Page 144 of Ruthless Intent

“I’m sorry, I can’t. If you want that information, you’ll need to go down to the station and ask. I’m sure they’ll prepare a statement at some point.” I adjust my grip on Ashley’s hand, linking our fingers together, and ignore the way her eyes are boring into the side of my head. “Now, if you don’t mind, I really need to speak to my wife in private.”

I don’t wait for a reply, and stride away, pulling her along with me. Once we’re inside, I continue walking along the hallway until I reach the front door.

“Where are we going?”

“Back to my house.”

She stops. “I’m not going back there.”

“You’ll go wherever I tell you to go.” It’s an asshole statement, but I need to get out of here, and away from all the eyes watching us.

When she still doesn’t move, I sigh. “There are members of the TV crew out on the drive. You can walk out, or I can carry you out. Pick one. I’m sure the footage will be an extra bonus for the show.”

“Where’s my mom?”

“I’m not a mindreader. I have no idea.”

“I want to call her.”

“Fuck’s sake. Fine.” I take her cell out of my back pocket, find her mom’s number in the contacts list, and hit dial. Once it starts ringing, I toss it to her. “You have one minute.”

“Mom? Mom, where are you?” She doesn’t take her eyes off me. “No, no reason. I … I just wasn’t sure if you were coming to Zain’s parents’ place or not … Did you … What? No, I don’t know who’s been arrested.”

“Thirty seconds,” I murmur.

“I have to go …. Mom? Mom, listen to me … Married? What? Yes … I need to go. I’ll explain later, I promise.” She ends the call.

There’s movement behind her, and I look over her shoulder just as Marissa and my mom walk out of the living room. They must have taken refuge in there, out of the way. The second they spot Ashley, they stop.

“Where is she?” I need to make sure she doesn’t say anything that will give any indication to what’s really going on between us. Not while the other two women are standing there.

“At the antique store. She watched the interview on the television there. Who is?—”

I can’t allow her to finish that sentence, so I do what I need to do. “Mom. Marissa. Is everything okay?”

The color drains from Ashley’s face.

“Zain, no.” She mouths the words.

I ignore her, take the phone out of her hand, and cross the floor to stand in front of the two women. “I’m sorry I didn’t warn you in advance about the arrest.”

“Have you found the person who murdered my son?” Marissa’s voice is shaking.

“It’s a work in progress.”

“Who is it?”

I shake my head. “I can’t say. Not yet. The sheriff is still investigating some things, but I promise, I’ll tell you everything as soon as I can.”

“Zain, you should have said something. Dropping the news that someone is being arrested like that … without warning us. What were you thinking?” My mom’s voice on the other hand is sharp.

“Why the hell do you think I arranged the interview in the first place? It wasn’t to share recipes I might have learned while I was locked up. The entire point was to prove my innocence. Do you honestly believe that just because I’ve been released everyone has changed their mind about me? Do you think people don’t look at me when I pass them and wonder if I just had a better lawyer this time around? As soon as I had information on who might have done it, why the fuck would I stay silent? I couldn’t warn you. If anyone had overheard?—”

“Zain!” My dad’s voice booms out. “Enough. You’re upsetting your mother.”

I spin to face him. “It’s not intentional, I assure you.”

“Did you discuss this arrest with Peter beforehand?”

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