by Jami Wagner
“And you saw her?” he asks, resting his hands on his hips.
“I saw her coming out of the store, yeah.”
“I wasn’t coming out of the store; I was turning around after I cut myself.” She holds up her free hand and blood runs down her wrist. Officer Maron turns to get something out of his car, then returns to wrap a napkin over the blood.
“If you hadn’t broken the glass, you wouldn’t have cut yourself.” How many lies will she make up to get out of this?
“Oh my gosh, I didn’t break in!”
“The guilty always say that,” I reply.
“Miss, what is your name?” Officer Maron asks.
“Skylar Atwood.”
“All right, I need your ID.”
“I don’t have it.”
I roll my eyes at her answer. Of course she doesn’t. She’s homeless.
“Address?”
“I don’t have one.”
“Phone number?”
She doesn’t answer this time, and when Officer Maron looks up, she shakes her head.
“Can anyone confirm you weren’t here during the time the vandalism took place?”
Again, she shakes her head.
Damn right, because she did it.
“I’m sorry, Miss Atwood, but I’m going to have to take you in for questioning.”
She nods slowly, and I release my hold as she willingly steps toward the back of the cop car. She gets in and Officer Maron closes the door. Heated, green eyes stare at me from inside the backseat.
“Don’t let her guilt trip you out of this. I saw her leaving. And why didn’t you cuff her?”
“I like to make my job as easy as possible, Luke. Now why don’t you call your mother and meet me at the station?”
“Why do I need to call my mom? I’m not in high school anymore.”
“Is she still part owner of the store?” His left brow cocks up.
“Yeah.”
“Then she needs to be there to help us determine charges, if any apply. With no proof, we can’t hold this girl responsible.”
Another cruiser pulls up behind him. The officers step out and approach us.
“While you wait for your mom, these gentlemen will go inside with you to assess the damage.”
I nod. He will do everything he can to make sure this thief is brought to justice. Once he pulls away, I follow the other two officers inside. I go for the money first, prying the cash drawer open and finding all the cash still there. My shoulders relax as I stuff the bills inside my pocket.
An hour later, I’ve discovered that nothing was stolen. How pointless—she didn’t steal anything but my time. Only broken shelves and books thrown about. I can put most of the shelves back together with some nails and a hammer, and after a week, give or take how much time I have and how long a new window will take to come in, everything should be back in place and we can open again.
The officers wait as I nail broken boards to replace the front windows glass and then they give me a ride to the station. The damage might be minimal, but my family has been through enough this last year. We don’t need some girl coming in destroying evidence of how far we have come. I’m going to make damn sure she has to pay for what she did.
Chapter Three
Luke
The moment my mother steps out of the room after speaking with Officer Maron, I know from the look in her eyes that we aren’t even close to being on the same page. In fact, she looks downright calm.
“Lucas, they don’t have any reason to hold her.”
“Yeah, they do. I saw her. How is that not enough?”
“If it were that easy to hold someone, our jail cells would be overflowing with people,” Officer Maron adds. He gives his signature smile and nod to both of us before excusing himself.
I rub my eyes and comb my hands through my hair. All that damage and no one is going to be held responsible. The urge to punch something is strong, but following through with that feeling in a police station isn’t the best place. If they can’t charge her, I won’t get money from her to replace anything. Without that money, I have to use my own, which I don’t exactly have. Credits cards are becoming a dangerous part of my life.
My fists clench as I try to control my breathing.
I don’t have time for people to mess things up. I can’t handle any more curves life wants to throw me. I’m not even sure I’m handling it correctly now. I just want my life back. The easy one. The simple one. The happy one.
“Lucas—”
“I need some air.”
I head for the door, but Mom’s small hand over my shoulder stops me.
“I have an idea, but I don’t think you will like it.”
“Mom, I trust you. Do whatever it is you feel is best. I’ll call you tomorrow,” I say, exiting before she gets another word out. I’m in no place to make decisions for anyone else right now, and if I snap, I’d prefer for my mother to not be on the receiving end. She doesn’t deserve it.
She also doesn’t understand. Dad left me in charge. I’m the man of the family, and it’s my responsibility to take care of everyone. He never said those exact words to me. He didn’t have a chance to. But he didn’t have to say them either. My family is important to me, and if Dad’s death taught me anything, it’s that we never know how much time we have left with the ones we love. Oh, and that drunk drivers take anything they want.
I walk faster, the cool air not doing anything to turn down the heat of anger in my gut. My family just can’t catch a break.
I head for the BA where I left my car. If my plan to sleep above the bookstore wasn’t a good idea before, it sure is now.
“Hey, man,” Conner says as he steps out the back door with Beth behind him. “Everything okay? We thought you were coming back a lot sooner than two hours later.”
“Yeah, he made me wait an extra forty-five minutes to leave just in case something happened to you. Being a father and boyfriend has made him soft.” Beth’s tone is all for fun and she pretends to slug Conner’s arm, but I can’t bring myself to smile. His girlfriend becoming friends with that fugitive and bringing her into our lives probably led her to break into my store. If I hadn’t shown up when I did, who knows what else she would have done?
“Wait, something did happen, didn’t it?”
“Your little friend broke into the bookstore tonight. Place is completely trashed.”
“What friend?”
“Cloud or whatever her name is,” I answer, knowing full well her real name. I give them the short version, adding a glare for Beth since she is this chick’s friend, too. It’s not Beth’s fault, but I need a place to channel my anger. I just can’t help it. I’ve never been so mad in my life.
“Sky? Noooo, she wouldn’t.”
“She did.”
“For real?” Conner asks, his voice showing just as much disbelief as Beth’s.
“Yes. For real. Come by in the morning and see for yourself. I’ll be there bright and early fixing the mess she made.” I turn for my truck, then stop. “And don’t bring her around me, all right? If I see her again, I won’t be able to control anything that comes out of my mouth.”
I slam my door shut and crank the engine. My tires squeal as I exit the lot and head home. Hopefully sleep will calm me down and help me think clearly. After all, I can still do everything I planned to do. It just might take me longer.
Skylar
One whole hour I’ve been watching the clock and answering the very few questions the detective has for me. He asked if I wanted a lawyer. It was a good joke. If I called one, my father would surely find out where I am, or worse, Mack would show up and scam me into going back with him. I’d rather be locked in jail than talk to my father or my ex-fiancé again.
Besides, I didn’t do it, and I think everyone here knows it except that stupid, temperamental guy who claimed he owned the place and put his hands on me thinking I was going to make a run for it. Only the guilty run, jackass. The more I think abou
t it, I’m certain he is one of Alex’s boyfriend’s buddies. This should go well.
“Well, Miss Atwood, we can’t keep you here any longer. Thank you for being so patient with us.”
I scoot my chair back as I stand. “A job’s a job, right?” I say, faking a smile as I quote my father’s favorite line and step around the table. I’ve wanted to burn that quote from my memory since the first time he said it to my mother.
“Before you go, the woman who owns the bookstore, Mrs. Warren, asked if she could have a word with you,” the detective says quickly, since I’m basically darting for the door. I may be homeless, but that doesn’t mean I want to stay here. Still, I stop.
“What for? I thought that guy from earlier owned it.”
“He and his mother both do. Anyway, no one is forcing you to talk with her, but I think you will like what she has to say.”
Well, it’s not like I need to be in a hurry to get back to my tree in the park.
“Sure,” I answer, taking my seat again. The detective holds the door open for a small woman to enter and then closes the door behind him when he leaves.
Mrs. Warren is a petite blonde, maybe five foot three, who looks as though she could be in her early fifties. She’s got jeans on with a baggy t-shirt and a light jacket. Her dark hair is pulled back, and she isn’t wearing any makeup. She looks tired, which makes sense because it is nearing two in the morning.
“Hi.” She waves, even though I’m the only person in the room. “Skylar, is it?”
“Yes, ma’am.” I may choose to get away from a lot of things from my past and my family, but manners are something I’ll never forget.
“I’m sorry for my son’s behavior earlier. I’ve been informed of everything that happened, and I can assure you, he isn’t normally like that.”
I lick my lips and nod. There are so many things I want to say about her son, the first being she should never apologize for his behavior, but when she takes the seat across from me, leaning back with a yawn, I stop. She doesn’t want to be here either. Why should I make it worse?
“He responded in a way I believe any person would have if they just found out their business had been broken into. I’m sorry, by the way. I wish I could have been closer to the faces of the people who did it.”
“It was better that you weren’t around. Safer. You never know what a person is capable of. Which brings me to why I want to speak with you.” She pauses, waiting for me to give her my full attention. “Officer Maron mentioned that there is a possibility you do not have a home.”
My head jerks back at her bluntness. Just call me out for being homeless after your son attempts to send me to jail. Fantastic.
“I didn’t mean to offend you,” she says quickly. “I just, well, there is a vacant apartment above the bookstore that I thought you might be interested in, and, as you know, the bookstore will need some work, so hiring an extra hand would cut the delay in reopening.”
“You want to hire me? After your kid just tried to have me thrown behind bars?”
“There are two sides to every story, and with no proof, I can’t believe everything I am told.”
Interesting.
“So you’re just going to believe me over your own child?”
“I am going to believe in myself. A young woman needs my help, and I have a way to help her if she is willing to accept the help offered to her.”
The air grows thick between us as I mull over her offer. A place to stay would be nice and a job, too. But this all sounds too easy—there has to be more to it.
“What’s the catch?” I ask.
“Rent for the apartment will be paid from your hours put in at the bookstore.”
“So, I won’t actually be making money?”
“No, you’ll have to get another job for that, but I can promise you that every night until you are ready, you will have a warm bed to come home to and a door with a lock to keep you safe.”
Her voice catches as she focuses on her hands in her lap. A woman I don’t even know is worried for my safety and has shown more emotion toward me in the last three minutes than my real mom ever did.
I need a place, and my heart won’t let me leave here if I turn this lady down. I don’t want to cause her more stress by doing that than if I had been the one to destroy her store.
“Okay.”
Her head snaps up and she smiles.
“Okay,” she repeats my answer.
She doesn’t make any motion to move, so neither do I. However, I do break into a yawn that causes her to chuckle.
“Shall I give you a ride, then?” she asks.
I nod, covering my mouth until my yawn has passed. “That would be great. Thank you.”
I follow her out of the room, and Officer Maron gives an approving nod as I pass him. Being in front of that store might have been the moment I needed all along to place me back on track to the new life I want.
Chapter Four
Luke
“Have you lost your mind?” I pace back and forth in front of my mother. Between losing my dad, the insurance not being enough to keep her on her feet, and now the vandalism, the stress must have gotten to her so badly she actually gave this criminal a job and a place to live with free access to the property she just tore apart. Free. We can’t afford to give things for free right now. Mom knows this.
“Oh, I get it, joke’s on me, right?” I stop pacing Mom’s living room, giving her my full focus.
“Lucas, I’ve never seen this side of you. I don’t like it,” she says, eyeing me over the top of her book. “The last twenty-four hours you’ve been mean, and the tone in your voice is one I hope to never hear again.”
“Mom.” I sit next to her on the couch. “Someone broke into our store, and I know it was her. Even if—that’s a big if—it wasn’t her, how can you be so calm?”
“Luke, we’ve learned over the last year that accidents happen and there is nothing we can do about them.”
“Right, but we cannot go giving random people homes above the bookstore.” Especially after I’d been planning to move in there. Another financial setback because of her. Great. Just great.
“Lucas, she doesn’t have anywhere else to go.”
“Let her go back to the park.” I slouch back into the cushion. That girl clearly has her own way of taking care of herself. She doesn’t need my mother’s help. I can’t believe she even agreed to it.
“I have had enough of this rotten attitude. I won’t say it again. I don’t want to hear you talk this way, and you better start acting your age. Oh, and get to the store to help Sky, too.”
“I have to help her? And you’re already referring to her by a nickname.” She’s brainwashing my mother.
Mom shoots a fiery warning in my direction. I rise from the couch and walk backward toward the door.
“I love you, Mom, but this is the first idea of yours I do not support. One slip up and I kick her out, and that’s not up for debate.”
I twist to face the door before I can see her reaction. I let out a breath when I’ve closed my car door without hearing her call my name. All that and I still didn’t get to talk to her about selling the store. Probably not the best time to bring it up anyway. I definitely didn’t earn any son of year points just now, but I’m not planning on letting Skylar live there for very long either. She’ll slip up, and when she does, I’ll be right there holding the door for her.
* * *
I flip the switch and light illuminates over the broken shelves, scattered books, and broken glass. Today everything looks worse than it did last night. It’s like a twister tore the room.
I nudge a few books with my feet as I clear a new path inside the store. When I reach the back of the store, the glow of the light from the clock reads 9:17 a.m. My gaze drifts to the stairs to the apartment.
I bet she only took this as a way to ease her guilt. She got caught, and to keep up with her whole innocent appearance, she offered to help, making her come out looking
like the golden kid all along. Not going to happen. If she’s up to something, I’ll be the first to figure it out.
“Holy shit, this place really does look bad.” Conner and his girl, Alex, step inside. Alex’s eyes are wide as she looks around with her lips in the shape of an O as Conner stuffs his hands in his pockets and frowns.
“This isn’t even the worst part.” I huff. “My mom is letting her sleep it off upstairs.”
“Your mom is letting who sleep it off?” Alex is clearly confused. The look on Conner’s face tells me he didn’t tell her who did it.
“We can go over this as many times as you want, but I didn’t do any of this.” Skylar steps into the room. She’s wearing the same clothes from last night, and her hair is frizzy as it’s starting to fall out of the bunched up ball she has it in.
“I am so lost,” Alex says.
“She did this,” I inform her.
“I did not do this.” Skylar crosses her arms.
“Did too.”
“Oh my gosh, what are we, ten? Call the police department and ask them to remind you what happened.”
“You called the police on her?” Alex gasps. “Are you okay?” She rushes to Skylar and hugs her.
“Is she okay?” I open my eyes so wide they feel like they are about to pop out of their sockets. “Look at my store!”
Skylar rolls her eyes at me before saying to Alex, “I’m fine. It was all a misunderstanding.”
“Yeah, because you got away with it.”
“Okay.” Conner jerks his head toward the door. “Luke, can I talk to you a sec, outside?”
“I’m not going to leave her alone in here. Who knows what else she—”
“Oh for heaven’s sake, I’ll stay in here.” Alex sighs right before winning a very short but intense glaring contest with me.
“Whatever.” I follow behind Conner, leaving the door open so I can keep an eye on Skylar. My mom may trust her, but that doesn’t mean I have to.
“Dude, this is insane. I thought you thought Skylar was hot. Remember that day we ran into them on the trail, when Alex still hated me? You said—”
