Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 70940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 236(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 70940 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 355(@200wpm)___ 284(@250wpm)___ 236(@300wpm)
My voice breaks and tears roll down my cheeks. I lean forward in my chair and grip my legs, sobbing violently. Magnolia comes rushing over, falling to her knees in front of me and we embrace, hanging onto each other because we’re all that’s left. “We’re going to be okay,” I sob, hanging onto her as she cries. “We’re going to be okay.”
I hold Magnolia until the tears dry up and our bodies stop shaking, only then do we stand and face the police officers walking our way. They stop and speak to King, who growls something at them before pointing over to us. The two men walk over and stop in front of us, their faces kind. “We’re so sorry to hear of your loss. Would you mind if we asked you a few questions?”
I glance at King, and his eyes are so intense, so broken, I almost feel sorry for him.
Almost.
Except this is his fault.
I look back to the officers. “We don’t mind.”
They lead us into a private room, and we all sit. I don’t know what I’m going to say, I don’t know how much information to give, but I do know I want my mother’s killers found, and if the police are going to be the ones to find them, then so be it.
“Can you tell us what happened, from the moment you arrived at the house?”
I swallow and take a deep breath.
“When I arrived, there were two men reversing out of the driveway in their car. They were just leaving.”
“Had you seen these two men before?”
“No.”
“Did they say anything to you?”
“No, they looked at me and then just sped off.”
“Are you able to describe them for us? Anything at all that you can remember about their appearances as well as the car?”
“I remember they both seemed tall, their heads nearly touching the roof of the car. One had blue eyes, really, really blue eyes, and blond hair. I don’t remember the other one. I don’t know the make of the car, but it was white, small, a hatchback of some sort maybe.”
“Did you happen to see the license plate?”
“No,” I whisper.
“That’s okay, please. Tell us what happened then.”
“I went into the house, I was worried. Those men didn’t look nice and I was concerned for my mom. I called out her name, but she didn’t answer. I stepped into the hallway and I saw ... I saw blood smeared on the wall.”
Magnolia makes a pained whine beside me, and I reach over, taking her hand. She hangs her head and cries, and I would do anything, anything in the world right now, to take that pain away for her. I’d take it on a thousand times over if it meant I didn’t have to see my baby sister the way I’m seeing her right now.
My heart is broken.
In so many different ways.
“It’s okay, take your time, there is no pressure,” the officer calmly says.
“I went into her room,” I go on, taking a deep breath, knowing more than anything in this moment that I have to be strong for Magnolia. I have to be the person she can rely on, because from this moment on, I’m all she’s going to have. “I heard a gurgling sound and realized she was alive, so I called paramedics and then I called her husband, King.”
“Did King arrive right away?”
“Yes.”
“Did he seem shocked at all? Concerned?”
“He seemed like he had seen a ghost, like the love of his life was dead in front of him. He didn’t seem like he had any clue it was going to happen.”
That doesn’t mean it’s not his fault it happened, though. Or the club’s fault.
“What happened after that?”
“We came here, and she passed.”
“Can you think of anything else you might have missed?”
“No, nothing. That was all I saw.”
The officer nods and stands. “If you remember anything else, please call us right away. We’re going to look into it. When you’re feeling okay, we do require you to come and make an official statement.”
I nod, glancing down at my hands and taking deep, shaky breaths.
“There is one more thing,” the officer says before walking away. “King is part of a motorcycle club; do you know if anything has been happening within that club that might have caused this death?”
For a moment, I freeze.
Every single part of me wants to scream what I know about Aviana, about the club, and about the fact that I blame King for all of this.
Yet something holds me back.
I don’t know what it is. Loyalty? Maybe? Knowing my mom wouldn’t want me to do it? Maybe. Not wanting to see anything happen to the man I love? Maybe.
All I know is that when I open my mouth, the truth does not come out. “No, I know nothing. As far as I know, this has nothing to do with the club. You’d have to speak to King about that. He loved her. He really loved her. He would never want her hurt.”