Abby
OMG, Dani, have you heard the news???
Abby
Claire Winston is back!
Dani
Is this some sort of sick joke?
Dani
Because if it is, it’s NOT FUNNY.
Abby
Everyone is talking about it.
Abby
Apparently she came home last night.
Abby
Can you imagine what that must have been like for her parents?
Abby
6 months ago, their teenage daughter was kidnapped…
Abby
And then one day, she just walks through the front door.
Abby
Maybe Jessica Simmons will come home too!
Abby
I mean, the cops think the same person kidnapped both of them, right?
Abby
Since they went missing only a few days apart.
Abby
Maybe the Simmons’ will get a miracle too!
Abby
Dani, are you there?
Abby
I mean, let’s be completely honest…
Abby
We all thought Claire was dead, right?
Abby
What? You know it’s true!
Abby
They say if someone is gone for more than 48 hours…
Abby
They’re most likely dead.
Abby
And Claire was kidnapped 6 MONTHS AGO.
Abby
I know you’re president of that Find Newton’s Missing Girls club…
Abby
But you can’t tell me it never crossed your mind.
Dani
But I tried not to lose hope…
Dani
And stayed focused on just finding the girls.
Abby
Well, Claire and Jessica are lucky to have someone like you.
Abby
…You were really close with Claire, right?
Abby
You were with her the day she went missing.
Abby
So, are you going to call her?
Abby
I bet she’d love to see you.
Abby
Maybe we could go together and drop off a welcome back gift?
Dani
I don’t want to turn her life into a spectacle.
Dani
Claire’s been through a lot…
Dani
What she needs right now is her family.
Dani
The last thing she needs is to be bombarded by the whole town.
Abby
You’re right. I’m just being selfish…
Abby
Because I really just want to find out if the rumors are true.
Abby
Yeah, about where she was.
Abby
According to Claire’s cousin, Claire said…
Abby
That she was kidnapped and taken to Colombia!
Abby
Yeah, she said she was forced to sell drugs for this big-time drug lord.
Dani
How did she even get to Colombia?!
Abby
Claire said she was riding her bike with you that day 6 months ago…
Abby
She heard a car pull up behind her.
Abby
When she turned to see who it was…
Abby
Something hit her in the back of the head.
Abby
And then she woke up in Colombia.
Abby
Yeah, it must have been horrible.
Abby
The kidnappers threatened to kill her family if she didn’t sell drugs for them.
Dani
But how did she get back?
Abby
Apparently she hid in some shipping container headed for America.
Abby
And then hitchhiked home.
Dani
Wow! That’s unbelievable.
Abby
So do you think she’s going to be the same?
Abby
I mean, something like that has got to change a person, right?
Dani
Listen, Abby, thanks for letting me know about all of this…
Dani
But I really can’t talk right now.
Dani
I need some time to process everything…
Abby
I’m here if you need me 😘
Dani throws her phone on the bed, then paces her room.
She needs to do something.
Dani pulls up to Claire’s house.
The driveway and street are packed with cars.
News crews and bystanders are camped outside…
Hoping to catch a glimpse of Claire.
Dani gets out of the car and crosses to the front door.
She wipes a sweaty palm on her pants…
There are footsteps inside the house…
And then the door swings open.
Claire’s mom relaxes into a smile when she sees Dani.
Mrs. Winston
It’s so nice to see you.
Dani
I just came to drop off these cupcakes.
Dani
I know Claire used to like them…
Mrs. Winston
That’s so thoughtful.
Mrs. Winston
I’ll let Claire know you came by.
Dani
I’d really love to see her.
There’s a commotion behind Mrs. Winston, and suddenly…
Mrs. Winston
Claire, honey, get back from the door.
Mrs. Winston
Those journalists will see you.
Claire
Mom, I need a few minutes with Dani.
Mrs. Winston
I don’t think that’s a good idea, sweetie.
Claire
It’s been great having time alone with you guys…
Claire
But I’ve really missed my friends.
Claire
Please, Mom. I need this.
After a long pause, Mrs. Winston sighs…
Then opens the door wider.
It’s filled to the brim with balloons and baked goods.
Claire and Dani go upstairs to Claire’s bedroom.
As soon as Claire closes the door, Dani drops her smile.
Dani
What are you doing back here?
Claire
It’s nice to see you too.
Dani
You know what our deal was.
Dani
I say that I saw you get kidnapped…
Dani
And you disappear forever.
Claire
Maybe I don’t want to follow your stupid plan.
Dani
Except you don’t have a choice.
Dani
You killed Jessica Simmons.
Dani
You don’t want me to tell everyone, do you?
Claire
Shhh! My mom is going to hear you!
Claire
And don’t act like I killed Jessica on purpose.
Claire
It was an ACCIDENT.
Claire
YOU were the one who lured her to that cabin in the woods…
Claire
YOU were the one who wanted to confront her for dating your ex…
Claire
YOU were the one who insisted we have the gun to “scare her.”
Claire
Was that your plan all along, Dani?
Dani
What’s that supposed to mean?
Claire
You knew Jessica had an explosive temper…
Claire
Did you know it would turn into a fight?
Claire
Is that why you had the gun?
Claire
So that Jessica would die?
Dani
You have got to be kidding me.
Dani
I didn’t want any of this to happen!
Dani
And you can stop the innocent act.
Dani
You pulled the trigger.
Claire
Well, it was YOUR idea to stage it.
Claire
To make it look like Jessica and I had been kidnapped…
Claire
Like there was some freak on the loose kidnapping girls.
Dani
I did that to help YOU!
Dani
You were panicking about your life being over.
Dani
I stuck my neck out for you.
Dani
And now you’re putting us both in danger by coming back.
Dani
Everyone’s going to start questioning things, all over again.
Claire
Everyone is totally buying this Colombia story.
Dani
But what are you going to do when your details don’t line up?
Dani
You’re going to get something wrong, Claire…
Dani
And then it’s all going to go south.
Dani
And then people will start questioning Jessica’s disappearance too.
Claire
Well I’m sorry I screwed EVERYTHING up by coming back.
Claire
But I missed my family, Dani.
Dani
Well, you should have thought about that before you agreed to this plan!
Dani turns on her heel and leaves…
Careful to smile at Mrs. Winston on the way out.
Abby
OMG, Dani, have you heard the news?!
Dani
What? Has there been a break in Claire’s case?
Dani
But I just saw her yesterday.
Abby
Yeah, well she had an anaphylactic reaction.
Abby
Apparently she was deathly allergic to pine nuts.
Abby
There were so many baked goods in the house from family and friends…
Abby
Someone must have used pine nuts without knowing about her allergy.
Abby
Isn’t that the saddest thing you’ve ever heard?
Abby
She survived 6 months of horror…
Abby
Only to die of an allergic reaction!
Dani
Oh God. I can’t breathe.
Abby
I’m here if you need me.
Dani puts her phone on the bed…
And then calmly opens her laptop.
She brings up the computer’s search history.
The last dozen hits are cupcake recipes.
She smiles at the most recent hit.
Blending pine nuts into her cupcakes really had been an ingenious move.
She presses “Clear History,” then breathes a sigh of relief.
