy want to throw up, grinned. “I’m going to win.”
“You’re going to win what?”
“The pageant, silly.”
Ivy swallowed hard as her phone stopped buzzing and she internally debated what to do. Sadie was only five feet away, although Ivy knew she could outrun the girl if it came to it. Mackenzie didn’t have that option, though. Sadie had a firm grip on the girl’s coat and she brandished the knife as if she knew how to use it.
If Ivy were to run, she would be leaving Mackenzie in the hands of a crazy person. Ivy had no doubt Sadie was practically certifiable. That was written all over her face. Ivy couldn’t even fathom what the girl was capable of. The only thing she did know was that she couldn’t leave Mackenzie. It would surely be a death sentence to the girl if Ivy ran for help. They were in this together.
“You want to win the pageant so badly you’re willing to kill someone?” Ivy asked, hoping she sounded more curious than accusatory.
“I will win the pageant,” Sadie corrected. “It’s my … destiny.”
“Oh, give me a break.” Ivy didn’t mean to say the words out loud, but she muttered them all the same. “It’s a pageant, Sadie. Two weeks from now no one will remember who won. They won’t care who won.”
“That’s not true.” Sadie was matter-of-fact. “Everyone remembers who won. They have that plaque in the back hallway of the barn and everything. If I don’t win, things will go bad for me. If I do win, they’ll be good.”
“Who told you that?”
“My mother.” Sadie didn’t show signs that she recognized the fact that she was spouting utter nonsense. “She told me that the pageant will decide if I’m going to have a good life or bad … and I believe her.”
Ivy figured rationalizing with Sadie was a lost cause, but she needed time to come up with a plan. Max would be looking for her. He expected to meet up with her before the pageant started. If she could hold on long enough, Max would show up and together they would easily be able to disarm Sadie. Until that happened, though, it was up to Ivy to keep Mackenzie alive.
“Your mother won the pageant,” Ivy pointed out. “Her life doesn’t seem to have been a bed of roses.”
“No, but that’s because she made a bad choice and married my loser father.” Sadie sounded well-rehearsed, as if she’d recited the part about her father being a loser more than once. “She could
have had everything, but she made a mistake.”
“I see.” Ivy didn’t, but she wanted the girl to believe she did, see her as a friend rather than an enemy. “What about your sister? Is that what happened with her? She didn’t win so she was a loser.”
“She was supposed to win, but her title was stolen because of my mother’s enemies. When it didn’t happen, Sarah got mad. She was so embarrassed she stopped talking to my mother.”
“All because of your mother’s enemies, huh?”
“Yup.” Sadie bobbed her head. “My mother has a lot of enemies because she’s so popular. When you’re popular, people are jealous and the haters want to take you down.”
“That sounds like a huge pile of crap,” Mackenzie gritted out, her cheeks red as she shifted on her knees.
“It’s true.” Sadie was oblivious to the warning look Ivy shot Mackenzie. “Haters ruin everything. My mother would’ve had a perfect life it if wasn’t for the haters. You’re a hater, Ms. Morgan. Tell her.”
“I’m a hater?” Ivy knew she shouldn’t have been surprised to be lumped in with the “enemies” group but she could barely swallow her disbelief. “How am I a hater?”
“You’re jealous of Mom’s relationship with Max,” Sadie replied. “They’re going to get married and Mom is going to take over your nursery and you don’t like it.”
“How do you figure that?”
“Because, once you’re gone, someone will need to run the nursery and Max will want it to be someone he cares about.”
Sadie was clearly living in La-La Land, but Ivy had no idea how to shake the girl from her delusions. “Max doesn’t own the nursery. I do. The property is in my name. It won’t go to him if I die.”
“Who will it go to?”
“My parents.”
“Oh, well, they’ll give it to Max.” Sadie’s smile was so deranged it caused Ivy’s stomach to flip. “My mother and I have been talking and planning for weeks. Actually, she calls it dreaming. It’s planning, though. It’s going to work out. She’s going to take over the nursery. She and Max will probably have another kid because he’ll want one. Things will be perfect again once you’re gone.”
Wicked Fun: An Ivy Morgan Mystery Books 7-9 Page 57
