Page 70 of Wrecked for Love
“Then why isn’t he in jail?”
“There wasn’t enough evidence. Almost none at all, actually.”
“But he confessed to me, Elia.”
He shook his head, frustration etched into his face. “I’m not trying to dismiss you, but your words won’t hold up in court. No witness, no proof.”
“It’s so unfair!” I snapped, my mind racing, desperate to figure out how to make my words matter.
“Claire, whatever happened to Armand, you’re not facing the Vosses again,” Elia said, his hand tracing slow circles on my back. “And you won’t be held responsible for any of this. I’ll see to it.”
“Yeah,” I sighed. I knew he’d try, but the risk of being branded a criminal loomed large. Still, I parked that thought. “Are you sure there’s nothing I can do for Tessa’s case?”
Elia drew in a deep breath. “Tessa…” He sighed painfully. “You know how it is. A heart wants what a heart wants. My sister was smart, so damn smart, but she had this on-again, off-again thing with Armand. I think part of her just needed space from the family. After Mom died, she was the glue holding us together. But I think she needed a break too, and unfortunately, she chose the wrong guy to find it with.”
“What was Armand’s excuse then? Did he just deny it all? Pretend they were never together?”
Elia shook his head. “No, he didn’t deny they were together. In fact, he used their relationship to defend himself. Said—” Elia’s voice wavered, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard. “There was no doubt Tessa was assaulted. But Armand…he had the nerve to claim that she just liked it rough. That was bullshit!” His words cracked like a whip.
I squeezed his hand, my thumb brushing over his knuckles, a futile attempt to soothe the ache in him. But what could I possibly do?
“And then,” Elia continued, his voice rough, “he said she overdosed, that she was heartbroken because he dumped her. But Tessa would never have touched drugs.Never.”
I shook my head, bitterness rising like bile. Justice…justice is a luxury, isn’t it? It isn’t a right, not in this world. The system is flawed—its cracks wide enough for men like Armand Voss to slip through. The truth is irrelevant when there isn’t enough proof. Justice isn’t blind—it’s selective.
After a stretch of silence, I asked, “What’s going to happen to me?” The memory of that hammer in my hand crept back.
“Nothing will happen to you,” Elia said, his words sharp, clear, and determined. His hand pressed firmly against mine, reinforcing every syllable. “The Vosses know Armand did something wrong. That’s why he wasn’t at The Willow when we got there.”
“I don’t know what I did exactly.” I strained my thoughts until a sting pinched behind my temple, but nothing came to me. “Now, I can’t even say for sure if he was dead when I left him.”
“You were in shock,” he said. “I won’t sugarcoat it. He might be dead. You don’t need to convince me of anything, Claire. You fought like hell. But you’re right. There’s a chance he’s still alive. And you know what? Something in my gut tells me he is. Even if he’s hurt, he’s still out there. Still breathing.”
“You sound so sure.”
“If he were gone for good, even if his family planned to deal with it in their way, they’d make sure the whole town knew. They’d justify whatever revenge they’re cooking up. A town like this can keep secrets, but the death of someone like Armand Voss won’t stay quiet for long.”
His words didn’t comfort me much. I knew Elia would fight for me, but at what cost? A new fear slithered inside me—a fear of what might come next, of how far this fight could go.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, Claire. He attacked you.” Elia’s voice was steady, but I nodded more out of instinct than certainty. For all I knew, I might still end up in jail. And if the mess I’d left behind in New York caught up with me, my life as I knew it would be over. It was a terrifying thought. Worse now, with Elia in my life—the love I never thought I’d have.
Elia’s voice broke through my spiraling thoughts. “The Vosses and the Lucases have been at each other’s throats for generations. They used to own the farm next to The Lazy Moose. They’d damage our fences and let their cattle graze on our land. Petty things. But when they hit financial trouble and had to sell, they didn’t leave. They just moved to the other side of Buffaloberry.”
His words hung heavy in the air before he carried on. “I never told you why my dad really died, Claire. He died of a broken heart. He adored Tessa—hell, we all did. But after she died, and they ruled it an accidental overdose, he just…stopped. Stopped working, stopped eating, stopped caring about anything. I tried everything to pull him out of it, but a year after we lost Tessa, we lost him too.”
My heart ached with his pain. I turned fully to face him, holding him as tightly as I could.
“What about your brother? He’s younger than you, right?”
“Noah…it was too much for him. He…he was the one who found Tessa. He was only fourteen.”
“Oh no…”
“Noah always felt left out, being the youngest. That day, he thought we were having a party at The Willow without him. We never let him go there—Tessa had rented it. But he was sure of it. So, he biked over, thinking he’d surprise us. Instead, he found her.”
Elia’s voice faltered, like the memory itself was tightening its grip on him. But he continued, “I can’t even imagine what that did to him. He hid for hours after that, riding his bike until he came to me, trembling. I thought he was pulling some prank, but when I got there, it all hit. We’d lost our sister.”
“Elia…” I sighed, his sorrow sinking into me. “That’s just…devastating.”
