Page 67 of The Black Lotus
“I was,” I say, keeping my voice neutral as Aster tenses beside me.I hope I didn’t just mess everything up.
“Can you tell me what happened?”
Sucking in a deep breath, I hold the air in my lungs before slowly breathing out my nose.Already threw myself under the bus, might as well tell half the truth.Deputy Wiley gets out his note and paper, ready to jot down everything I tell him.
“I was having coffee at a shop I frequent, and he found out where I was because I posted it on social media, which I have stopped doing because of that.”
Deputy Wiley freezes. “You’re saying he stalked you? Why would he do that?”
“He said he knew I was the last person who went on a date with his brother. He claimed he saw the footage of Aster at the end of our date and wanted answers.” I lick my lips, my nerves getting the better of me, and Aster places his hand on my lap, steadying me. “I told him I didn’t know anything since I left with Aster after their confrontation. Bradley didn’t like my answer and got threatening.”
The deputy looks up from his notes, the pen stopping mid sentence. “He threatened you?”
I nod and he begins writing again the anger coming off of Aster in waves. “The shop owner defused the situation, and I left but he chased after me. I managed to calm him down, somehow, before I gave him a hug and my apologies, then we went ourseparate ways. That is the last time I saw him.” Aster stays still as a stone taking in all of the information.
“Thank you.” He closes the pad and stands. “But I’m going to have to ask you to come down to the station for further questioning.” He looks at Aster. “Alone.”
Aster jumps to his feet, making Deputy Wiley step back from the look in his eyes. I stand, touching his arm and lightly shaking my head, mouthing, ‘it’s okay’, but Aster doesn’t relent, my anxiety growing with each tug of his arm.
“Why does she need to be questioned further when she answered all your ridiculous accusations?”
“I’m not accusing her of anything, Mr. Graves. I simply need to take her down to get every detail. The more information we have, the higher the possibility of finding the two brothers.”
“Fine. I’m coming with.” Aster states, grabbing my hand and turning towards the door.
“That isn’t necessary; we only need to question Ms. Raven for the time being.”
Aster steps towards the Deputy, hovering over him as if daring him to question his judgement.I need to defuse this situation.The worst thing that could happen right now is Aster getting arrested for putting his hands on a cop. Plus, if they had any actual evidence, they would arrest me already.
I wrap my fingers around Aster’s bicep and he whips around, fire blazing in his eyes. A tense silence passes between us, his rage meeting my calm, defusing the longer he looks at me.
“It’s okay,” I whisper, my thumb brushing against his skin. My eyes flinch towards Deputy Wiley. “Okay, I’ll come with you.”
He walks to the door with a stern nod, waiting for me as I stand on my tiptoes to whisper in Aster’s ear, “I’ll be okay; he’s a cop. They have nothing, right? Like you always say, ‘no body, no crime’.” I kiss him quickly, stopping at the doorway to give Aster a reassuring smile. “I’ll be back.”
He stands in our living room, his body as stiff as stone unable to do anything as he watches me walk to the deputy's unmarked cop car. He opens the back door for me, I hesitate before getting in and thanking him. He gives me a stiff smile and gets in the driver's side to start the car.
I look out the window and watch as Aster steps out onto the porch to watch me drive away. Even though I know I’m safe, something in the back of my mind screams at me not to trust the man I’m sitting behind.
“Deputy Wiley…” I start.
“Jason,” he interrupts. “You can call me Jason.”
“Jason. You were the cop that first questioned us about Bradley’s disappearance. right?”
“I was.” He glances at the rearview mirror.
I knew he looked familiar and not only because of his screen time on TV.
Even though I already know the answer, I murmur, “Can I ask what new evidence has surfaced on Tyler and Bradley’s disappearance?”
Silence greets me, and I take that as my answer until. “You really made this too easy. You’re too trusting of the law.”
All the color drains from my face, and I reach for the handle, pressing my back against the seat. “What do you mean? Where are you taking me?
He glances at me, his knuckles white against the steering wheel. “You can’t escape. I’m the only one who can open your door. So sit back and get comfy until we get to our destination.”
We pass the police station, driving out of the town towards the unknown, every hair on my arm standing on edge. “Where are you taking me?” I yell, banging against the iron gate that separates us as I look for my phone before remembering I left it in our room.That’s why we didn’t know anyone entered the property.
