Page 61 of They Will Fall

I stop reading there, although there are many more pages of statements from other witnesses.

I don’t remember any of this. My eyes close as I try to go back to that day, but my mind won’t allow it. I’ve repressed it so much that I don’t think I could remember, no matter how hard I try. I don’t think I want to either.

“All done.” Ridge’s voice comes from behind me.

“Get Maddox on the phone. Now.” I slam the papers back into the tote. “Son of a bitch!”

“Sure. Okay.” A second later, I hear him say, “Hey. Lev wants to talk.” Then he hands me the phone.

I snatch it from Ridge’s hand, my mind in a whirlwind. “The night of the dance…that night…who all was at my house when you walked there after the dance?”

“Shit, man. I can hardly remember. Um, aside from the police and ambulance, all I remember seeing is your neighbor, who put a blanket over you on the steps.”

“Then you called your dad, and he and your mom came and picked you and Ridge up, right?” I ask with panic flooding my veins.

“Yeah. Yeah, I definitely remember that.”

“Did your dad act shocked in any way when you told him what happened?”

“Pretty sure it was my mom I talked to when I called, but yeah, they were both beside themselves. Everyone was shocked. Where’s all this coming from?”

I reach back into the tote and pull out the entire stack of papers, then I stand to face Ridge. “I think whatever your dad is hiding is somehow connected tothat night.” I shuffle through the papers and pull out the witness statement from Maddox’s dad, then I hand them to Ridge.

“No shit?” Maddox sighs. “I thought for sure whatever he was hiding had to do with Governor Saint.”

“I would put money on the fact that he was involved with my parents’ death somehow and Governor Saint was protecting whatever he did,” I tell him. “And if I find out it really did...” As I grip the phone, my hand trembles because I know, in my bones, whatever we are about to find is going to change everything.

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Maddox says. “At this point, I’m starting to believe he’s just as bad as the rest of them. Finish up there, then hurry up and get back here so we can figure this shit out.”

“We’re done here. We’re on our way.” I end the call and gesture Ridge toward the door while I grab the whole damn tote. He walks as he reads with his mouth hung open. I’m ready to get the fuck out of this house. It holds so many of my nightmares but could never touch the worst one. I can feel my heart racing in my chest, my knuckles white from how hard I’m gripping the tote in my hands, knowing they hold the answers to the questions I’ve been drowning in for the past few years.

CHAPTER21

RILEY

“This is unreal.”I shake my head in utter confusion as I pass the papers back to Lev. “How are you doing with all this?” It’s a stupid question and I wish I hadn’t asked it.

“I’m okay,” he says softly.

“No, you’re not,” I argue. “No one in your situation would be okay.” I take his hand from across the table. “I know you’re probably not ready, but I’m here if you wanna talk about it.”

I fell asleep while getting a back rub from Maddox and woke up to the sound of shit breaking downstairs. When I got down there, I saw Maddox beating the fuck out of everything in his dad’s office. Now, Ridge is inside calming Maddox down and I’m sitting in a chair in the backyard with Lev. He filled me in on everything, then handed me proof that Maddox’s dad lied in his witness statement. I don’t think any of us should jump to conclusions and automatically assume he did something terrible, but we also can’t figure out why he’d have Lev’s sister’s blood on his shoes—and then lie about it.

“He did it,” Lev says out of nowhere, his head shaking at his own disbelief. “I can feel it. Maddox’s dad fucking murdered my family.” Before I can even register what's happening, Lev's chair is screeching across the patio, and when he jumps to his feet, it tips over. The sound of metal colliding with the cold concrete reverberates off the surrounding trees and my body jolts at the loud thud.

I can see in his eyes he wants to run. He wants to fight and kill the man that did this. Hell, I want to do the same. Instead, he clenches his fists then walks back and forth on the patio, from one end to the next, and I wait with bated breath for him to say something. He needs to get out his pain instead of holding it in. After reading through all of this, I’m sure the only thing he can do is let his mind keep replaying that day as he tries to put together all the pieces.

“There’s no way he was there,” he finally says, his hand running through his hair and his eyes downcast. “I’d remember seeing him. Maddox’s parents didn’t show up until after the medics and police arrived.”

“I believe you,” I tell him honestly. “Now we just have to figure out why he was there, and why he lied.”

“He was making it look like I did it. That’s what he was fucking doing. But somehow, throughout all the statements, he failed.”

“Lev,” I say his name softly, as if I’m trying to calm a wolf whose teeth are already bathed in blood. His eyes lift and I ask, “Do you really think Maddox’s dad killed your family?”

There’s not a bit of hesitation when he says, “Yes.”

“Then let’s fucking prove it and destroy that son of a bitch.”

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