"I know." I kept my voice low. "That's exactly why I'm going back. Right under his nose, I'm going to tear that home apart piece by piece."
Ryan stared at me, stunned.
I patted his shoulder. "Play along. Don't give anything away."
On the drive home, Derek took the wheel. My mother-in-law sat in the passenger seat.
I slumped in the back, watching them through the rearview mirror.
They exchanged a look.
My mother-in-law lowered her voice. "Are you sure she doesn't know?"
"Relax. If she knew, she would've called the cops ages ago."
Derek sneered. "She's too stupid to figure it out."
"Then the insurance…"
"We wait. Can't rush this."
He glanced at me. "She has to die on her own. No evidence."
I closed my eyes and smiled to myself.
When we got home, the familiar musty smell hit me immediately.
The bloodstains from when I'd crawled across the living room floor were still there, dried to a dark brown.
My mother-in-law clicked her tongue. "Bad luck everywhere."
She disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a bowl of pitch-black soup.
"Lexi, I stewed this tonic just for you. Drink it while it's hot."
A layer of oil floated on the surface, giving off a sour, rotten stench.