If you’ve ever attended one of Muriel and Donovan Pierre’s famous wedding anniversary parties, you are undoubtedly already familiar with the wealthiest family on the island of St. Virgil. Unfortunately, ever since Donovan walked into the forest and never stepped back out again, these annual parties are now strictly invite-only.

When Donovan was still with us, the Pierre family kept their doors open for all members of the community. For the past five years, however, Muriel’s social circle has only become tighter and tighter. A former celebrity athlete, and current head of Virgil Enterprises, the conglomerate that essentially owns the island, we can’t blame Muriel for wishing to keep her private life on lock.

And we’re certainly not insinuating that Muriel, and the entire Pierre family, have anything to hide. But with the string of strange murders currently plaguing the island, you’ll have to excuse us if we’re feeling a bit paranoid these days.

Perhaps if we simply knew the answers to a few questions, we would feel more secure in what the Pierre family has been getting up to behind closed doors. Questions such as. . .

What’s Going on with the Expansion of Virgil Enterprises?

On the surface, the story of Muriel’s rise from prodigious tennis star to owner of Virgil Enterprises is an inspiration. Following the tragic loss of her husband five years ago, no one would have faulted Muriel for selling off his company. Instead, she took control of the business, not only holding it together but exceeding expectations by leading it to new heights. After all, Muriel has never been the type of person to easily let go of what they want.

Yet, we can’t help but wonder if VE’s meteoric rise could have been achieved without the bulldozing of St. Virgil’s historical landmarks to make way for the company’s new developments. Despite the protests and petitions, construction continued anyway. And the residents of St. Virgil had no choice but to accept it. These days, they never do.

What Happened to Gabriel?

We know that Muriel’s children, Janice and Gabriel have both recently left the island to attend university abroad. We also know that they have both returned to St. Virgil for some downtime between semesters.

After two years away, Janice is the same—let’s just say—image-conscious social butterfly person that she has always been. Gabriel, on the other hand, seems to have changed dramatically during his 10 months at university. He has become more sullen, more withdrawn, and perhaps even a bit haunted. All that we can confirm is that, for whatever reason, he has chosen not to stay at Muriel’s house during his school break.

Is Gabriel’s decision to rent a tiny apartment on the other side of town have anything to do with possible familial strife between mother and son? Or was Gabriel motivated to stay away from the house for another reason? Speaking of which . . .

Who exactly is the young woman staying at the Pierre house?

Rumor has it that Muriel has recently welcomed a troubled young woman into her abode. Specifically, Selina DaSilva, the daughter of the couple who suffered a brutal attack a couple of years back in their own home.

Selina’s father was killed, and her mother currently lies in a coma, and the attackers were never found. Allegedly, Muriel was very close friends with Selina’s mother, so we’re not surprised that Muriel would offer the poor young woman somewhere to stay while she processes her trauma.

But, as much as we hate to pry into such a sensitive matter, we’d be lying if we said we weren’t curious to discover what exactly happened to the DaSilva family. Especially when we consider the fact that Selina’s mother was the most renowned psychic on the island.

What are Muriel’s connections to the supernatural?

Could Muriel’s close ties with Selina’s mother mean that Muriel herself has some latent connection to the supernatural? Selina herself seems to believe that all the talk of her mother’s mystical gifts is nothing more than superstitions.

But if Muriel has been encouraging Selina to study and embrace the supernatural, perhaps we would all benefit from keeping an open mind on these matters.

Muriel’s wealth and influence already supply her with great power over the island of St. Virgil. We wonder how the island’s residents feel knowing that Muriel has a potential, albeit reluctant, witch living under her roof. As much as we want to give Muriel the benefit of the doubt, we also can’t ignore the rumors swirling around St. Virgil.

And with a string of mysterious murders currently plaguing the island, excuse us if we’ve been feeling a bit paranoid lately.

We want to give Muriel the benefit of the doubt. In the eyes of her community, her money keeps her insulated. But many people on the island are still a bit old-fashioned. They don’t tend to appreciate that a working widow who had once married a foreigner could be so successful.

As a single woman in charge of such a huge company, Muriel consistently faces an uphill battle to be taken seriously and considered an equal among similarly powerful men.

All of this brings us to our final and perhaps most important question. A question that only Muriel herself can answer:

Will she ever stop feeling like an outsider?

Learn the answers for yourself when Rick Riordan Presents: It Waits in the Forest by Sarah Dass hits shelves on 5/14.