Page 114 of Total Exposure

“You’d already moved in the house when that happened, Ixion. Ask Augustine yourself if you don’t believe me.”

“No,” I say, shaking my head. “Fuck her. And fuck you.”

“It’s not her fault.”

“No,” I say. “It’s not. It’s my fault for lying to her about you. It’s my fault for covering your tracks. For taking your fall. You wanted us, right? Me, and you, and her. And you thought everything was gonna be great. Until you realized she was only there because of me.”

“That’s not—“

“She wanted Alexander for his stability, and she wanted me because the love we have—had—“ I correct, “—was pure. You were just part of the game, Jordan. Just another player. And it drove you crazy when she said she was going back to Alexander. So you put those cameras up in my apartment. You filmed us. And then you got caught. And instead of telling her it was you, you let me take the blame.”

“I never asked you—“

“YOU NEVER HAD TO!” I yell it so loud, my head begins to throb. “You’d have been charged with a felony. And then what, Jordan? What law degree? What career? What life would you have had?”

He just stands there, unsure if he should argue his point further. But then he gives up and shakes his head. “I only came here to beg you to go to Evangeline’s show. That’s all. I haven’t even talked to Augustine since that first day she contacted me. Evangeline asked me to talk you. She asked for your phone number, but I didn’t want to give it—“

“Without my consent,” I sneer. And then I laugh. “You know what the worst part is?” I ask him.

“I’m fucking sorry, OK?”

“That crash that killed my family? That crash that made me richer than God because I was the only one left to inherit the family money?”

“Ixion,” he whispers.

But I keep going, because there’s no stopping me now. I’ve been holding this in for years. “That crash happened before I could tell my father the truth. So my entire family—my mother, my father, my baby sister—they all died thinking I was a sick fucking voyeur. That I made a sex tape with Augustine without her consent and then sent it to Alexander to try to break him and Augustine up for good.”

“I’m sorry,” he whispers again. “I’m fuckin’ sorry.”

“I didn’t even get to go to the funeral because I was in jail.” I’m not screaming now. It hurts too much to do anything more than whisper that last part. “She only dropped the charges because she felt sorry for me.”

“Just tell me how I can fix it, Ix.”

“Fix it?” I laugh. “You can’t bring people back from the dead, Jordan. There is no do-over for death. And you know what the most ironic part about all this shit is? Alexander knew, you dumbass. He knew what we were doing, so your plan made no sense. She just… she just never loved you.”

“I know that,” he says. “I don’t know why I did it.”

“You did it because you still believe that bullshit. Total Exposure, right? That’s the little nickname you gave Evangeline’s game?” It’s such a brass-balls move. A slap in the face. All I can do is laugh. “Get the fuck out of here and don’t ever look me up again.”

Jordan lets out a long breath of air. Defeat. I think that was him admitting defeat.

Good.

He lost his fuckin’ game. Finally. He’s getting exactly what he deserves.

He turns away, his back to me, but stands there for a few seconds, just shaking his head. “You saved her,” he says.

“Yeah,” I growl. “I did. Not your stupid game. It was me who saved Evangeline. I was the one who helped her, not you.”

He glances over his shoulder at me. Eyes narrowed. Frowning. “And who the fuck… do you think… sent you to her, Ixion?”

What?

“Me,” he says. “I’m not what you think.”

He leaves my cell, crosses the small sheriff’s station, opens the door, lets the wind in, and then walks out of my life.

Gramps, AKA Jake, enters a few minutes later, stirring up the room one more time. But instead of going back to his desk, he comes into my cell and hands me…