Betrayal by Gregg Olsen Page A

and Olivia had just returned from costume shopping at Spookaporium, the former mega-bookstore turned Halloween superstore across the street from the decidedly unglamorous Kitsap Mall. Both had ruled out trampy and skimpy, including a naughty nurse and a slinky mermaid number with a clamshell bra and chiffon fins.
    â€œHow is one supposed to walk in that?” Olivia had asked, laughing at the ridiculous and impractical costume.
    â€œI don’t intend to walk. I’m going to just sit on the couch with a drink and flip my tail at cute boys,” Beth had joked back, feeling happy for the first time in a long, long time.
    Olivia would never replace Christina, but living together, she provided Beth with a reminder of what it was like to have a sister.
    In the end, Olivia had chosen a simple ghost costume, complete with cutout eye holes. Beth had just stuck a pair of chopsticks in her re-dyed black hair and snapped off an arm-length Polaroid of the two of them just as Drew arrived to whisk Olivia to the party early, ruining everything.
    THE DOORBELL JANGLED BETH back to the present, and Kim Lee hurried off to answer it. A moment later, Hayley, Taylor, and Colton entered the now-exceedingly crowded bedroom. They introduced themselves, and Edward nodded. Winnie managed a smile as she studied the teens. Colton spoke up. “We’re all really sorry for your loss.”
    â€œI imagine you would be,” Olivia’s father said. “I heard you were the one who took her to the party, didn’t you?”
    The tone was a tad more than accusatory. Indeed, right then it seemed Olivia’s father had an interrogator’s spotlight on Colton and he was doing his best to sweat out the truth.
    Colton shook his head. “Actually, no,” he said. “She went to the party earlier with Drew, Brianna’s boyfriend. Brianna asked her to come early to help set up. We got to the party later.”
    â€œOh, I see,” Edward said. “You were at the location of my daughter’s murder later. All of you were there.”
    Awkwardness permeated the sad little bedroom.
    â€œYes, Mr. Grant,” Hayley finally said.
    Edward’s face reddened and the veins in his neck thickened. “You were supposed to keep her safe. Treat her like she was part of the family. That’s what the website promised, right, Winnie?”
    Winnie didn’t have a chance to respond.
    â€œWe really liked Olivia,” Taylor said, her face turning pink with anger. “We came over to tell you that what happened to Olivia was vile, worse than the worst thing that could happen, but if you think for one second that we are responsible in any way, then you are dead wrong.”
    Bad choice of words , Hayley thought, though she didn’t say so. She liked it when Taylor was provoked into standing her ground. She needed to do more of that. Pushing the father of a dead girl into a corner probably wasn’t the best practice of a needed skill, though.
    Like a bantam hen, Kim Lee, the shortest person in the room, huddled the teens together. They were good kids and there was no way, even in the depths of their grief, that the Grants should be unkind to them. Not in her house, anyway.
    â€œI don’t know what more we can tell you,” Kim added. “I’m sure the police can tell you more.”
    Winnie spoke up. “Our first stop was the constable’s office in Port Orchard.”
    â€œAnything encouraging in the investigation?” Kim asked.
    â€œNothing yet,” Winnie said, letting her words hang in the air. “Nothing we can really say. We don’t want to impede their efforts by disclosing any details of the investigation.”
    â€œOf course not,” Kim said.
    Edward scooped up the two largest suitcases. “I’d like to meet Brianna.”
    â€œI could take you to her,” Colton said.
    â€œNo need. We have a rental car with GPS,” Winnie said, picking up the rest