Page 77 of Liam
She frowned when something she couldn’t place flashed through his eyes.
“Did he have any useful information?” she asked.
His jaw tightened. “He was given the exact location of where you’d be sitting in the coffee shop thirty minutes before he did the drive-by.”
Her mouth dropped open. How was that—
“Someone saw her in there,” Cody said, anger rippling through his voice.
Liam nodded. “Highly likely.”
She shook her head. “That doesn’t make sense. Wouldn’t Jason or Cody have seen someone watching me?”
The guys shared a look between them before Cody answered. “Unless it was someone you know.”
She studied her brother, his words replaying in her head.
“Someone with resources,” Jason added.
Who were they—
Suddenly, it hit her. She shook her head, voice lowering to a whisper. “No. You’re talking about Officer Carlson, right? No.” She shook her head again, as if to confirm how much of a no it was.
Liam frowned. “You saw Carlson today?”
“Yes, he picked up El.”
“When?” Liam asked.
“Half an hour before the shooting,” Cody said, Jason nodding to confirm it.
Her chest tightened, an uncomfortable pit forming in her belly. “There could be another answer to this,” Nylah whispered, even though Officer Carlson wasn’t even on the scene. “I think El would be smart enough to see that side of him if it existed.” She turned to look at Courtney. “Don’t you agree?”
The woman lifted her shoulders, uncertainty rolling over her features. “I don’t know. Unfortunately, I think it’s pretty easy for people to hide their true nature.”
“What about the tattoo?” Nylah tried. “If he’s part of this group, he’d have a tattoo.”
“We can ask El,” Courtney said. “Maybe ask her if Carlson has a tattoo without giving away why we’re asking.”
It felt wrong, like they were tricking their friend. But if it would help?
When she saw the expression on Liam’s face, she frowned. “There’s something else, isn’t there?” At the small click of his jaw, she knew she was right. “What?”
For a moment, he was silent, and that silence killed her.
She touched his chest. “Liam…tell me. Please.”
“He said the reason you’re a target is because you have the ability to expose their leader and destroy whatever they’re planning.”
She almost stumbled back a step. Liam’s arm tightened around her.
“That’s not true,” she argued. “I don’t know anything about any of this!”
When Liam remained silent a beat too long, when his eyes ran over her face and his entire focus seemed to center on her voice, her features… Nylah’s heart cracked.
He was looking for a lie.
She stepped out of his arms, her next words whispering out of her. “You think I’d lie about this?”
