Every library usually looks the same. There are rows and rows of books each divided up into sections to make it easier for readers.

This however was not the Resits library.

It held over 15 000 cases.

Instead of bookcases, it had storage shelves holding each case box. There was a computer room and other necessary supplies at the back.

This was a place that was especially important to me when Mr Hawthorne decided I could be useful to him. He used cold cases to test my skills before moving me onto real targets. The only one I never truly solved was the disappearance of his son, Toby Hawthorne. He has truly disappeared.

I couldn't go back to the Hawthorne house just yet.

There was one file I needed to collect.

Looking through the rows of cases I found the one I needed. The box was lodged in the middle of the row. Also too high for me to reach. There was only–

My thoughts were cut off by my phone going off.

Ethan. It's always Ethan.

"You should be asleep," I say immediately after I pick up.

I can tell he is smiling on the other end, "You should be asleep."

"I'm 18 I can do whatever I wish."

He scoffs, "Being of age to vote doesn't make you mature enough to function."

"What do you want Ethan?" I say ignoring his bickering.

"Where are you?" His voice goes soft, sounding almost worried.

"The library I won. I texted you about it a few hours ago."

He goes silent for a second, "What happened with the clue and stuff?"

I let out a long exhale. It was strange how much I wanted to talk about this. Complain about everything tonight. Usually, I would just talk to Jameson but I dont think we will be talking for a while.

"I'll be home in 30 minutes. Will you still be awake?" I ask.

"Well, it's 3:00 in the morning. You know how much I love the witching hour."

My lips slip into a smile, "I will tell you everything then. Bye, Ethan."

"Bye Anna."

Now all I had to do was somehow get this box and drive home. Shouldn't be too hard.

—----------------------------

The drive home was just as quiet. So were the suburban streets I drove through. Not a single peep.

As I pulled up to the house the was a dark figure at the steps. It appeared to be around 6 feet and wearing pyjamas.

Ethan was waiting for me.

As I parked the car on the street he walked up to my window.

"You really shouldn't be driving late at night missy," The comment was meant as a joke but I saw a look of pure terror. He was holding his phone in his left hand which also meant he was probably tracking my location all the way home.

I force a calm smile, "It's all okay, there was barely anyone on the roads Eth."

I slide past him and reach for the case box and my bag. Once I face him again the worry has slightly left and displayed on his face is a look of pure happiness. All my brother really needs in his life is people who he cares about around him. That was all he ever needed. I really should have been here more often.

His hands slip onto my bag, taking it for me, "Do I get to know all of the Hawthorne secrets now?"

"Well, we have to make it interesting."

He tilts his head, "What are you thinking?"

—----------------------------------

My bedroom is the best place for sneaking out. I am almost certain that is why my stepdad gave me the room. He never minded me breaking the rules because he knew I would never do anything dangerous or something that could really impact me. But Ethan was different. Derrick was always terrified he would end up dead in a ditch. I think it's why I get so nervous about him sometimes. Ethan doesn't always notice things that he should. He usually just relies on the people around him.

When I was younger, when I didn't basically live at the Hwthrone househouse, I would climb out my window up onto the roof. The perfect view of every house in the neighbourhood.

"Okay, tell me why have you run away to a mystery library that you were gifted when a guy died," Ethan says balancing himself to sit next to me.

I roll my eyes before looking towards him, "I didn't run away. I just left."

A smile fell on his lips, "Whatever, you left when things would have been getting interesting. So who or what set you off? Oh was it Avery? Something is interesting about her."

My brother was actually interested in the puzzle. He also knew something about Avery or thought he knew something at least.

"What do you know?" I ask twisting my body around to face him fully.

He looks confused, but it seems as if he is just thinking, "How do you spell her name?"

The memory hit me like a wave.

Avery Kylie Grambs

A very risky gamble

I hadn't thought about it since the will reading. I never mentioned it to anyone. No one else put the dots together.

My brother figured out the answer before all the Hawthornes.

"You're right," I pull him into a hug.

"Ow, stop pulling my hair. Why do you always have to be so annoying?" he groans, pushing me off him.

I yank a bunch on the front of the top of his head, "You're smarter than you act little kid."

"Owwah, seriously stop," he shields his hair with his hands trying to block me. He then sits up straight trying to replay what I just said, "Wait I was right. Her name is an anagram? God her parents are weird."

"Yes, they were. Congrats on beating the Hawthorne's in a puzzle you weren't even playing."

A wicked smile spreads across his face, "You know I also beat you. I am the ultimate winner."

I let out a laugh, "I actually got it as soon as her name was called. So you go second place. Sorry buddy."

Ethan nods unconvincingly, "Sure I am sure you just happened to recognise the pattern without knowing the spelling or even knowing a reason why she was there," He pats my shoulder, "You know it is okay the lose something. You can't always be the best."

Push off his hand and twist back around, "I did notice it."

I feel his smile growing, "I'm sure you did Anna. You are really, really smart."

"Fine, you win just stop talking to me with that tone it's annoying," I spinn sound to him standing up and cheering.

"I am the greatest mystery solver the world has seen," He plops back down, "Dam, I am totally underestimated."

Ethan looks full of pure joy. He always liked to prove people wrong.

I smile back at him, "You are incredibly smart and talented. I'm glad you know it."

His face flashes a sad look. It's barely even there. His smile is still displayed but I see it in his eyes and the the way he bites the inside of his mouth.

"Ethan, what's wrong?"

I feel the energy shift. He looks as if he is trying to make an effort to put on an even happier face, "Nothing."

"Please tell me," It's about me. Something about leaving him alone. I know it, "I'm here and I want to help."

His eyes drop to his feet, "Are you going to go back and tell everyone the answer now?"

"No," I reply bluntly.

He looks up at me. The sadness is there but with added confusion, "You should. Don't just stay here for me."

I roll my eyes and stare at him giving him a look, "You don't even know why I left."

"So, you should solve it."

My head tips back slowly changing mylinen of sight to the pitch black sky, "Her birthday is the 18th of October," I look back towards him, "Avery's birthday is the 18th of October."

He looks stunned and even more interested, "Avery was born on the 18th of October."

"Yep."

"Is she cursed," He asks, "Because if your name is an anagram and you're born on the scariest day of the year you must be cursed?"

A small laugh slips out from my lips, "Probably. That was the day Emily died remember."

He nods slowly, his brain going through any bad thing that has happened on that day.

Ehtan knows most of it. He doesn't really know what happened but he knows the basics. He was too little to understand what I went through.

"Well, anyway the number that we found was Avery's birthday."

His mouth drops, "No way. Their grandfather actually did that."

I nod continuing the story, "Jameson stormed off basically going off the rails, Gryaosn looked as if he was going to crack in half, and Avery was just very confused."

"Wait," he stares at me with a worrisome look, "What did you do?"

I pause, "I left."

His face freezes trying to process the information, "Your best friend went off the rails and another close person looked like he was going to break so you left."

I nodded once.

"Anna," his face turns serious with little lines of worry and hurt, "I mean this with love. You need serious help."

"I know."

—------------------------------

Avery's POV

Grayson was harder to find. Eventually, I tried the kitchen and found Nash

Instead.

"Have you seen Grayson?" I asked him.

Nash's expression was guarded. "I don't think he wants to see you, kid."

The night before, Grayson hadn't blamed me. He hadn't lashed out. But after he'd told me about Emily, he'd walked away.

He'd left me alone.

"I need to see him," I said.

"Give it some time," Nash advised. "Sometimes, you gotta excise a wound before it can heal."

"What about Annabelle? Where did she go?" I ask feeling stupid. She has shown me absolutely nothing but last night she clearly knew something. Or she just knew where everyone else was.

"Last time things went bad Anna was gone for a lot longer than a night," I could hear the warning in his voice.

"Where is she?" I asked again hopefully.

"She won't help you, kid. It's best to leave her alone for a while."

—----------------------------------

(Skip to right before they solve the final mystery)

"He wanted to make damn sure," Jameson said, "that I never forgot."

"No," Xander blurted out. The others turned to look at him. "That's not what this is," he swore. "He wasn't making a point. He wanted us together. Here."

Nash put a hand on Xander's shoulder. "The old man could be a real bastard, Xan."

"That's not what this is," Xander said again, his voice more intense than I'd ever heard it—like he wasn't speculating. Like he knew.

Grayson, who hadn't said a word since Jameson's confession, spoke up now.

"What precisely are you saying, Alexander?"

"The two of you were walking around like ghosts. You were a robot, Gray." Xander was speaking quickly now—almost too quickly for the rest of us to follow. "Jamie was a ticking time bomb. You hated each other."

"We hated ourselves more," Grayson said, his voice like sandpaper.

"The old man knew he was sick," Xander admitted. "He told me, right before he died. He asked me to do something for him."

Nash's eyes narrowed. "And what was that?"

Xander didn't answer. Grayson's eyes narrowed. "You had to make sure we all played."

"It was my job to make sure you saw this to the end." Xander looked from Grayson to Jameson. "Both of you. If either of you stopped playing, it was my job to draw you back."

"You knew?" I said. "All this time, you knew where the clues led?"

Xander was the one who'd helped me find the tunnel. He was the one who'd solved the Black Wood. Even back at the very beginning...

He told me that his grandfather didn't have a middle name.

"You helped me," I said. He'd manipulated me. Moved me around, like a lure.

"I told you that I am a living, breathing Rube Goldberg machine." Xander looked down. "I warned you. Kind of." I thought of the moment he'd taken me to see the machine he'd built. I'd asked him what it had to do with Thea, and his response had been Who said this had anything to do with Thea?

I stared at Xander—the youngest, tallest, and arguably most brilliant Hawthorne. Where you go, he'd told me back at the gala, they'll follow. All this time, I'd thought that Jameson was the one who was using me. I'd thought that he'd kept me close for a reason.

It had never once occurred to me that Xander had his reasons, too.

"Do you know why your grandfather chose me?" I demanded. "Have you known the answer all this time?"

Xander held his hands up in front of his body like he thought I might throttle him. "I only know what he wanted me to know. I have no idea what's on the other side of that door. I was only supposed to get Jamie, Gray and Anna here. Together."

I watched as everyone's eyes wandered to the exit. It felt as though Annabelle would now just appear out of thin air.

Nothing.

"She's not coming. Anna won't come back," Jameson's eyes never left the exit. He wanted her to come back.

I turned back to Xander who looked very unsure, "She never responded. I even called Ethan who just said she was unavailable. I think I know what she is doing."

"Where is she?" Grayson's glare was less cold.

"I have no clue."

Jameson looked even angrier for a second, "Anna left."

Grayson continued, "She went to Ethan."

"You both should find her, " Xander said almost too quickly. Was this another thing he thought would happen?

"Or not."

It was a girl's voice.

Standing at the end of the tunnel was Annabelle.