Because of Liam

by Erica Alexander

  Her zipper undone, he starts to pull Skye’s pants down.

  “We got him,” I hear myself say and before the words are completely out of my mouth, Logan is out the door with Liam behind him. They told me to stay in this room, don’t let Jon see me, to keep him from accusing me—us of a setup. He will have money and his last name in his corner. We need to minimize his chances.

  I run after Liam and close the door with me on the inside. One of the hardest things I ever had to do. I want to be near Skye. I need to comfort my sister. Thank her for what she just did for me. I don’t have time to dwell on it as Logan and Liam break through the guest bedroom door. They also rigged the door so it could not be locked from the inside even though it looked as such.

  I watch as Logan pulls Jon off Skye and Liam checks on her. Logan has Jon pinned on the floor, his hands trapped behind his back so fast I barely registered what happened.

  Jon is squirming under him, trying to fight Logan off. I see Liam reach for zip ties in his pocket and hand them to Logan. A second later, Jon’s hands are firmly locked behind his back. Liam makes the call to 911.

  Jon is screaming and cursing them both. “Get the fuck off me. What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”

  “I think I’m stopping a rape.”

  “There’s no rape. She’s my girlfriend. Ask anyone.”

  Fucking liar.

  Skye is visibly shaking. “No, I’m not. You brought me here, and you said you were going to rape me.”

  “It was a joke. We’re role-playing. She likes when we do it. Let me go!”

  Logan’s hands are opening and closing and I know it’s taking everything he has not to beat the crap out of Jon. This is something we talked about. For the plan to work, the arrest has to be textbook perfect. There can be no reasons for anyone to have any doubts over what happened.

  I can hear the sirens. The cops will be here any minute now. I can also hear the commotion of people trying to leave in a hurry downstairs. Liam goes down to meet the police officers, and the house goes suddenly quiet when the music is turned off. The only audible sound is the rapid beating of my heart reverberating in my ears.

  I watch everything through the monitors. Cops stop people from leaving the house. There are several of them and they line up people against the wall. The ones who didn’t move fast enough and escaped, that is. It is organized chaos. They are checking IDs and asking questions although I can’t hear anything because the cameras downstairs have no sound feed.

  Liam appears on the monitor, walking toward the last room, followed by two cops. The monitor switches to the bedroom and I can see and hear them. One of the cops nods at Logan, who’s still kneeling on Jon’s back and keeping him immobile, but Jon’s thrashing. When he sees the cops, he starts screaming for help, like he’s the victim. What a fucking asshole!

  “Help. Oh, thank God you guys are here. Get this lunatic off my back. He just attacked me and he’s holding me against my will.”

  It’s like he was coached before. He is saying all the right words to make it look and sound like he’s the victim.

  Logan lets go of him and the two officers pull Jon up by the elbows, hands still zip tied behind his back. Is he going to fucking cry? He’s making a sad face at the cops.

  One of the cops picks up Jon’s pants off the floor with gloved hands.

  The other asks, “ Are these yours?”

  “Yes, can I put them on, please? This is embarrassing. I was just here trying to have some alone time with my girlfriend when these two crazy guys barged in and attacked me.”

  “Did they hit you?”

  “No, but—”

  “Did they have any weapons on them?”

  “No—”

  “Did they hurt you in any way? Are there any marks on your body?”

  “No, they just pushed me to the floor and zip-tied my hands together.”

  “There was no attack then, wouldn’t you agree?”

  The officer doesn’t wait for an answer and looks at his partner, who’s going thru the jeans’ pockets. He pulls out a wallet from the back pocket and opens it, reading the driver’s license. “Is this yours?” he asks, showing Jon his ID.

  “Yes. Can you untie me now?” An edge of irritation coats Jon’s voice. He’s still thinking he can get away with this.

  Out of the other back pocket comes a three-pack of condoms. I shudder and Skye, now behind Liam, visibly shakes. I notice for the first time a female officer next to Skye. I’m so enthralled with what’s happening with Jon, I never even noticed the addition of the she-cop.

  Everything coming out of Jon’s pants goes into a brown paper bag.

  The cop moves to the front pocket and Jon visibly blanches and tries to lunge at him, but both Logan and cop number one stop him. Cop number one yanks him back a lot harder. I catch the worry on Logan’s face before it goes blank again. I know he’s dying to get to Skye because his eyes go to her every few seconds and when they do, the expression on his face betrays him. It’s pain and love and regret. Hers is fear and determination. I’m so proud of Skye. She has always been one to avoid any kind of confrontation, always the peacemaker. But not today. Today she’s a fucking tigress.

  Out of the pocket comes a little bag with a whitish powder. And then, another. And another. Three bags total. I’m betting that’s what he put in Skye’s drink. Jon’s little special formula. Jackpot! That seems to be enough for the cops. Cop number two puts the three little bags in another brown bag and Jon’s pants and shoes in yet another bigger bag. Then, they start to read him his rights.

  “You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future—”

  Jon is putting up a fight now. He’s calling to Skye and trying to get her to tell the police he’s innocent.

  The two male cops leave the room, dragging Jon with them and a moment later, I can hear Jon’s shouts and the cop who’s still reading him his rights as they walk past Liam’s bedroom door.

  My eyes go back to the monitor.

  Logan steps closer to Skye, but the female cop puts a hand up to stop him. She looks at Skye, a clear question in her face.

  “Is this okay?”

  Skye nods and goes to Logan and as soon as his arms are around her, she falls apart. Tears come in waves, sobs following soon after. Logan pulls her into him tight, his arms on her back and tangled in her hair and even though he’s whispering, in the silence of the room I can hear him repeat again and again. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m sorry.”

  Chapter Forty-Four

  I step outside the room with the female cop to give Logan and Skye some privacy. A part of me is happy this is done and we got him. But another regrets putting Skye through this ordeal. Even if she knew she was safe the whole time, I can’t imagine what it was like to be in her shoes. There must have been a moment when she thought he was going to get to her. I feel indebted to her, and I am filled with gratitude. Our methods may not have been one 100 percent legal, but the police got enough evidence to lock him up for a while. At least until his father shows up with a bunch of lawyers.

  I want to go to River and check on her, but I’m not sure what to do, now that they took Jon. He’s in the back of a squad car screaming his head off and threatening to sue us and telling the cops they don’t know who they are dealing with. I don’t think he’s going to make any friends in county jail with that attitude. And tomorrow is Sunday, which means he’ll be held at least until Monday before his father can get a judge to set bail. He probably has a clean record, and his rich daddy will push his weight around for sure.

  One of the cops comes back and nods at the lady cop next to me. He steps into the room and a moment later, Logan follows him back out. The lady cop goes in and asks Skye if she can ask her some questions.

  Logan disappears dow
n the stairs with the cop, which I think is a friend because of the way they’re talking. This might be the guy who was digging around for Logan and I wonder if this will help or hinder our plan. Not knowing what to do, I go back to my room and knock on the door for River to let me in.

  The door opens suddenly and she nearly knocks me over when she barrels into me. Her face buried in my chest, I can feel the wetness through my T-shirt. She’s been crying too.

  Fuck! In the middle of all this I didn’t think of how watching her sister would affect her. I feel ten kinds of stupid right now. I nudge her back into the room and lock the door behind me. Her arms are tight around my waist. I hug her back and pull her into me, even more. After a moment, her body relaxes into mine. But her silent tears run for a few more minutes. When she looks at me, her lashes are wet and darker, her cheeks are flushed red, and there’s a look of desperation in her eyes. I kiss her forehead before wiping what’s left of her tears off her face.

  “We got him.”

  “Do you think it will stick?”

  “I think we have a very good chance it will. It’s out of our hands now. We did all we could. The police will have to take over from here, but with Logan on our side and the attack being on a cop’s girlfriend, I think we have a very good chance he’ll end up in jail. The police tend to take it personally when someone goes after one of their own.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  “Me too, River, me too.”

  I pull her into me again and breathe her in, filling my lungs with her smell.

  “I’m sorry,” I speak into her hair.

  “What for?”

  “For putting you through this. For letting Skye be a part of it. For you having to watch all of it. For a moment when I first had this idea, I thought we could leave the two of you out, do it behind your back, but it would be hard to explain all the cars on the street and a party you two were not invited to. I had visions of you breaking into the party and skewering both my balls.”

  She laughs. “Nah, just one. I’d rather have you with functioning body parts.”

  At the mention of said body part, it decides it’s a good time to make an appearance. Hard-ons show up at the most inconvenient of times.

  Now is not the time, dude!

  I send a mental note to my dick, but he’s having none of it. I know River can feel it, but far from pulling away as I thought she’d do in a moment like this, she actually pushes into me and grinds into my groin.

  I moan.

  Out loud.

  She giggles. I’m glad for the little bit of levity in this moment. And for the fact all of this doesn’t seem to be getting between us, between what we built over the last week. It’s so new and tender still. I fear something will change and send us back to ground zero. I just can’t let that happen. Over the last few months, River found her way into my life and under my skin. And I like it like that. As irritating as she can be, I miss her when she’s not around and my thoughts always drift back to her.

  A knock on the door has us both jumping. I push her behind me before opening it a crack. Logan. I open the door wider and the other cop is with him. They both walk in and Logan pushes the door closed.

  A whistle leaves the cop’s lips. “This is it? The whole setup?”

  “Yes. We have everything you need right here.” Logan points at the hard drive on the desk.

  “So, do you think it will fly? Can we claim we had security cameras to make sure no one stole anything?”

  “Yes. I believe you can. Lots of people have security cameras, both outside and inside their homes.”

  River, whom I was still hiding behind my back, steps around me, her hand extended to the cop.

  “Officer . . .”

  He smiles at her. “I’m sorry, didn’t see you there.” He takes her hand. “Officer Levy, but you can call me Steven.”

  I have the urge to punch him in the face as he smiles at River. Primal, caveman jealousy squeezes my chest and I wonder how much time I would get for sucker-punching a cop.

  What the fuck?

  Chapter Forty-Five

  It’s Mother’s Day and I know Mom will be at the very least wondering why we’re driving up today and not on Friday afternoon like we usually do when we go home.

  We discussed this at length. We know we have to tell our parents the truth, but we don’t want to do it now. Not on Mother’s Day. And next week is graduation. Not then either. We decided we would tell them after. A few days after when we go home over summer break. I’m going back to Riggins for a couple of summer classes for my masters and I’m still working at the clinic. Skye has a new editing job and her masters in English, which is a blend of online and once a month all-day Saturday classes. This will allow her to stay closer to Logan as well, and Liam and I will be in school at the same time.

  This arrangement works for everyone. Except our parents. I know they’re looking forward to having us home for the summer, but I also know they will support us in whatever decision we make. Plus, we need to stay close by in case the police need to speak to any of us.

  We talked for hours last night and we’re exhausted. But the police gave us a break today and we will pick up wherever they need on Monday. Logan’s friend, Steven Levy, is making sure to clean up all the loose ends. Skye declined a blood test, but between the drugs they found on Jon and the video where he talks about raping her and me, they have enough to hold him. Now we hope the other girls and the investigation show enough cause to charge him.

  There’s a knock on the door. It’s 8:00 a.m. and we have a couple hours ride ahead of us. The boys are here to pick us up. Despite the changes in their relationship with their mother, in light of everything that happened, they decided to come with us instead of going back to Connecticut to see their mom. They talked to her—that much I know. It’s a step in the right direction, but it will take time to heal their relationship. They can’t undo twenty-plus years of neglect over a few days. But there’s less tension for both of them when they talk about their mom. The father is another story. They haven’t mentioned him at all. As if by mutual agreement, no one has. The man simply no longer exists. It’s sad, but some people are toxic and they’re better off not having that kind of toxic relationship with their father.

  Skye makes it to the door and as soon as she opens it, her feet are off the floor and Logan has her in a bear hug. A smile makes its presence known on my face as I watch them and then turns into a full grin when Liam steps around Logan and makes his way to me. His hands cup my face, his touch gentle. His lips meet mine in a chaste kiss. I think I whimper in disappointment and Liam chuckles into my mouth before parting my lips with his and giving me what I want. He reads me so well.

  I don’t know who breaks the kissing first, us or Skye and Logan, but when we look at each other, there’s an awkward moment before we all laugh. I like this. I need this. We all do. We need this moment of levity. Last night was way more difficult than we had bargained for. Even though the plan worked, I’m worried about the price we had to pay to get him. To get Jon.

  The boys walked us back home at three a.m. and went back to their house to wrap things with the cops. Skye slept in my bed. We hadn’t done this since we were little kids and were scared after watching a horror movie.

  “Ready?” Logan asks.

  “We are.” I grab the bag of gifts Skye and I wrapped a couple of days ago. Liam takes it from me and laces his fingers through mine. After one last look around to make sure we didn’t forget anything we are on our way.

  The two-hour trip home is mostly quiet and all of us take naps in the truck. Logan and Liam insisted on driving and switched mid-way. When they switched, so did Skye and I. I sit on one end of the back seat, against the door, and Liam’s head is on my lap. I run my fingers through his hair and he’s having a hard time keeping his eyes open. I move my hands over his eyes gently and he flutters them closed. He’s sleeping seconds later. I can’t even imagine what we all will look like when we get home. A r
ag-tag team of tired people. I know my parents will notice right away. Mom, especially. She misses nothing. We told them we were at a graduation party and that’s the reason for not going home earlier. It is the truth. Sort of.

  But will she buy that’s all there was to it? We all look weary and every time our eyes meet, there’s a whole lot going back and forth between us. A whole silent communication. We may not be putting words to it, but there’s a lot being said. Worry, expectations, waiting.

  Now, we wait.

  And hope.

  Chapter Forty-Six

  It was about nine when we got home last night. We dropped the girls off and made sure they were okay and then went home. Logan has an early shift today. I feel for him. He didn’t get much sleep over the last few days. Neither did I, but I insisted on driving all the way back home, so he could nap in the back seat.

  Dinner at the farm was good but awkward. I give Serena and David a lot of credit for giving the girls and us the space we needed. I know my father would not have given a flying fuck about hurting my feelings and demanding to know what was happening. Either that or he’d ignore us completely. Concern for his children was not something he prioritized.

  It’s nearly noon now. I asked River to text me when she wakes up. This is graduation week and there are no classes. They’ve finished their finals. The girls don’t have to worry about moving out of campus housing since they have their own place. I have to go in and finalize a couple of things, get books and so on. If River is up, maybe she’ll go with me. I sit up to grab my phone from the night table and see if any messages came in when it rings in my hand. Logan.

  “Hey.”

  “They got him,” Logan says.

  “For real?”

  “Yes. Between the drugs they found in his pocket, the videos, and Skye’s testimony , along with ours, the judge denied bail.”