Page 79 of Her Alien Neighbor

I should not have said anything at all. It was too soon, and the timing was atrocious. Vanessa will forever remember my declaration of love being tied to Trevor’s death. The romance of that moment being completely negated.

What a foolish decision that was.

“All will be well, brother,” Mylo says, looking at me with warmth in his silver eyes.

“That is kind of you to say, but I am not so sure.”

“You assume the worst,” Mylo adds. “This situation is certainly bad, but we will find our way out of it. We always do.”

“I know that is why Luka refuses to speak to us, but we could really use him right now,” I say, thinking about our time in Boston before we moved here. We found ourselves in a similar predicament when he was courting Harper, and though we were merely trying to protect her, the end result was the same as it is now: the death of a human and a frantic scurry to cover it up.

“He will come around.”

I jerk my head in Mylo’s direction. “How can you be so sure? What incentive does he have to help us at all?”

Mylo huffs a breath, a thoughtful expression flashing across his face. “I just know. We are a lucky bunch. We are lucky we survived the crash, and Luka is lucky he found Harper. Our luck has continued as long as we have been on this planet. I know it will continue.”

Over the next twenty-four hours, Mylo, Zev, and Kyan are taken in for questioning, and I am taken in again, essentially to repeat what I already told them about the night at Tipsy’s.

We continue calling Luka, but he never answers.

It feels as if our luck has run out.

CHAPTER 22

VANESSA

It’s been two days since the police questioned Axil, and one day since he was questioned a second time. I’m starting to freak out. What if they’re getting closer to the truth? What if someone saw him out there with Trevor? What if someone heard Trevor screaming?

I can’t bring myself to consider what could happen beyond them charging Axil with murder, because the moment I do, images of test tubes and needles flood my mind. I picture Axil lying unconscious, strapped to a bed while experiments are being done on him and his brothers. I would never forgive myself if they were discovered. Forget going to jail for murder. This would be so much worse.

And all because of me. Because Axil wanted to protect me.

Then my mind drifts back toWhat the hell is wrong with me?for wanting Axil as much as I do, considering he confessed to murdering Trevor. And then said he loved me in the same breath. My skin shouldn’t have felt like it was on fire as Axil described what he did to Trevor.

I should’ve been afraid. Disgusted. Horrified. I should’ve booked it out of there as fast as I could and stayed far away from Axil. That’s how a normal person would react, right?

Yet, even after a few days to process his revelation, I’m not afraid, disgusted, or horrified. Not at all. If anything, I’m in awe. His declaration of love stole my breath. No one has ever said such beautiful things to me before. I’ve heard “I love you” from guys I’ve dated, but it always felt flat and obligatory. Axil’s was neither. It was real, and what I have with him feels like the kind of love I assumed didn’t exist. The kind of love that was too good to be true.

So why is it so hard for me to say it back? To tell him that I love him, too, and that I want to spend the rest of my life with him? I should’ve said it. He should know how I feel. How I’ve felt since…since, well, I’m not sure when it happened, exactly, but somewhere along the way, I fell madly in love with Axil Monroe.

I wanted to tell him. I almost did too. But just as I opened my mouth to let the words out, the doorbell rang, and Officer Burton took Axil away.

Maybe I should just call Axil now and tell him what I couldn’t in the moment. As I reach for my phone off the nightstand, it buzzes, causing me to jump.

Sam:Funeral is today. You sure we shouldn’t go?

Me:Yes, we definitely need to skip it. That’s the number one thing I learned from crime shows. Murderers tend to show up at their victims’ funerals. We can’t be anywhere near there.

Sam:Okay, but we’re not murderers. And it seems like the entire town is going. Wouldn’t it look weirder if we were the only ones not in attendance?

Me:I see what you mean, but I still think it’s a bad idea. I can’t face Beth right now.

Sam:BTW, should we be saying all of this over text? Want me to call you?

Me:LOL, well, too late now.

Sam:Fair point. I don’t even know what I’d say to Beth. I feel so bad for her daughters, though who knows what role Trevor played in their lives or how much he was involved.

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