Page 42 of Final Inning

Valeria had plans for Julian, too.

Chapter 31

Hagan was still thinking about Dr. Talley’s words that day, long after she’d clocked out for the night and had grabbed something to eat at the store yet again. She really needed to actually take time to buy real groceries or something.

She was just getting out of the shower when someone knocked on the door. Hagan pulled on her leggings and t-shirt, hopping around like an idiot. No one ever came to her townhouse—except that one time when Damien had stopped by to supposedly check on her after a drunk she and Damien were handling had deliberately targeted her that day. The guy had weighed close to four hundred pounds and he’d body-slammed Hagan when Damien hadn’t been able to subdue him fully.

Damien had been concerned. Or so he’d said.

Hagan hadn’t been fooled—it had been early in her tenure at Helery County. And Damien had thought she’d been receptive to his…charms. Damien still thought she was receptive to his disgusting sort of charms. He asked her out at least once a month, and got pissy when she told him no. She would never be interested.

She seriously hoped it wasn’t Damien. She just couldn’t deal with him right now. She just couldn’t. Wet clothes stuck to her, and her hair was down everywhere, dripping, by the time she made it to the door. Hagan checked the peephole, then unlocked the door.

“Julian? What…are you okay?” He was obviously upset about something. There had always been something almost sweet and endearing about Julian Adams. He was one of the most good-hearted people she had ever met. He and his sister Ramey, both. “Has something happened?”

“I spoke with Ramey. And…Mom’s last attorney. Before Otis Rivera. I didn’t know…she never told us.”

Hagan moved aside and let him in. It was going to pour at any minute, and she didn’t exactly have much of an awning. She led him down the hall to her kitchen. “Tell you what? Come in. I have a frozen pizza about to come out at any moment. Have you eaten?”

He was exactly the third person to be in her townhouse—Damien, her bestie on the planet who was the only person with a spare key, and now…him. Hagan was not used to people in her territory.

She was really struggling not to feel…intimidated. Scared.

This was Julian. Nothing threatening about him, even if he was at least a foot taller than she was—and though he was lean, it was strong muscle she could see roping his arms. He was bigger, stronger—and her service weapon was upstairs next to her bed. She should have grabbed it.

Then again…maybe she was just being ridiculous. Overly paranoid. Again.

That was something she was going to have to work at.

Maybe…when she moved. Dr. Talley had told her…get out. While it still felt right.

Before this town destroyed her. Like the woman actually understood what was hurting Hagan inside.

Hagan didn’t have anyone left in Buckbert. Not really.

Hagan didn’t know how much longer she could do Helery County. Since her foster family had moved away, she didn’t have any real connection to anyone here in the county. Not now.

Just…casual friends.

Friends who actually scared her.

Like the beautiful man looking at her right now. “What’s wrong?”

“I…Mom paid to have a private autopsy on my dad, Hagan.” His voice cracked. “The county…they didn’t even bother with an autopsy. Someone killed him and the county didn’t even seem to care.”

Hagan had been searching for the autopsy paperwork. The people from the FBI were looking for the autopsy paperwork, too. None of them had been able to find anything. Now…

“The attorney—he took over for Otis Rivera. And Otis had copies of the autopsy my mom had to pay for. And the cops around this shithole didn’t do a damned thing.”

“You have an independent autopsy for your dad? That…that will really help the FBI find the answers, Julian.” Hagan didn’t know what else to do—so she took the pizza out of the oven and set it on the stove. “Did you…did you read it?”

She really hoped he hadn’t. Julian had always seemed so sensitive to her. He was a couple of years older than she was. He had dated her best friend when he’d been in his early twenties, but it had fizzled. Julian was…well, she’d always thought he was the ideal “perfect boyfriend”. Her friend had teased her that she should ask Julian out, but…well…there was no romantic attraction between them. He treated her just about the same way he did his younger sister. She was okay with that.

More than okay with that, actually.

She did not want to fall in love with someone from Helery County. She just didn’t. But…she cared about him. And she would never forget how much he had hurt when he’d lost his dad. His dad had loved him and Ramey. Hagan would always remember that about Kevin Adams. How much he had loved his kids. That was something she had definitely never had.

“I looked at the first page. I…couldn’t look at the photos.”