Page 1 of Taming Liberty

1

Angel

“Lib!”

I call her name a second time while striding toward the open door leading to the balcony.

She doesn’t turn to look at me, but then again, I don’t expect her to. She’s been dodging me for days. My biggest surprise is that she isn’t trying to get away from me now. Instead, she stands still, gripping the railing and peering down at the ground two stories below.

“Lib, we need to talk,” I say, my tone hard and commanding as if that will do the trick.

My shoe crunches when I step through the door, and I look down at a pile of dirt and a broken flowerpot. A putrid smell slaps me in the face, sending my hand lifting to cover my nose on impulse. I spot the source of the smell … vomit mixed in with the soil and yellow, battered flowers.

My eyes shoot back to Lib, but I look past her when I register the loud voices below.

“Lib?” I call again, my voice quiet now, no longer demanding attention but seeking answers.

She spins to face me, her baby doll lingerie fluttering. Her eyes glisten with unshed tears, and blood caking her nostrils stands out on her ghostly white face. Her hands shake at her sides.

“Angel,” she whispers. She turns to look at the ground below, then back to me, her head shaking profusely. “I didn’t mean to.”

The hairs on the back of my neck raise, and I look over my shoulder at the men storming our way. On instinct, I slam the door closed.

I rush to the edge of the balcony and peer over the side. My eyes widen when I spot a woman lying motionless on the patio. Her head rests in a pool of blood that seems to grow in the seconds that tick by. I can make out long blonde hair and a neon orange dress, but I can’t see the woman’s face. Still, I don’t have to guess too hard at who it is.

My lungs seize, morphing from sacks of air to cinder blocks. I blink, and Desiree’s body is no longer there. It’s Beth’s, and for a moment I don’t have to spare, I’m back there all over again.

I blink again in an attempt to change the image, as if I’m looking through a kaleidoscope.

“It was an accident,” Lib says, her voice trembling. “I didn’t mean to…”

I drag my eyes from the dead woman on the ground to Lib. Her arms are wrapped around herself as she looks between me and the guards on the other side of the glass balcony doors. They stare with enraged faces but stay put, regardless.

How the hell am I going to handle this?

I look down at the body again... Still Beth. I rub my eyes, willing my mind to stop tricking itself, but the image doesn’t change. It’s Beth’s long black hair that’s matted with blood.

“Pleasehelp me,” Beth begs, her soft lips brushing my ear. I close my eyes.

“Angel.”

At the tug on my sleeve, my eyes shoot open. I turn to Lib, flicking my gaze between her face and her dainty hand on my arm.

“Please,” she says, and it’s just now that I realize the voice wasn’t in my head, and it didn’t belong to Beth. It’s Lib.

She needs my help.

I swallow and blink a few times, the noise around me suddenly intensifying as I come back to the present.

I turn to Lib and cup her face in my hands. “I did this. I’m the one who pushed her over the ledge, do you understand?”

She studies my eyes for a moment, then nods.

“We need to go.” I look at the men through the glass. “Now.”

I take Lib’s hand and drag her toward the door before flinging it open and stepping back inside the manor. She hides behind me, latching onto my back with her trembling hands digging into my shoulder blades.

“What happened?” Sawyer asks, appearing at the back of the crowd.

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