Page 18 of Lies Beneath Secrets

“Just the one. Her name is Gabby, and she just turned five.”

“Employed?” I roll my eyes at her now.

“You don’t need to keep answering her,” I say, making him chuckle.

“I am. Own my own business actually. Have for years now. Sort of an import-export kind of thing. Lots of companies hire us to haul and protect their cargo.” That answer is about as vague as the sales answer he gave for Knox. I only have the capacity to deal with one lie at a time though.

“That sounds very interesting. You’re her neighbor then?” Conner nods in response.

“Leah, that’s enough. I know you haven’t been sick. What did he do to you?” I level her with a stare, and she goes silent. “You’ve never gone that long without returning my calls.”

“Lauren, please.” She tries to get me to stop talking, but I can’t. I know deep down, something happened.

“No. Tell me. I swear, Lee, if that fucker?—”

“Stop it!” she yells, smacking her hand on the table. “That’s enough, okay? Yes, we got into a fight. Is that what you want to hear? We got into a fight. I threw my phone, and it broke. I should have a new one today. Happy now?”

“No, I’m not happy. I’m not happy at all. Not when I know something is happening with my sister.” Leah sucks in a deep breath, then slowly lets it out.

“I appreciate that you’re trying to look out for me, but, Lauren, I promise you I have things under control. You don’t need to worry.” I shake my head in defeat. I know darn well I won’t get her to admit anything further. I’m not sure why I even tried.

“Fine,” I say after a brief moment of silence. Then decide to relent and change the subject. “How’s my nephew?”

CHAPTERTHIRTEEN

Con

They start talking about the kid, and I watch Leah’s face brighten a little bit. I can’t help but notice how pale she is and how slow her movements are. Granted, this is the first time I’ve seen the woman, other than in that picture, but I still can tell when someone is in pain. I’ve put people in that much pain before. I also know what someone looks like when they’ve lost a lot of blood. I also know what a place smells like when copious amounts of blood have been cleaned up. The hint of bleach in the air lets me know that this kitchen has been scrubbed down very well. This place is spotless too. Which gives me another clue as to what their fight could have been about. Men who thrive off power like things a certain way, and if that isn’t completed, they tend to take it out on someone. That someone is Lauren’s sister. These women really do look so much alike. Leah has a few wrinkles around her eyes and is a good five inches taller, but she damn near could pass as Lauren’s twin if she put on a pair of black-framed glasses. Their mother must either have strong genes, or she was hiding the fact that these women in front of me have the same father. Who the fuck that could be is the question.

CHAPTERFOURTEEN

Lauren

“Thank you for bringing me today.” Conner nods as he puts the truck in park. “I know she wasn’t telling me the whole story.”

“Maybe she just isn’t ready to talk about it,” he says. “You two seem to have your own way of dealing with things.”

“What makes you say that?” I narrow my gaze at him.

“I—”

“Never mind.” I stop him from talking and shake my head, then get out of the truck. The last thing I want to do is have a debate with someone I barely know about me and my sister. “I really appreciate the ride. I’ll see you around, okay?” I force a smile and shut the door behind me. He didn’t pick up Gabby before coming back here, so I know he won’t be following me inside.

“Fucking men,” I grumble to myself, slamming my apartment door shut behind me. I turn around and secure all the locks I recently screwed into my door. They’re more for tricking my brain into thinking I’m safe. Deep down, I know that if anyone wanted to get inside, one really good slam to the door would knock it to the ground.It’s happened before.

Tossing my purse to my couch, I flop down, sink into the cushions, and turn on my TV for some background noise. I adjust a little on the couch and right my glasses that got pushed out of place when I lay down. It’s still fairly early in the day, and the longer I sit here staring at the TV, thinking about my sister, the stronger my urge to go to my room and find my lighter is.

“Fuck,” I groan and get up from the couch, going to my kitchen instead. I open my freezer and pull out the new bottle of vodka I put in there last week. It’s already half empty. Walking back over to my couch, I unscrew the cap and take a seat and a few sips of the clear liquid. This vise isn’t much better but it’s the only thing that stops me from using the lighter on myself.

* * *

I wake up to the slamming of a door, followed by yelling. I can’t quite make out the words being yelled. Only that it’s my neighbors doing the yelling. Once again, they’re fighting. The vodka did its job, and I fell asleep while zoning out at my TV. “You’re a fucking whore!” I hear plain as day through the floor. The guy is louder this time. There’s a crash after the yelling, then a scream. I’m about to reach for my phone and call 911 when a knock comes from my door.

“Lauren, open up please,” Conner yells from the other side. I quickly get up and turn all the locks on the door, swinging it open to find him standing there with Gabby.

“Can you watch her for a few minutes? I’m going to take care of that bullshit down there.” I’m about to tell him that I was dialing the police, but I don’t get the chance. He shuffles Gabby into my apartment and closes the door shut behind her. “Lock that door!” he yells out, and I hear his footsteps thunder across the hallway. Gabby looks up at me with tears in her eyes, and my heart cracks in two.

“Hey, do you like music?” She doesn’t answer; she just stands there clutching her little stuffed black horse. “Watch this, it’s like magic. Alexa, play some music,” I say aloud, and the voice comes out across the speaker.

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