Page 41 of Knight

When Damien pulls into MOCHA’s parking lot, he’s right. It’s empty. No cars at all in sight. The lights inside the cafe are off. All except the ones above the bar. But I still have more questions like, “How are we getting in?”

“You’re from The Grove. Isn’t this what you do for fun? Why do you think you’re here?”

“To keep me away from Christian,” I spit back.

He doesn’t respond to that one but I see his muscles tense at the mention of his best friend. “We’ll go through Cindy’s bathroom window.” I didn’t even know she had her own bathroom.

After parking the car, he leads me around the back and I try to keep my eyes off his tight ass as I follow behind. When we get to Cindy’s window, it looks closed but he tugs it and it opens. Just like that. “She leaves her window open?” I ask, knowing exactly what that means back in The Grove: an easy payday.

Damien chuckles, “Pro tip, the folks around here don’t lock their windows. No need.”

“Right. Life of the rich and privileged.”

Damien holds out a hand and I stare at it before I say, “Don’t worry. This I know how to do.” With a boot pressing against the window frame, I hoist myself in. “Take your eyes off my ass, Damien.”

“Want to know what I’m thinking about?” he asks.

My feet land on the white tile in Cindy’s bathroom. “No.” But that’s a lie.

The bathroom is small, and I don’t turn on the light when I reach for the door to her office. Taking a look around the space, it’s as I remember. Clean. Ornate. Pink. Very Pink. Even with the lights off Cindy’s office looks like Barbie threw up all over it.

“I’m thinking about how good my cock feels inside you when you’ve got that plug shoved way up your ass.” His words land on my ear before I even register he’s behind me, heat flooding to my cheeks again. I’m glad he can’t make out that I’m blushing.

I fight through the memories, the good feeling of his hands on my skin. “And I’m thinking about how long it is before I’m on the shit end of your list again.”

“Check that cabinet behind her desk.” I’m not surprised he ignores that.

“You know I’m not here to take your orders,” I say, moving to the cabinet. Flipping through the files, I keep an eye out for anything suspicious. “I don’t even know why I’m helping you. What I should be looking for is—”

“This?”

When I turn around Damien has a file in his hand. I recognize it. The same one that was on Cindy’s desk when I worked here. I ask anyway, swallowing hard when I do, “And what’s that?”

“The police report from the night your parents died.”

“Th-the what?” My ears start to ring, the room becoming wobbly and I can’t tell if it’s the whiskey, or what Damien’s saying.

“The police report. The one I told you Lea saw. It’s how she knew there was more to your parents’ death than you know.” He tosses it on Cindy’s desk and I collapse into her chair. “She’s not great at keeping secrets; was right under some files on her desk.”

“You knew this was here?”

“No, but I thought there was a good chance.” He heads to the cabinet where I was and starts rummaging around.

Swallowing hard on the air in my throat, I stare at the page. The top reads, “The Glendale Grove Police Department Incident Report,” stamped in black ink. Pulling my phone from my pocket, I shine my light on it.

When I begin to read it through, the night comes flooding back.

Darkness.

Smoke.

Flames.

My chest feels as tight as it did that night, my eyes blurring out the words in front of me. When my gaze lands on a sentence, the room begins to spin.

“Intentional structure fire—arson.”

I must’ve said it out loud because his hand lands on my shoulder when a tear rolls down my cheek. I can’t tell if I’m angry or sad. Frustrated or shocked. I’m stunned. And I can’t find my words when Damien asks, “So … it’s true?”

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