The Lake of Lost Girls

In the present day, Cara races into her home after seeing a news broadcast, frantically searching Jess’s room for her daughter’s missing blue-and-green plaid blanket. When Lindsey tries to calm her, Cara breaks down, fearing that if the blanket found with Tammy’s remains belongs to Jess, then “she’s down there too” (222). As they meticulously search the closet, Cara shares the blanket’s significance: Her mother, who was terminally ill, knitted it for Cara’s unborn child.

Cara and Lindsey visit Lieutenant Higgins at the police station. The detective shows them photographs from the original investigation, including one showing Jess’s blanket in her dorm room. Higgins also inquires about a silver Tiffany ring visible on Jess’s finger in the photos. Cara confirms that Ben gave it to Jess for her 16th birthday, with her initials engraved inside. The lieutenant then reveals that they found this ring on Meghan’s remains in Doll’s Eye Lake. During the interview, Cara also confesses her difficult relationship with Jess, revealing that Ben and Jess were “thick as thieves” (226), while she felt excluded. She admits that she had Lindsey hoping for “someone to love [her] more than anyone” (226). Disturbed by these revelations, Lindsey examines the case files at home and discovers that