Page 7 of The Billionaire's Commitment

“No. There was something about the guy that I trusted. I might be new, but you learn pretty quickly when someone is lying or if they aren’t. I didn’t think he was lying. He was scared about going to jail, but I honestly think he had some information.”

“Did you talk to him? Did he tell you anything?”

“That’s why I’m here. I told him I needed something to go with, not just a promise of something. I asked him to at least tell me when he knew, and I could try and help him out. He said he had been in a holding cell with a guy, and he had bragged about killing a woman. Well, he used another word, but I won’t say it. Mr. Blackwell said the guy was going off about how he couldn’t trust women and how you had to put them in their place. The guy then said how he thought he had found the perfect woman and had followed her for days. When he tried to talk to her, she pushed him away. It was then that he said he had to teach her a lesson. He said he stabbed her in the back like the witch that she was.”

“Did he say who the woman was?” Eric asked slowly.

“Yes. I’m sorry, but he said it was your sister, Lauren.”

“There has been a lot of publicity about this; he could have just been saying it to get our attention. Why did you come to Amber? Why are you here with us?”

“It’s because of the man he was talking to. I went to Amber because she had been the defense attorney assigned to his case. Samuel Denton,” Zoey said.

Chapter 4

Zoey

It was easy to see that this group was close. It wasn’t just the three men who looked like they could not only finish each other's sentences but read each other’s thoughts. There was a comfort with Grace when she looked and talked to the other men besides Eric. It was evident to see that they not only liked her but they respected her. It wasn’t the same with Amber, but she was still accepted as part of the group.

The intimidation wasn’t as intense the second time I walked in. I had come to tell them what I knew. The information that I had could possibly help bring a killer to justice. At the moment, that was all that mattered, not Brody and how he didn’t look at me or my fear of looking like a fool. I would say my piece and be done with it.

If I had to deal with a few burly guys who looked like they could kill me, bury the body, and not break a sweat, that was for me to deal with, not them. They were actually nice, or at least not as formidable as they had originally seemed.

I had done my research before I came and knew that Lauren was Eric’s sister. Even if I hadn’t, it would have been plain to see that he was the one who was the most invested in what I had to say. He had been kind enough to see that I was nervous and gave me the time to lead up to what I needed to tell them. I could sense his frustration and his need to get to the point, but he didn’t rush me.

He almost made me feel comfortable, and after the beer went straight to my head, it was easier to talk to him. They were all that way. Amber stayed close to me, almost like a buffer between me and the rest of them. Grace was kind, and I wondered if we had met under different circumstances if we could be friends. Logan was funny, and it made me like Amber more to see the two of them together.

Brody, however, was a different story. He hadn’t looked at me since I had first walked in and barely took the time to say hello. He didn’t say how he knew me or even try to ask about me. It only showed me he hadn’t changed since we were younger and wanted nothing to do with me. He looked more like he was bored with what was going on, and if it weren’t for the occasional looks he gave Eric or Grace, I would have thought he didn’t care.

“Blackwell said it was Samuel Denton who he was talking to?” Eric asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“When?” Brody asked.

“When did he tell me, or when did Mr. Blackwell get the information?” I asked.

“You said you talked to Blackwell a few weeks ago,” Brody stated and gave me a look like I was an idiot.

“I was making sure I understood your questions.” I wasn’t sure what was worse, him staring at me like he had never seen me before or him browbeating me with his questions and accusations. “Mr. Blackwell said they were in a holding cell together sometime in April of this year.”

Logan and Amber looked at each other, and she nodded. Grace and Eric exchanged looks, and I looked over at Brody to see him looking away from me and shaking his head.

“Did I say something wrong? I came to Amber because she had been involved with Mr. Denton. I tried to contact his lawyer, but he wouldn’t return my calls. My boss wouldn’t listen to me either. I’m sorry if this wasn’t something I should have told you. I thought it was,” I said.

Logan reached across and put his hand on top of mine. “You did the exact right thing. It’s unimaginable to think that no one would believe you and what you’re saying. We do, and we will do something about it.”

“Thank you,” Eric said.

“For what?” I asked.

“For coming forward, for talking to us, for having the courage to do it. You could have just decided not to do anything with this information. You could have figured that if no one wanted to talk to you about it, it wasn’t worth talking about. This is important to us; finding Lauren’s killer is important to us. Any information you have will be gladly taken,” Grace said.

“What she said,” Eric said and smiled at her.

“Thank you for believing me. Do you think he’s the one who killed Lauren, not just some guy trying to get some attention?”

“Denton was arrested, and it sounds like he met Blackwell before we went public about Lauren’s murder. The only way that Denton would have known about it was if he had done it. Also, how Lauren died was not released to the public. The only way that Denton or Blackwell could have known that was if they were talking to the killer,” Logan said.

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