Page 45 of Jonny’s Redemption

“The next morning Daddy came to get me. I waited while the cops reamed his ass. By the time I got into the truck, he was madder than a hornet. When we got home, he belted my ass for being dumb enough to get caught. Told me it was my fault the cops got in his face. I had to sleep on my side for a week because my backside hurt so bad.”

“What the hell?” Evie leaned forward and slapped her palm on my desk and frowned. “I’m so spitting mad right now I don’t know what to say. I don’t know if I’m so grateful you finally opened up I want to drop to my knees in thanks—which would be hard with my ginormous belly—or if I want to sic Chasin on your asshole of a father. I’ve waited years for you to talk to me. Years, Roberta Layne. You’re the best friend I’ve ever had and it kills me I haven’t been that to you.”

“I’m sorry, Evie. I…I don’t have an excuse. It was a shitty thing for me to do and I understand that now.”

Her frown deepened and my heart broke.

“He hit you,” she whispered. “That bastard hit you, Bobby.”

He did. He hit me so often I couldn’t begin to remember all the times.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t you apologize.” She shot to her feet and I followed.

“Calm down, Evie. The baby.”

“He hit you,” she screeched. “Goddammit, Bobby.”

With that, she turned and left my office.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

I snagged my phone off my desk and did the only thing I could do. I called Chasin.

“Yo, Bobby. What’s up?”

He sounded chipper, which sucked because I had to kill his good mood.

“Listen, Chasin, I hate to bother you but I think you need to come home.”

“Where’s Evie?”

God, he loved my friend.

“I reckon she’s on her way back to the house. I told her something about my childhood. It wasn’t good and she took it harder than I thought she would. She’s pissed at me and left. I think she needs you.”

I heard Chasin’s ragged exhale, then he asked, “How bad?”

Shit.

I drew up all the courage I had and remembered this was Chasin. He was not only Evie’s soon-to-be husband, he was my friend.

“I told her about a time my daddy gave me a belting.”

“Son of a bitch,” he snarled and my heart sank.

Maybe this sharing stuff wasn’t a good idea especially while Evie was pregnant, planning a wedding, and getting ready for a concert. She didn’t need me unloading my shedload of crap on her. Later I could find a way to gently explain my childhood had sucked and leave it at that. I’d been selfish in my newfound knowledge of what true friendship was.

“If that piece of shit wasn’t already rotting in his miserable life, I’d strangle the motherfucker.”

All the oxygen was leaving my lungs as I wheezed, “What?”

Chasin softened his tone but that didn’t mean it softened the blow when he told me, “Evie doesn’t know, but you were part of our original investigation. We had to clear you so we could focus on finding her stalker. I did it personally, no one else knows what I found. But even if they did, none of them would think less of you.”

Of course, Gemini Group would’ve investigated me. I was closest to Evie. I was the only one who had access to every part of her life. I didn’t know why I had never thought about it. My juvenile record being sealed wouldn’t stop Chasin from finding the records.

He knew.