Page 67 of When It Rains He Pours

“Wait, what are you doing? I didn't do anything wrong! You're arresting the wrong person! Arrest him, arrest Jacob!”

“I suggest you shut your mouth for now.” Resting his hand on my head, he pushed me down into the cruiser and closed the door.

“No! Let me out!” Wiggling and bending my arms, I tried to work them free. It was useless.

The cop looked down on me through the glass, his lids half shut. “Just hang out here for a minute, I'm going to go talk to him and find out what's going on exactly.” Turning away from me, the man started walking.

“No, talk to me, I'll tell you the truth!” He ignored me, walking with ease back to my brother. “He's a liar! Don't believe anything he says! He did this, he did all of this! He burned the building down, it was him!”

Nothing. It didn't matter what I said, the cop refused to listen.

I watched as my brother made pained faces, his body language slow and sour as the cop asked him questions and he gave bullshit answers. Jacob looked beyond the officer, his eyes twinkling with delight as the cop ate up his story.

Motherfucker! You motherfucker!

Shaking my head, all I could do was sit stagnant in the back of the car, unable to defend myself on how this fight came to be. I wanted to break through the glass and strangle him as his eyes teared with fake emotion and his lips folded up like he was the one who had been the victim there.

The real victim was laying in the hospital, her life almost lost to his actions, to his selfishness. Glory was the one who had been wronged and hurt, not my brother.

The officer nodded, rolling his shoulders forward and helping Jacob up off the ground. Jacob shook his head no as the cop spoke. I had no clue what he was saying, but whatever it was the man was eating out of the palm of his hand.

The policeman stalked back to the car, opening his door and climbing in the front. “Well, get comfortable, it looks like you're about to have a long night.”

“Whatever he told you, he's lying. Not one word out of his mouth is true.”

“Mr. Barnes, I suggest you save it for the interview room.”

“Are you arresting me?” I asked, my voice demanding and confused.

How can you do this to me? I didn't do anything wrong!

The cop glanced back at me through his rear view mirror. “Right now we're just going to the station to talk a little more.”

“If you're not arresting me, then let me out.”

“I can't do that, we need to clear up some things first. And the best place to do that isn't here, it's at the station.”

“Do I need my lawyer?”

“Well, that's up to you. But assault is a serious charge, and like I said, you're not under arrest—yet.”

Shutting my mouth, I didn't utter another word. The anger I felt before only grew, this entire thing had been flipped around and it appeared that I somehow had found my place at the bottom of the pile.

I didn't give a shit what the cops might think, I didn't care what Jacob had told him.

The truth would come out and when it did, I wouldn't be the one peering out from behind the looking glass.

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