Dear Debbie
by Freida McFadden
Contents
Chapter 55
Overview
Cooper returns home and discovers that Debbie has saved disturbing Dear Debbie drafts advising women to kill their husbands, confirming that her behavior is more dangerous than he wanted to believe. Lexi’s fears about Zane’s accident intensify, while Izzy’s concern shows the whole family is now aware something is deeply wrong.
Using Debbie’s own Findly app, Cooper uncovers recent location history that reveals two alarming, unnamed stops. The discovery pushes Cooper into urgent action, as he leaves the girls behind to investigate a threat too terrible for him to say aloud.
Summary
Cooper races home after Lexi warns him about a strange document on Debbie’s computer. Cooper now accepts that something is seriously wrong with Debbie and fears she may be punishing people she believes have harmed the family, including possibly Cooper himself.
At home, Lexi and Izzy are waiting anxiously. Lexi says Debbie told her she had fixed Lexi’s problem after school, which makes Lexi believe Debbie caused Zane’s accident. Izzy is also worried about Debbie, though Izzy admits she is not upset that Coach Pike is in jail.
Cooper opens Debbie’s desktop computer with Lexi’s help and finds a folder titled Dear Debbie. The files contain advice-column drafts, but the answers are disturbing rather than domestic: one response tells a woman to strangle her husband with a scarf. Lexi says most of the files contain instructions for killing husbands, forcing Cooper to question whether Debbie has become dangerous toward him.
Cooper calls Debbie, but she does not answer. Cooper leaves a tense voicemail asking Debbie to call and warning her not to do anything stupid, which alarms Lexi and Izzy further. Lexi then shows Cooper that Debbie’s Findly app stores recent location history, not just live location.
Cooper reviews Debbie’s past stops and sees expected places such as the school, grocery store, Titan Fitness, Robert Pike’s house, and the Hingham Shipyard. Then Cooper notices two locations that do not fit and is visibly shaken. Cooper calls someone from his favorites, gets voicemail twice, and abruptly leaves the house without telling the girls where he is going, hoping his fear is wrong.
Who Appears
- CooperRaces home, investigates Debbie’s computer, and leaves urgently after checking her location history.
- LexiWarns Cooper, links Debbie to Zane’s accident, and shows him Findly’s location history.
- IzzyWaits anxiously with Lexi and asks whether Debbie has lost her mind.
- DebbieAbsent but central; her saved drafts and hidden movements deepen fears about her intentions.