Chapter 19 – We Got Here

“We knew we wanted to end the book with Alex Murdaugh officially being charged: it’s what, to us, represented the culmination of Mandy’s work, more than anything that might happen in the trial. The fact that the news came down while Mandy and her team were in Jamaica only made the story even more poignant. It harkened back to the Puerto Rico chapter, but this time, the breaking news pointed toward justice rather than chaos and violence. I loved picturing Liz and Mandy out by the pool back in HH when it finally dawned on them how far they had come. And the final scene at Stephen Smith’s grave was such an incredible capstone to the journey of the book. I cried when I was writing the final lines, and I still sometimes cry when I reread them. Collaborating with Mandy on this book and getting to know the stories of some of the amazing people in Hampton County like Sandy Smith and Justin Bamberg and Pamla Pinckney has been a true privilege. I’m so excited for readers to experience these stories, and maybe one day we’ll be celebrating a big break in Stephen’s case.”

– Carolyn Murnick