Page 87 of Hunting the Truth
“What do you want to know?” he asked.
“I know Abigail planted evidence, but I also know you were there the night my mother died. And probably when Nana died too. Why were you there? Why didn’t you stop Abigail? You’re just as guilty as her.”
Chapter Forty-Four
Eric went over to a rock, sat down and put his head in his hands, rubbing his face. Maya thought he had aged right in front of her. The arrogant man who had led her on chases through the forest and messed with her was no longer there. Instead, he was just someone who looked defeated.
“Tell me the truth. Please,” she pleaded. “I understand everything else. I believe you about Abigail, but I don’t understand you. You were watching me. You could have killed me, but you didn’t. What’s the deal with you?”
“There’s more to the story,” Eric finally said. “First, I need to know, are you going to arrest me too?”
“Yes,” Maya said. “You’re still a wanted felon. I can help clear you of the murders, but there’s other crimes you should do time for.”
Eric stood back up and took in the waterfall. “I know I should go to prison. I understand where you’re coming from, but if I serve time, there’s no one to protect you.”
“Protect me? Why would I need that?”
Eric sat back down. “When your mother decided she wanted to go home, she made a deal with Abigail and made me swear that I would protect you if anything happened to her. I agreed and then helped her buy a bus ticket so she could take you home. But as you know, Abigail killed Zoey and she wants to kill you too.”
“We have Abigail handcuffed, though. She’s going to prison, so I don’t need your help.”
“Abigail still has her loyal people and she could easily talk her way out of prison, especially with the lawyers she knows. You may never be out of danger and I’ll certainly be killed if I go to prison.”
“I just... I don’t know what to say. I still don’t understand why you didn’t try to stop Abigail. Why didn’t you keep her from killing my mother and Nana?”
“I wish Ihad. If I could go back in time, I would,” Eric said. “I showed up at your house that night because I was under the illusion that I could convince your mom to come with me. I realized she was in danger on her own and I thought I could help her. I told her Abigail was coming for her. Zoey talked to the wrong people and didn’t keep her end of the bargain, but she wouldn’t listen. She believed that she could still get Abigail and the others arrested and stay safe. I came back later to try again to convince her to leave and saw the house in flames and I knew I was too late. I saw you sitting with your grandfather. You were wrapped in a blanket and snuggled up with him. I knew you’d be okay and that I’d held up my promise to protect you, so I went home.”
Stunned, Maya didn’t know what to say. His story matched her memories. She remembered hearing her mother yelling that she wasn’t going with him. Maya had been too young to understand.
“What about Nana?” she asked. “How did she get caught up in this so many years later?”
“Your grandmother called me out of the blue. I was still working at the department. I couldn’t leave because Abigail had blackmail on me too. When your grandmother called, I was shocked. She told me that Zoey had confided in her and told her everything about what happened up in Montana. That she and her husband had raised you and you were a Marine and deployed to Afghanistan. She said she’d read an article in the paper about a couple agents with the FBI and some other agencies that were looking into the corruption in our town from the police force on up to the judges. She told me that she had the evidence from Zoey. You were safe in Afghanistan, at least from all of this, and she wanted to do something with what Zoey had gathered. I agreed to meet with her, get the evidence and take it to the right people. I didn’t want her involved.”
“Then what happened?” Maya asked.
“It was my fault. I can’t even say how sorry I am,” Eric said, staring at the ground. “I made the mistake of talking where someone overheard me. I’m sure whoever it was ran as fast as they could and told Abigail. I arrived that night and waited out by the trees like your grandmother told me to. She didn’t show, so I finally went to the house. Knocked on the door. No answer. I went inside and saw her. I knew then that I would be framed for her murder too. I’m so sorry. Maybe if I had stayed this would all be over.”
“Or maybe you’d also be dead,” Maya said.
“Maybe, but I went back to my job and pretended that nothing had happened. Then I heard about a year later that Zoey’s case and your grandmother’s case had been reopened. There were DNA samples being run. I knew I had to leave and come here and protect you. I’d failed Zoey and your Nana, but I wasn’t going to let Abigail hurt you.”
“How did you find out that I’d sent in the DNA?” she asked.
“I still have a couple of reliable contacts in the department. They called me.”
“What about Kendra?”
“What about her?”
“Did you kill her?” Maya asked.
“No, I didn’t. She was working for Abigail and was supposed to get close to you and gather information. I think as she got to know you, she felt guilty about everything she was doing. She started to realize you were kind of a friend. I was trying to get her to give me information, and I thought I could force her into it, but realized I was crossing a line I didn’t want to. When I left her, she was alive. I’m guessing Abigail, Blake or Harold found her.”
“We tried to find her family to notify them and couldn’t locate anyone. Her father was killed in prison. Do you know of anyone?”
“No.” Eric shook his head. “That’s why she was in the system and perfect for Abigail to control. I thought when she joined the Air Force she was going to get out of our town and out of Abigail’s reach, but when she discharged, unfortunately she came back home. Abigail found her right away.”
“Thank you,” Maya said.
