[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.“That’s different and you know it.”“No.” he said.“It’s not different at all.You can’t even answer me.”I gritted my teeth.“I’ve seen the way you look at him and you’re just as fucked as I am so get off my goddamn back alright?”He turned away from me, pulled the trunk open and took out the spare tire.Then I watched as he pulled out the jack and after taking a breath, I grabbed the tire iron and got to work.We traveled the rest of the way in complete silence.I had nothing to say to him as lost as I was in my own messed-up head, and he didn’t try to make conversation.When we finally got to the cabin, we slammed the doors behind us and made our way to the front door, still without uttering a word.Riley was the first to spot us from where he sat on the chair arm watching some sort of movie and he offered Nate a small shy smile.I dropped my small duffel by the door and glanced over to where Kyle lounged on the couch.When his eyes met mine they lit up and I looked away.“What happened to your face?” Riley had walked over to Nate and I watched as he reached up to touch his busted lip, hesitantly, as if unsure whether or not he should.“It’s nothing.Look Riley, we met your mom today and.” he trailed off.“And what?” the kid asked and I noted the apprehension in his expression as he said the words.Nate glanced my way briefly then turned back to him.“Let’s go for a walk.” He offered and the kid nodded, less than enthusiastically.“What’s going on?” Kyle questioned when they exited the cabin and I glanced his way.He’d moved to stand by door and he watched me with furrowed brows.“You’ll find out soon enough.” I walked the distance and dropped into the closest chair, running my hand over my face.As I sat there, my mind jumping from one scenario to the next, Kyle came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my neck, our cheeks pressed together and because everything was going to shit anyway, I let him.Chapter Twenty-eight‘Verdict’~Riley’s POV~“Watch your step.” Nathan warned just as I was about to smash my foot against a protruding tree root.I paused briefly, then stepped over the thing, quickening my pace so that I was once again walking directly behind him.He didn’t seem like he was in a particularly good mood and even though you could never really tell with Nate, I had a feeling I was right this time.The way he and John had walked through the door looking more pissed off than I could ever remember either of them being, had had me sweating bullets and this little ‘walk’ Nate had planned wasn’t helping the situation.“Nate?” I called uncertainly.“Hmm?” he seemed to be deep in thought.“Where are we going?” He glanced back briefly then continued on his way.“We’re just walking.”I bit my lip, looking around me at the thick trees, then up at the blue sky above us.It seemed so peaceful out here with the chirping birds and the natural scent of the woodland, a stark contrast to the apprehension roiling within me.“Why do you look so worried?”I tore my eyes from the sky and glanced back at Nate, who had finally stopped not too far ahead.He was looking at me with those piercing intelligent eyes, his expression unreadable.“Do I?” I replied with a nervous chuckle and his eyes narrowed.They’d finally learned the truth.I could see it in just the way he looked at me and I swallowed hard, frozen in that very spot as I watched Nathan watch me.I’d worried it would come to this the moment they had made plans to go see my mother and of course she wouldn’t have kept it to herself, she’d tell anyone who would listen how her deranged little boy killed his own father.I looked away from Nate, my heart hammering.He had probably already decided I was guilty, even after all this, and I didn’t think I was up to the task of convincing him otherwise, I’d spent most of my time in prison trying to do just that.I lowered myself to the ground then, sitting with my back to a massive tree trunk, waiting for the accusations to fly.He didn’t say anything right away, instead he watched me and waited, and I watched him and I waited.“Is there something you need to tell me?” he finally broke the silence and I shook my head slowly.“John and I had a conversation with your mother today and we learned something interesting while we were there.” He’d moved so that he was standing across from me.I picked up a twig from the forest floor and snapped it in half, then I nodded because I didn’t know what else to do, and whatever words I’d planned on letting out had lodged firmly into my throat.“Riley we can’t help you if you lie to us and if this is the way it’s going to be from now on then we might as well give ourselves up now.”I snapped the twig again and again and again until he reached over and pulled the pieces from my hands and then I had no choice but to look up at him.I took a deep breath, fixing my gaze on his nose because I couldn’t meet his eyes.“What exactly did she tell you?” my voice was a little over a whisper.Nate frowned, “Tell me what you’re hiding.” His voice was firm and his tone brooked no argument“I didn’t kill anyone.” I said pitifully.“I didn’t ask you that.”“What’s the point if you all think I’m guilty anyway? It isn’t even a big de—”“Stop fucking around and tell me what I need to know.You think it’s just your life hanging in the balance here? This is serious Riley.”He was angry now.“I swear it’s not even a big deal Nate.” I took a deep breath.“My name isn’t Parker, it’s Menza, Riley Menza.Parker is my mom’s maiden name.”I stole a glance at his face to see him watching me like a hawk.“.I didn’t want to share the same name with him, he.the man who was killed is my father and I hate him.”It sounded childish even to my own ears and maybe even a little bit heartless, but he’d asked for the truth.He crouched to the ground so that we were on the same level.“Because he abused your mother.” It was a statement, not a question and I was surprised by the strange understanding in his voice.“He abused us both.He was vicious and a drunk.He did drugs and he treated us like shit, but no matter how bad it got she always took him back, it’s like she didn’t even give a damn if he ended up killing us, she loved him too much and I hate him for it, for everything—but I didn’t kill him [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]