Page 136 of Fighting Mr. Knight

Mugging someone is not an accident.

He grips the glass. “Believe me, I’ve already paid in guilt. Not a day goes by where I don’t think about what happened.”

He’s telling the truth. I hear it in his voice.

“I’ll get arrested for assisting an offender, Bonnie. Maybe worse. Is that what you want?”

Tears form in my eyes.

“They’ll let you off easy if you give yourself up,” I say, blinking them back. “You were just a witness. You won’t get prison time. You can say you were scared and that’s why you didn’t come forward before.”

I don’t know if I’m trying to convince Dad or me.

He was there.

He saw it happen.

He let it happen.

The wave of dread rises like a tsunami in my stomach.

Tonight was supposed to be different. I was going to sleep for the first time in two weeks. All the secrets were going to be out in the open and Jack and I would move forward.

Now I’m trying to figure out if I’m a murderer’s daughter.

Dad turns his back to me and stands at the sink. For a second I think he’s ignoring me. Then I see his shoulders silently shake. I’ve only seen Dad cry twice before.

Everything is fucked.

No matter what happens, I’ve lost Jack.

32

Bonnie

I’m in the middle of a painfully hot shower when the door buzzes. The only people who visit me unannounced are Amazon delivery men, especially at 8 a.m. on a Saturday.

But I know from the buzz it’s not a delivery guy. I canfeelthe annoyance through the buzz.

With shampoo still in my hair, I wrap a towel around me and rush down the stairs.

When I open the door, he has a deep frown on his face.

I lay awake all night worrying about how I would face Jack, to the point I felt physically ill.

And now he’s here.

For a moment, we just stare at each other.

My mind goes into survival mode. Nothing has to change. Jack knows who killed his father. He has his answers.

We can forget about this and move on.

We can go to Crystal Palace Park today. Jack said he hasn’t been there since he was a kid and wants to go back. Jack wants to check if there’s a cafe still there that his nan used to take him to.

We can do that today.

I’ll do anything Jack wants. Today and every single day after.

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