AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So you do think he was involved now?”
She shrugged. “I think it’s fishy that he’s been out of touch since I left the hospital, and then pops up here. And I think he’s lying.”
“About Amanda?”
“About Kim,” she said, wrapping her arms around herself like she was cold, as Harrison came back through with Savannah’s medical bag. “He’s talked to Kim. Flirted with her. I tried to set them up on a date, but the timing didn’t work out, and then it would’ve been long distance too.”
“Like a long-distance boyfriend?” I asked, and Monica immediately picked up on my allusion to Asher being Kim’s mystery boyfriend.
She shook her head. “Honestly? I don’t know anymore. Not at this point. I wanted to think that one of them would have told me there was something going on, but he and Amanda were keeping secrets too.”
“Asher is the common denominator. Who knows what he was telling Kim?Hecould be the reason she turned on you. Hell, who knows what lies he was feeding Amanda? Maybe sheisalive, and is just avoiding you because of something he said?”
Something flashed across Monica’s face, but she cleared her expression so fast I got the impression she didn’t intend to tell me. But at this point, it was time out for secrets.
“Monica, come on,” I urged. “You know something, don’t you? Tell me.”
She huffed. “It’s not… It’s not likethat, it’s just… when I talked to Amanda’s aunt, I got the impression that Amanda thought there might be something going on between me and Asher. But I havenoidea why she would think that.”
“Because you have no idea what he was really telling her.”
“You’re right,” Monica said, looking defeated. “And Amanda was always sort of troubled… her aunt was the only real family she had, so she really clung to me, and to Asher. She hasn’t talked to me, hasn’t talked to her aunt, so that leaves Asher. And… I feel like he has to know more than he’s saying.”
“Okay then so let’s make his ass say it.” I motioned for her to follow me back to the kitchen, where we found Savannah wearing some type of magnifying glasses while she reattached Asher’s pinky finger on a makeshift surgical table, while he was still bound. “He awake?” I asked, and Harrison was the one to answer, as Savi kept working.
“Yeah, but loopy. She gave him a sedative, and a local anesthetic.
I nodded. “Cool. That means he can still answer questions. Monica… come on.”
Her eyes went wide at my mention of her. “Me? I don’t—”
“He’s most likely to respond to you, and I think you know the right questions to ask. You know details, history, that I don’t. I know this is something you can do.”
She didn’t appear to be thrilled about it, but she stepped forward anyway, taking the hand I offered to lead her into a chair in front of Asher. As soon as she was seated, he opened his eyes, blinking until he focused on her.
“Monica…” he groaned, and she cringed a little before she responded.
“I’m here, Asher. But I… I have some questions, okay? You have to answer them before these people will be willing to let you go. Okay? Ash… I need you to tell me what was going on with you and Amanda, before she left? I’m not blaming you, okay? I just want to know what happened to my friend.”
He let out what sounded like a cough, but quickly devolved into a weak laugh. “She… she wasn’t your friend,” he said, his words slurring as a result of the sedative. “She h-hatedyou. Thought you were everything wrong with her life. No-not… not your friend.”
“Hatedme?” Monica asked, incredulous. “Ash, that’s absurd. What would you think that?”
“You were—… weren’t supposed to be there. Be here. She hated you because she hated you. Why don’t you unna-un-understand?”
“Because you’re not making sense!” Monica snapped, clearly getting annoyed. “First Sheila, and now you. Stop talking in riddles!”
Asher’s head rolled back. “You talked to Sh… Sheila? She knows. She knows everything. Everything. She kept Amanda.”
“This is…” Monica sighed. “This is ridiculous. Can you… could you give him something to make him more lucid?” she asked Savannah, you shook her head, not taking her eyes off her work.
“No. I need him to be still.”
Frustrated, Monica looked at me, shaking her head. “This is useless.”
“Ask him about Kim.”
“But he’s—”
