Total pages in book: 72
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70417 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 352(@200wpm)___ 282(@250wpm)___ 235(@300wpm)
“Listen to what he has to say,” he said kindly. He looked up at me. “The truth, Cian.”
“I know.”
He turned and left, leaving Skylar and me staring at each other.
I drew in a deep breath.
It was the moment of truth.
I only hoped she could hear it.
And understand.
Chapter 11
Cian
Skylar stared at me from across the table, her hands caught up in the long sleeves of the sweatshirt she was wearing.
My sweatshirt. I liked seeing it on her.
I shifted in my chair, unsure where to begin.
“I’m not what you think I am.”
“Oh? So, your name isn’t Cian? Or Tony?”
“No, my real name is Cian, but I’m not…I’m not a murderer for hire, Skylar.”
“Does the guy you killed the other day know that?”
“I didn’t kill anyone that night.”
“I saw you! You shot him—he was dead!”
I shook my head, leaning forward. “You saw exactly what I needed to be seen. The illusion of Harper being shot.”
“Harper?” she asked.
“Harper was working with me. Just like Sean is.”
“But the blood…”
I shrugged. “The blood from his leg was real. His chest, no. It was all a setup. I had blanks in the gun, as well as live ammo. It was all staged carefully.”
“Why?”
“To make Orson Valenti believe I had flushed the mole out of his organization and killed him to send a message we were onto the Feds. That I was on his side. It’s part of an operation I’ve been involved with for two years.”
She frowned at me. “The blond guy isn’t dead?”
“No.”
“But you shot him in the leg—for real.”
“I had to. He knew it was going to happen. I shot him where it did the least damage.”
She rolled her eyes. “I’m sure he was grateful.”
I snickered. “Grateful might not be the right word.”
“But you told Sean to dump the body!”
“Rex is Orson’s right hand, Skylar. He was there watching on Orson’s behalf. I had to make it look good—authentic.”
“You beat him up. He was covered in blood.”
“Most of that was staged as well. Sean made sure they got delayed getting to the warehouse. He saw a few hits.” I shook my head. “Harper’s tough, Skylar. He’s fine.”
“Where is he?”
“Safe.” I drew in a deep breath. “That’s all I can tell you about him. You can ask Sean when he wakes up—he’ll confirm it.”
She frowned at me. “I’m confused.”
I leaned my elbows on the table, dropping my head into my hands. “I know. You need to let me talk.”
She rubbed my arm and squeezed my wrist. “I’m sorry.”
I looked up. “It’s okay. It’s just not easy.”
She scooted her chair closer and wrapped her hand around mine, repeating my words from earlier. “Tell me.”
“It was only me and my dad all my life. My mom died when I was a baby.” I blew out a huge puff of air. “My dad was a detective. He loved being a cop, and I used to love sitting on his knee while he’d tell me stories of cases he was working on.”
I smiled at her. “Both our dads were good guys, Skylar.”
She nodded and I continued. “When I was a teenager, he was working this case—a hard one, but they finally broke a big drug ring. He was due to testify in court, and he seemed anxious, which was unusual since my dad was always calm and cool. I remember how jumpy he was the weeks leading up to the trial, constantly checking on me and making sure I was home.” I snorted. “It drove me crazy since I hated being monitored like a baby. The morning he was due in court, I remember him sitting at the table playing with his pocket watch. He kept turning it over and over, then he’d open it, shut it, open it again. I asked him what was wrong, but he insisted he was just trying to remember every fact about the case so he didn’t mess up. He told me he wanted to make sure the charges against the guy would stick. He said, and I remember his words, ‘This one is dangerous—I need him off the streets.’”
“How did it go?”
“My dad never made it to court.”
“What?”
“I forgot my English paper, and it was due that morning. I had a reading period, so I ran home to get it.” I swallowed the sudden, painful lump in my throat. “When I got home, I saw his car was still in the driveway. I went inside…” I trailed off as the memory swamped me, and once again, I was back in the house, walking through the rooms, calling for him, barely noticing the mess the place was in. Then, finding him lying in the kitchen, blood all around him and one round hole in his head, his eyes open and staring.
I didn’t know I was gasping for air until I felt Skylar’s arms around my neck. I buried my head in her chest, holding her tight. “He was just lying there. There was blood. So much blood.”