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“Anonymous tip?” I ask.
His smile is roguish, and he kisses my forehead again. “Come on. Let’s get you home and get you cleaned up. You’ve had a long night.”
I let him lead me through the park and toward his car. My head and body ache and as we walk, a thousand questions race through my mind. But all I know in that moment is that Lucas is going away forever. And nothing else really seems to matter.
14
Silas
Two weeks later
“So, I spoke with the DA again today,” I start.
Aria’s shoulders immediately tense and a wary expression that borders on fearful crosses her face. She licks her lips and sits up a little straighter. Her eyes dart left and right, taking in the restaurant around us and I see her bottom lip quiver.
“Is that why we’re having dinner here tonight?” she asks. “Are you trying to soften the blow or something?”
I laugh and feel the first bit of good humor I’ve had all night. Truthfully, I’ve been incredibly tense and apprehensive all evening. But Aria, as she always does, makes me smile and lightens not just the mood but my heart. Her ability to put me at ease is like her superpower. And most of the time, it seems like she doesn’t even have to try.
“No, I’m not trying to soften anything,” I tell her. “Given your cooperation to this point, as well as your circumstances, the DA has agreed to drop the charges pending against you.”
The smile she gives me is brighter than the sun and fills me with a joy I’ve never known in my entire life. Aria clasps her hands in front of her heart and her beautiful green eyes shimmer with tears of happiness and probably a fair bit of relief.
“Really?” she gasps. “I’m not going to jail?”
“No. You’re not going anywhere. Not as long as I have breath in my lungs,” I tell her with a shake of my head. “But it is conditional.”
Though still smiling, that glint of wariness returns to her face. She swallows and clasps her own hands so hard, her knuckles are white and stretched tight.
“And what is the condition?” she asks.
“You’re going to need to testify against Lucas.”
She nods and looks down, blowing out a long breath. I figure she expected it. But even though he’s locked up and is facing life in prison, he still scares her. Given what happened, I can’t say I blame her. Lucas is an animal, and he needs to be put down. For good. But since that’s frowned upon, I’ll settle for having him locked in a box without a key for the rest of his miserable, pathetic life.
“Tell me something,” she starts. “I’ve been wanting to ask, but I didn’t know if I should.”
“Ask. I’ve got no secrets from you, Aria.”
She purses her lips and takes a moment to gather herself. When she’s ready, she raises her gaze to mine again.
“The bricks of heroin they found in Lucas’ car…did you have anything to do with that?”
A wry smile twists his lips. “Do you really want me to answer that?”
Aria looks at me for a long moment as if trying to answer that question in her own mind. She finally shakes her head and smiles.
“You know what? There are some things in this world I just don’t need to know,” she says. “Some dogs are better left lying.”
Of course, I framed Lucas. The only other way to get him out of our world for good was going to be to kill him. And not even I was willing to cross that line. But Aria’s instincts are sharp and as usual, are right. Lucas is shouting it out loud to anybody who will listen but nobody believes him, of course. He’s a two-time loser with a rap sheet as long as my arm. He has no credibility. And though he’s pointing the finger at me for setting him up, he has no proof I did anything wrong. And so long as Tulsa’s word is good, Lucas never will.
After they took him into custody, I got Aria out of that shithole she was living in and moved her into my place. It was supposed to be temporary—just until Lucas’ case was disposed of. I told her it was for her safety, just in case Lucas has friends out there. But it’s been nice coming home to her every night. She’s the lone bright spot in my recently dismal existence at my firm, so being able to come home and see her smiling face and feel her warm body against mine is what’s kept me getting out of bed in the morning.
“I’ll do it,” she says. “I’ll testify.”
I nod. “I know you will. You’re tough, Aria. Tougher than you think,” I tell her. “And once we get through this trial, we can close this chapter and start a new one.”
She looks closely at me, and I lower my gaze, not wanting her to see into my depths right now. Not until I’ve settled the turmoil raging inside of me.
