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My brave, beautiful girl. My chest swells with emotion at the way she's standing up for me in front of the whole town.
Her father frowns, his lips thinning. "I forbid it," he snaps before he points his finger at the ground. "Get over here, young lady," he orders like she's a dog.
My nostrils flare as a surge of protectiveness rises up within me. I can't stop the growl from rumbling up out of my throat, but Heaven places a reassuring hand on my chest as she straightens her spine and says firmly, "No."
I hear the collective gasp from the crowd. Jesus, has no one in this town ever told the preacher no before? Hell, they act like he's God himself or something.
"I'll be damned if my daughter is going to be with a murderer."
More gasps from the crowd. Guess they've never heard the preacher curse before.
"Careful, preacher," I caution him. "You're slipping."
The man's face gets as red as a tomato when he realizes his blunder.
"Ah, about time," he says as the authorities come pushing their way through the crowd, intent on getting to me.
The preacher turns to them and orders, "Arrest this man!"
I can feel Heaven's body shaking beside me as the officers cuff me, but I keep my gaze forward and my jaw clenched tight. It was worth it. A few moments of passion between us was better than a lifetime of living with regrets.
"Wait!"
My head snaps up, a denial already on my lips as I see my sister pushing through the crowd.
"Ariana..." I warn.
Tears shine in my sister's eyes as she suddenly blurts, "It wasn't my brother! It was me! I did it."
I shut my eyes in resignation as the wood becomes so quiet all that can be heard is the rustling of a squirrel in a nearby tree.
"I killed Martin Finley," she cries, her voice breaking. "He raped me. It was self-defense, but Caleb took the fall because he didn't want to put me through the shame of having to relive it."
Her voice drops to barely more than a whisper. "I'm so sorry. I didn't want to have to tell everyone. I didn't want to have to talk about it on a witness stand."
Ariana looks at me now, her blonde hair pressed against her tear-stained face. "I'm so sorry, Caleb. I shouldn't have let you take the fall for me. I should have been braver."
I don't say anything. I just shake my head at her.
The chief of police steps forward, eyeing me harshly. "Is this true?"
The cat's out of the bag now, so I look him square in the eye as I give one curt nod.
He stares at me for a long moment, no doubt trying to assess whether I'm telling the truth or not.
He must decide that I am because a moment later, he orders my release with a wave of his hand at his officers.
The cuffs slide off my wrist, and Heaven immediately leaps into my arms.
I hold her close to me and kiss the top of her head.
"Wait!" The preacher sputters. "Are you just going to let him go?"
The chief of police turns to him. "Got no reason to hold him now, Sir." He nods to my sister. "This young lady has confessed."
Ariana is still crying as she finally tells the truth about what happened. A couple of female officers are taking her statement, all while reassuring her that everything's going to be okay.
My shoulders relax. So long as my sister isn't going to be arrested and is going to be okay, I can rest easy with her decision to divulge the truth.
