AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thankfuck.” I tilted my head back and stared at the ceiling. “Seriously.”
Gabriel crouched down in front of me, running his hands up my legs. “There are already some names on the table for a replacement. In the meantime, we may have to delay. But in the end, the whole board agrees that it’s better to have a delayed andgoodseason than a rushed and shitty one.”
“How hard was it?”
He smirked. “Not as hard as Ian hoped. Most of the meeting was us making plans for the future. Once I showed them everything, even the ones who’d initially supported him changed their mind, thank you Jace for all of that.”
In the corner of my eye I saw Jace nod in acknowledgement.
“I think Ian’s still staring at the wall in shock. Orawall. Somewhere. We kicked him out pretty quickly. Black eye and all.”
“Does it make me a bad person if I love that mental image?” I asked.
“If you are, then so am I. Had to keep myself from smiling every time I saw the bruising.”
Another stab of sadness from Ash had me curling into Roman. He tucked his arm around me, keeping me close. “It’s been too long, right? The story he told us didn’t take nearly this long.”
Roman’s fingers traced patterns on my arm. “Probably have more questions than we did, firefly.”
Last night we ordered pancakes. And eggs. All the breakfast foods. By the time Jace finished my massage and I was a boneless mess, it was all ready. And delicious. It felt normal even if we were all a little somber.
Ash appeared from the direction he’d disappeared from, hands in the pockets of his hoodie. He looked gray and tired, but his bond felt relieved. That it was over and he didn’t have to recount the story over again.
The detective from the hospital followed him out, jogging to catch up. “Mr. West.”
Ash, almost to us, turned back. The detective included all of us with a nod. “That was the call I was waiting for.”
Sudden hope burned in my chest, like the sun clearing away clouds. All of it came from Ash. “An arrest?”
“Yes.” The detective laughed humorlessly. “Guy didn’t even fight it. Fucking admitted to it. Not that he would have had to. The entire front end of his car is smashed. It’s got paint from the bike all over it. He could have fought the charge, but it’s pretty clear.”
“What’s the plan?” Jace asked.
“He’s been arrested. He’ll be charged. Likely first degree murder. Or second. They’re almost here, so we’ll see what else he tells me when he’s brought in. But that will be up to the judge and the prosecutor.”
I blinked. “First degree murder?”
Knowledge of laws and crimes weren’t my forte, but that was a pretty easy one. First degree murder was when it was planned out. Intentional. My body went cold. “It wasn’t an accident?”
The air around us went tense, and the detective winced, like he realized how casually he said it. “My apologies. Yes. I don’t have all the information yet, but that’s what he said. He didn’t mean to hit your friend, Mr. West. He was aiming for you.”
Like the whole world slowed down, I realized. Yelled, angry words echoed in my mind from the night at Pavilion.
Get the fuck off me. You’re the dead one. Keep thinking she’s yours. You’ll see. Try me, pretty boy.
The doors to the station slid open, and two uniformed officers came in, Craig handcuffed between them. He saw me and smiled. The smug, satisfied smile of a person who had no regrets and no remorse.
My world tilted and turned red.
The scream coming out of me wasn’t human.
I didn’t remember how I got across the room, only that Craig was in front of me, and then underneath me as I tackled him, scratched his face. I would kill him.
I would kill him.
He tried to kill Ash over fuckingnothing. Because ofhismistakes. He used me and hurt me and tried to murder my family. I would kill him.
My hands hurt. Blood poured from his nose where I hit it. Good. Let him fuckingbleed.
