Page 4 of Framed

Just then, a familiar voice—a voice that haunted my dreams—cried out, sounding agonized.“You murdered our baby girl!”

Those were the same words she said to me at the station the night I got arrested. I suppressed a shudder as the camera panned to Veronica Stewart. I’d recognize Naomi’s mother anywhere, even after all this time. She looked paler I remembered and her eyes had permanent bags underneath them, but otherwise, she hadn’t changed. Mr. Stewart held her back, but only barely.

“You monster!”

“Come on, Veronica.”Mr. Stewart tried to pull his wife back to their black SUV. His arm was wrapped tightly across her stomach but he seemed to be struggling to just keep her locked in that simple embrace.

A consummate politician himself, I couldn’t imagine William Stewart was pleased about the display his wife was making. He was always so concerned about appearances, when it came to Naomi especially.

For a second, I couldn’t do anything but stare at the TV. At these ghosts from my past who’d suddenly reappeared. The reporters were still talking, but their voices faded to a buzz in my ears, barely audible. I was entranced, unable to tear my gaze from the tiny screen.

Those words replayed in my head, over and over.

Jonathan Sinclair has been arrested in connection with an old case involving Naomi Stewart, a local teen who was brutally murdered a few summers ago.

What evidence could they possibly have against Jonathan Sinclair? I’d never seen Naomi and Jonathan interact outside of the holiday parties her family threw.

Also…What does this mean for me?

No. I wouldn’t allow myself to hope until something had been officially confirmed. An arrest was just that; an arrest. Jonathan might walk right back out of the station tomorrow a free man. I could not allow myself to hope yet.

I can’t.

I’d been down that road early on, back when I was at the Juvenile Center. When I was seventeen, new evidence popped up and my lawyers were hopeful that they would be able to get my case reviewed. They were hopeful that the newly appointed judge would sympathize. We were in the middle of going over the new appeal motion when my lawyers got a call stating that the evidence had been “tampered with” and couldn’t be used.

Wanna take a guess what the weather was like that day?

Fate: 4

Scarlett: 0

Just like any other somewhat sane person would have, I didn’t take that loss well. The weight I carried for something I didn’t do finally started to get to me. Losing that appeal, getting that evidence destroyed, was the last straw. It finally broke me. I spent countless days locked inside my cell, crying until I ran out of tears, and trying desperately to cling to the glimmer of hope that nestled deep inside of me.

For a long time, I lost sight of that glimmer. Now, when I finally caught a hint of its brightness again, I wanted to snuff it out. I’d do anything to avoid getting my hopes crushed again.

The lock to the communal room buzzed. A few seconds later, a guard appeared at the door, breaking my trance. I shook my head and straightened, trying to reorder my scattered thoughts.

“Hey Athena,” Sally said, getting up to embrace the guard.

But Athena shook her head. It was fast and subtle but we both caught it. Sally halted in mid-stride and shifted her gaze back to me. Her blonde brow rose questioningly as if I might know the answer to why Athena had stopped her.

If I had to take a wild guess, I’d put all of my commission on something to do with what just transpired on the news. But I didn’t say that. Instead, I offered her a shrug.

Sally often jumped to very rash conclusions without hearing all of the facts and I didn’t want to rattle the girl.

“Rose, come with me,” Athena said. The heavy undertone in her strong southern accent, not to mention her usage of my last name, made me uneasy. “Briggs needs to see you.”

Athena rarely referred to us by our last names when she was here alone. The only time she did was when her boss, Chief Administrator Aaron Briggs, was in. Normally, Athena was a calming, grounding force for many of us. She was one of the good guards, who never treated us like animals in cages. She looked out for us a lot in the beginning. Being a sweet lady from Savannah, Georgia she sometimes snuck us books, snacks, and even fought Briggs to allow me to take a few online classes from the local university after I got my GED.

As time passed, she had become like a second mom to me and Sally. I came here with a reputation because of the fights I used to get into at the Juvenile Center. But the vibe here was completely different. I never felt like I needed to fight or prove myself to anyone. The women here were family and I could say I’d learned a lot from them over the years. They’d also kept me on the straight and narrow.

Which was why I was so confused now. Why would Briggs want to seeme?

Aaron Briggs was one sadistic son of a bitch. Not someone you’d want to request you personally.Did I do something?I couldn’t think of any reason I’d suddenly wind up on his bad side.

“What’s going on Athena?” It was my turn to raise an eyebrow, and the uneasy feeling in my stomach churned. I knew today was going to be a bad one from the moment I woke up. Now I was about to find out how bad.

I racked my brain, searching through all of my recent memories to try to find something I could have possibly done to get myself in trouble.

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