AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He stood at the top of the staircase, wearing black dress pants and a black buttoned shirt. His clothes fit him snugly—a little too snug for my tastes. His dark hair was combed into neat waves, but his face was unshaven.
“Crawford,” he said when he reached the bottom of the stairs. He tucked his hands in his pockets.
I nodded. “Rossi.”
“How can I help you?”
“Can we sit?”
He waved toward the black leather couches. “What can I get you a drink?” he asked.
“Scotch.”
He walked over to a bar near the back of the room. It was fully stocked with premium liquor lining the glass shelves behind him. He poured two glasses and walked back to the living room.
Handing me a glass, he said, “Well, this is more civilized than our last encounter.”
“Yes, well, circumstances have changed.”
“Mmm…” He sat down on the sofa across from me. “So, they have.”
“I heard you dropped the charges. Finally came to your senses, I see.”
He sipped his drink. “Something like that.”
I nodded at the camera behind him, the one facing me. “I would have subpoenaed all these cameras and would have proven that she didn’t do it.”
“Most of the videos are for show, there are no recordings. There would have been nothing to summon.”
“I don’t believe that,” I said.
He shrugged. “I don’t care what you believe.”
“Then why did you do it? Why drop the charges if you could have gotten away with it?”
He crossed one leg over the other, resting his ankle on his knee. “Now, you’re finally asking the right questions.”
My mind raced with possibilities. “I was close to cracking your cop. Did you catch wind of that?”
He smiled. “You really think you could have cracked him? You’re adorable, you know that?”
“Fuck off, Rossi. Don’t play with me. I’m not here to amuse you. I came for answers.”
“Then ask the right questions.”
“Why did you drop the charges against Laura?”
“You know, I’ve read a lot about you and your family. I could tell you things about yourself that most people didn’t know. I know you kicked your aunt and uncle out of their home, that your brother Colton may have had some questionable relationships, and your brother Luke has gotten himself into quite a bit of mischief when he thought no one was watching. But you Ryan, you’ve been clean. Nothing. No underage drinking. No bad behavior or trouble with the law. Hell, you’d be a dream for any political campaign with no skeletons in your closet at all.”
I had no idea where he was going with this. Was he threatening to expose my family’s history? If so, what did that have to do with Laura?
“If there’s a veiled threat hidden somewhere in there, I’ll tell you now, it’s nothing I can’t spin. Colton and Frances are happily married and in love, and Luke’s past is part of the boyish charm the media has a field day with. You’ve got nothing.”
“I wasn’t finished.”
He stood and walked back to the bar to pour himself another drink. He downed the first one pretty quickly.
“You’ve been clean, at least, until you met Laura. Then the shine on your reputation lost some of its luster.”
