Page 159 of Tainted

“You better make it home in one piece,” I warned.

“And leave you to feed my baby bullshit. Not a chance.”

He was trying to erase my fears, but no amount of banter would.

“Aye, Keith Sweat. Cut out all the begging so we can get back,” Nolan complained, tossing his trash and heading for the door.

“You better bring him home,” I threatened.

“Yes, ma’am.” Nolan nodded, and they went out the door.

32

Kenyon

“You good?” Nolan asked as we pulled up to Sydney’s parents’ house.

The last time I saw Sydney, we damn near tore each other apart, but she sounded terrified, and I couldn’t ignore that.

“Yeah, let’s get this over with.”

We crept to the front door, and it was unlocked. My instincts flared because something didn’t feel right. I moved deeper into the house, feeling like I was wading through thick air. The place was eerily quiet until I heard a muffled sob.

I stepped into the office, my eyes scanning every corner until I found Sydney crouched in the corner, shaking. John’s body was on the floor, with blood gushing from his head. For a second, I thought it was a setup, so I had Nolan tag along, but one look at Sydney, I knew it wasn’t a trap.

“What the fuck,” Nolan mumbled.

“He lied about everything. He lied to me.” Sydney’s voice was small and broken.

“About what?”

Her eyes flicked to the lifeless body of her father, then back to me.

“You were right. He made me talk about the miscarriage to win over voters.” She choked on a sob, her words spilling out in a rush. “We were arguing, and I lost it. I didn’t mean to push him. It was an accident!”

Nolan knelt beside the body, his eyes cold and calculating. “The longer he sits, the more likely evidence will poke a hole in anything we come up with.”

Sydney looked at him, her eyes wide. “What do I do? I can’t go to jail!”

I exchanged a glance with Nolan, and he nodded.

“We make it look like a break-in. Like you walked in and found him,” I said, my voice steady despite the adrenaline kicking in.

Her breath hitched. “But they’ll trace my phone. They’ll know I called you.”

“You were scared and panicked,” Nolan interjected, standing up. “We make it look like you heard something downstairs, called Keyes out of instinct. That’s the story.”

Sydney shook her head, fear breaking through her shock. “What if it doesn’t work? What if they figure it out?”

“They won’t if we do this right,” I assured her. “We’ll make it look like someone else was here. First, we have to tear the house up so it looks like a robbery gone wrong.”

Her eyes flickered with panic, and I could tell she was close to breaking down again. “You called me for a reason. So trust me, and let us do what we do best.”

Sydney swallowed, then nodded, her shoulders slumping in defeat. “Okay. What do I do?”

Nolan and I moved quickly, creating chaos and pulling drawers open. Meanwhile, Nolan started wiping down surfaces while Sydney stood there, frozen, watching us with wide eyes.

“Wait sixty seconds and call the police,” I nodded so she would too. “And when the cops check your phone, you’ll tell them you called me when you thought something was wrong. You heard a noise, panicked, and called me. They’ll buy it.”

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