Shadows of You (Lost & Found #4)(88)

Steven’s scowl deepened. “What’d that prick tell you?”

My brows lifted at that. “Trouble in paradise?”

“He’s a fuckin’ traitor. We had a thesis for our podcast. We were going to get John’s case overturned. Then we’d have movie deals and book tours. We’d be set. And then he was all, ‘But what if she’s telling the truth?’ Who gives a damn? So, I punched him. It barely landed. I can’t believe he called you assholes.”

“He’s dead,” Lawson said.

Steven reared back. “The fuck you say?”

“Tyson is dead. We found his body two hours ago.”

“Y-you’re wrong. I saw him this morning. I—there’s no way.”

“I’m sorry, Steven.”

I had to give it to Lawson, he sounded like he meant it. And he probably did. The guy might’ve been an asshole, but he didn’t deserve to die.

“How?” Steven rasped.

Lawson took a breath. “We’ll get to that in a second. I need to ask you a few questions to get a timeline. When did you last see Tyson?”

“Around ten a.m.,” Steven mumbled.

Lawson nodded. “Where was he headed?”

“I’m not sure. He said he was going into town.”

“And what did you do after you two parted ways?” Lawson pressed.

Steven’s gaze jerked to Lawson. “How’d he die?”

“I’ll fill you in as soon as I’ve got this timeline down,” Lawson said calmly.

“I’m not answering another question until you tell me how,” Steven grumbled.

“He was murdered,” I said, not an ounce of emotion in my voice.

Steven paled as his gaze jerked from Lawson to me and back again. “You think I had something to do with it?”

Lawson held up a hand. “We just have to get a timeline. Cover all our bases.”

“Bullshit,” Steven spat. “I’ve seen how this works. You guys try to pin it on the innocent guy just to get the case off your docket.”

“We’re not—”

“Fuck off, pig. You want to talk to me? Call my lawyer. I have one since you’ve been giving us so much trouble.” Steven slammed the door in our faces.

I turned to Lawson. “That went well.”





44





ASPEN





I wrapped my sweater tighter around my body as I swung back and forth on the porch swing, watching Cady talk Nathan’s ear off at the fence line. She couldn’t have been more excited to have the three of us pick her up from school. She hadn’t batted an eye at my story of hitting my face on a cabinet at work. I didn’t make a habit of lying to Cady, but this was one instance where she wasn’t ready for the truth.

The hinges on the door squeaked as Kerry opened it, balancing two mugs in her other hand. She smiled as she headed toward me. “I thought some hot cocoa might be in order.”

My nose stung at the kindness, the caretaking. My mother hadn’t been very good at that, too busy simply trying to keep her head above water.

I took the mug and wrapped my hands around it. The warmth seeped into me, both from the beverage and the thoughtfulness. “Thank you.”

Kerry lowered herself to the spot next to me on the swing. “How are you feeling?”

I opened my mouth to say fine, but Kerry cut me off. “Really feeling.”

I gave her a sheepish smile. “The ibuprofen helped, but my face is still throbbing a bit.”

Lines of worry deepened in Kerry’s face. “How about that beautiful brain and heart?”

“A little overwhelmed,” I admitted.

She patted my thigh. “I can only imagine. You know I’m here if you ever need to talk. Need someone to watch Cady so you can have some time to process. Anything.”

My eyes burned, and I struggled to swallow. “You aren’t mad I lied to you?”

I hadn’t seen Kerry and Nathan since the podcast came out, and the moment they appeared at The Brew to take me home, the nerves had set in.

Kerry’s eyes widened. “You did no such thing.”

I blinked a few times.

“I do believe your name is Aspen Barlow according to the US government. So you didn’t want to open up about a painful past... We all have things that are hard to talk about.”

The tears began to leak out then. “Kerry.”

She put her mug on the porch and did the same with mine, then wrapped me in a tight hug. “Sweet girl. You’ve been through more than anyone should ever have to.”

The tears came faster then. There were no sobs. Just silent rivers of emotion tracking down my cheeks as Kerry rocked me. How long had it been since I’d had this kind of motherly affection? I honestly couldn’t remember.

“I hate that you’ve been carrying this alone for so long,” she whispered. “But you’re not alone anymore. We’ve got you.”

A hiccuped sob escaped me.

Kerry rubbed soothing circles on my back. “Just let it out. You’ve been holding too much in.”

“It feels like if I let go, the pain will never stop.”

“I know, but if you don’t, it will drown you. Take you to a dark place you won’t ever come back from.”