“But not Russell?” I asked, though I knew her answer might not have had anything to do with Russell. Having lost her own mother, it made sense that Mackenzie would focus on Hayley’s mother. But I was trying to find a way to pry her open.
Mackenzie shook her head. “No, no, Russell’s cool. Way cooler than my dad. I mean, he lets us use his house in the hills, his town car, stuff like that. But he’s not around as much as Raynie, you know?”
I did know. Hayley had the cool dad. That he was also a world-famous director was not as important as the fact that he facilitated their lifestyle and partying. I wondered if it had occurred to her yet that Russell’s “coolness” might’ve been what put Hayley in harm’s way. Probably not. No teenager believes there’s such a thing as too much freedom.
The sun had moved since we’d sat down and now threatened to fry the left side of my face. I shifted to the right to get under the shade of a large jacaranda and pondered my next move. I wanted it to be a cold shower. I could feel the sweat beading up under my blouse and my hair sticking to the back of my neck. “What about Hayley’s boyfriend? Could she be with him? Or maybe he knows where she is?”
Her face darkened. “I don’t know if she’s with him, but if she isn’t, he’d probably know where she is. Hayley tells him everything.”
Was that a note of jealousy? “They’re pretty close, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“How long have they been together?”
“Not that long. About two, three months, something like that. At first they were just friends, but then it was like all of a sudden they were joined at the hip. I never got to see her without him.”
Definitely jealousy. “You know where he lives?”
Mackenzie shook her head.
“Do you have his cell?”
“Yeah.” Mackenzie had a guilty look as she pulled out her cell phone and began to scroll. I had a feeling I knew why.
“Do Hayley’s parents know about this guy?”
Mackenzie shook her head. “No one knows about him. Except me and a few of the girls we hang with.” She handed her phone to me.
I looked at the entry. “Brian Shandling.” I handed the phone to Bailey so she could get the information. “I’m guessing you knew him better than the others, am I right?”
“Probably.”
“Because you were closer to Hayley than anyone else.”
Mackenzie nodded. “Pretty much.”
“How old is Brian?”
“Eighteen? Maybe nineteen. Yeah, I think he’s nineteen.”
“You have a picture of him?” I gestured to her cell phone.
Mackenzie picked up her phone and accessed her photos. After a few seconds, she held the phone out. “That’s him.”
