I asked for the address, and he gave it to me.
I thanked him and left before anyone else could speak.
Twenty minutes later, I stood outside a small blue house after getting out of a taxi. I knocked on the door.
Taylor answered wearing an oversized sweatshirt, looking genuinely shocked to see me.
“Cindy?”
“I’m sorry for showing up like this, but the police and Caleb’s parents came to my house this morning looking for him.”
The second I mentioned Caleb, her expression changed.
Then I heard footsteps behind her before Caleb appeared in the hallway looking exhausted, like he hadn’t slept all night.
The moment he saw me, all the color drained from his face.
“Cindy…”
I crossed my arms tightly. “You were there the night of the fire?”
Nobody spoke for a moment.
Then Caleb stepped outside.
“Yeah,” he admitted quietly.
Hearing him say it out loud twisted my stomach.
“What happened?”
Caleb hesitated before answering.
“When I was nine, I saw Mason sneak out of our house late at night. He used to do stuff like that all the time, and I followed him on my bike because I thought it was fun.”
He looked down.
“I lost sight of him for a while because he was on his skateboard, but eventually I saw him climbing out of a window at your house. A few minutes later, I noticed smoke coming from the kitchen.”
I stared at him, unsure what to say.
“I got scared and rode home. Then the next morning, when everyone started talking about the fire and what happened to you…” He swallowed hard. “I kept thinking if I told anyone, Mason’s life would be over.”
