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“Of course it’s not. He has a chance to prove me wrong, and I’m willing to listen. I’ll keep the first one simple. Have you ever been arrested?” I asked, knowing the answer.
“I have,” he said, relaxing into his own response.
“How many times?”
“Enough times.”
“Don’t be vague. That doesn’t benefit Gemma. I’m asking specifics, and I need to know if you can be honest.” I maintained, cornering him to be truthful. I needed any and every advantage I could get.
“I can be honest.”
“You can alsonotbe, then? Does that pertain to right now?”
“Everyone can be dishonest, but dishonesty isn’t always wrong. Have you ever lied to protect someone?”
Relevance?
His question couldn’t have been more eerily accurate to my life, but also, provided me with an opportunity to push back. This was evidence, this was my move.
“I have,” I answered. “But protecting someone and protecting yourself are two different things. I think the latter may pertain to you more.”
“Sounds like you’re assuming something.”
“I’m assuming Gemma knows very little about who you are, because if she did, she’d never look at you the same.”
With shut lips, the impression of Alejandro’s tongue rolled over his teeth. For a brief moment he looked at his watch, hiding his discomfort. He was recovering from some mental glitch, a trait that lawyers could sniff out like blood in water.
“He hasn’t done anything wrong, Parker,” Gemma stopped me. “Please… don’t be rude.”
“I’m not rude. The facts are simple. In the few months you’ve known each other, he’s already pulled you into two separate illegal activities. He broke you into The Met and snuck you onto the roof of some dilapidated building. Neither should have happened, and both could’ve led to serious consequences.”
“So, The Met story was true?” Mila muttered, taking a long sip of her dirty martini.
I shot Mila an indicative arch of my brow, reminding her of the conditions that she agreed to.No questions, no interjections.
“The roof was my idea.” Gemma ignored her, catching me by surprise, and maybe she didn’t expect to say it, but the stiffness in her posture signaled she wasn’t going to back down.
“So, you broke him into the building, and you took him upstairs?” I asked, struggling to pivot.
“Yes.”
“In over the twenty-some years since we’ve known each other, you just decide to do something like that? You don’t do that, Gemma.”
“Well, I did, and I wanted to see how it felt. It was about making my own choice.”
“But if you knew the truth about him, you wouldn’t have done that. Trust me.”
“What makes you say that?” she belittled it with a scoff, but I fired back.
“Because, you don’t know why people are so scared of him,” I argued.
Gemma stared off for a minute, unable to reply, fidgeting with her dress strap that didn't need to be fixed. I didn’t want to use fear as a tactic, but fear was all I had. Alex was part of something horrific, and the blast of his presence was far more nuclear than anything Claire ever warned me about.
“No one is scared of me. Except maybe you.” Alex poured another drink, skipping my glass. How petty. He wasn’t completely angry, but the way his words needled out, let me know I was getting close.
“Gemma knows when I’m telling the truth. She just has to ask me to promise. And if I do, that’s enough. Am I wrong?” I asked her.
She seemed reluctant at first, but then agreed. “It’s true. Parker never breaks a promise.”
