AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He shrugs. “Like I said. They either think that you may know something about their deaths, or they want you to figure out what your parents did and where the bodies are, so to speak.”
“I don’t know where they are,” I tell him stiffly, setting my fork down, my appetite lost. It’s a lie. I do know where some of them are buried.
“Do you think it’s partially your responsibility to make things right?” he asks, throwing me off.
“I think I would if I could, but they’ve been doing unthinkable things for a very long time, and I escaped when I could. There’s not much more I could have done.”
“You could have turned them in.”
I shake my head. “I would have been dead in minutes. They knew every step I took. No matter how hard I tried to make it for them, they always found me. They knew exactly where I lived, who I spoke to, where I was at every given moment. I’m not sure how, but they did. There’s no way I could have turned them in and lived.”
“They wouldn’t have killed their own daughter,” he scoffs.
I roll my eyes. “You’ve been standing here for the last couple minutes telling me about how horrible my own parents are, people who raised me. I know how horrible they were. I lived it. And yet you’re going to stand here and tell me that you knew them better? You think you can sit here and tell me that they wouldn’t have taken me out if it meant that they’d live to see another day outside of a jail cell?”
Ronan’s jaw sets as his eyes narrow at me, and my hands turn to fists at my sides.
“You don’t know a thing about me,”
His head turns as he rubs his chin with his hand, contemplating his next move. “I don’t mean to make it seem like I know you. I just, I’m sorry,” he apologizes. Part of me believes it and another part says to not let my guard down. “I’m here to make sure you’re safe. Part of doing that means that I need to know everything you were involved in. How close you were with them. Who may want to kill you, if anyone.”
Pushing my eggs around my plate, I consider his words. I get it. I do. I just think he could be so much better with his delivery.
I sigh, leaning back in my chair. “I don’t know much about what they did, like I’ve said. I’ve seen things, sure. But honestly, I haven’t wanted to deal with any of it. I ran.”
He nods, taking another bite from the plate in front of him.
“I remember my parents used to hold meetings while I was around. There was always a commotion. Always threats. They were both a team. They were a team when it came to taking down clients, business partners, and the like. They were also a team when they told me off. Told me I wasn’t enough. Told me I was worthless to them if I chose to run. But I did. I never looked back.”
I leave out a lot, but he hasn’t earned that level of honesty yet.
When he doesn’t say anything, I clear my throat. “What are we going to do about Jeremy?”
“We’re not doing anything about him,” he tells me as he finishes, placing the plate in the sink and washing it.
“Well, I don’t want to get arrested, and I certainly don’t want to keep you around for the next few days.”
“You’re not going to be.”
“How do you know?”
Ronan turns, brushing his black hair out of his face with his hand. I keep my eyes focused on him and away from the bulging muscles of his bicep.
“If you haven’t been arrested yet, you won’t be. They want information from you but don’t have probable cause.”
“Then what was he doing talking to me last night?”
He dries his hands on my kitchen towel, refusing to look up. “Getting probable cause.”
The man was trying to trick me into saying the wrong thing. The second I did, I’d be brought in for questioning. I’m aware of the law, and I’m pretty sure that kind of deception is illegal, but I’m not quite sure.
“So they can’t come here and just arrest me for shits and giggles,” I nod in understanding, grabbing my water bottle from the counter and taking a swig. It’s been sitting there for days, and when I make a face at the stale water taste, Ronan grabs it, pours it out, and fills it with fresh water before placing it in front of me again.
“Thank you,” I say, opening the cap and taking a sip. “So what do we do now?”
The second I ask, Ronan’s phone rings in his back pocket. Pulling it out, he makes a face. Holding up one finger, he starts the call.
“Yes?” he asks before walking into my bedroom and closing the door behind him.
