I
couldn’t imagine why. There wasn’t another soul around to hear what
he had to say. Still, he seemed serious, so I gave him my full
attention. “There’s something important that I need to tell
you.”
“Okay,” I looked at our cupped hands and
back to him. “what’s up?”
“I want you to know that us moving here to
Oakland had nothing to do with you,” he swallowed hard. His palms
began to sweat, and he closed his eyes to brace himself for my
response.
“Well, obviously,” I squeezed his hands,
“you didn’t know me until you moved in.”
“And that’s why we need to have this
conversation,” he said. “Because I did know you in some
sense. But again,” he said, looking as though he truly needed me to
believe what he was saying, “I didn’t move here because of
you. Coming here was all Hannah’s idea. I didn’t know you were here
until after the fact, until you stood out there on the driveway and
told me who you were, but Hannah knew, and she wanted to see
you.”
I stared at him open-mouthed, unsure of
whether or not he was waiting on a response.
He took a deep breath and let go of my
hands. “I have a shoebox of things in my room that I think will
help me explain this a little better. Do you mind if I…?”
“No, go,” I urged him to retrieve the box.
If it’d help him communicate whatever it was he needed to say, I
wanted him to have it.
As I sat on the edge of the couch, I racked
my brain for how I could’ve possibly known Derek and Hannah. I
couldn’t remember them from my past, but something about his eyes and her grin seemed far too familiar.
A tap on the outside window interrupted my
thoughts. I glanced up to see Luke standing in the shadows on the
other side of the glass. Perched up on the ledge of the porch, he
motioned for me to come closer. I shooed him away and turned back
to my thoughts.
He tapped on the window again, this time
harder. I finally got up, went across the room, and opened the
window.
“Go away.”
“Listen to me, Julie,” Luke said, hastily,
“you need to get out of there. Now .”
“Go away, Luke. I’m done with this.”
“Dammit, Julie, listen to me.”
“I’m fine.”
“I just back from the West Bridge PD,” Luke
said, irritated that I wouldn’t hear him out. “They’re Miltons.
Derek and Hannah Milton .”
“Derek and Hannah Jones ,” I corrected
him.
“They changed their last name and left town
after the trial to ward off the press. It’s like they vanished off
the map until now,” he leaned closer to the window screen so I’d
hear the enunciation of each syllable. “Derek and Hannah Milton.
Son and daughter of Conan Milton—”
“The man who murdered your parents,” Derek
said behind me, setting a shoebox down on the end of the couch.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, Julie.”
“Back up,” Luke interrupted, pressing his
finger against the screen.
“Julie, please,” Derek begged, stealing my
attention from Luke, “I don’t mean any harm. Hannah just wanted to
see it for herself. She wanted to see that you’d really moved here
to Oakland and started over. She’s still having a lot of trouble
coming to terms with what our father has done. She’s struggling;
she needed this. She needed closure.”
I backed against the window and faced Derek,
and the realization of their likeness hit me full-force. His blue
eyes—he had his father’s same, round, ocean-blue eyes. And Hannah
bore that same nasty smirk her father had worn in all the press
photos and in the mug shot taken after the murders.
The front door opened and Luke let himself
in, taking an immediate stride across the room to put himself
between me and Derek.
“Derek,” Luke put his hand out to keep him
from taking another step closer,“I’m taking Julie with me, and
you’re going to stay right where you’re at, and you won’t ever come
near her again.”
“Please,” Derek said. He looked past Luke
and leaned to the side to
couldn’t imagine why. There wasn’t another soul around to hear what
he had to say. Still, he seemed serious, so I gave him my full
attention. “There’s something important that I need to tell
you.”
“Okay,” I looked at our cupped hands and
back to him. “what’s up?”
“I want you to know that us moving here to
Oakland had nothing to do with you,” he swallowed hard. His palms
began to sweat, and he closed his eyes to brace himself for my
response.
“Well, obviously,” I squeezed his hands,
“you didn’t know me until you moved in.”
“And that’s why we need to have this
conversation,” he said. “Because I did know you in some
sense. But again,” he said, looking as though he truly needed me to
believe what he was saying, “I didn’t move here because of
you. Coming here was all Hannah’s idea. I didn’t know you were here
until after the fact, until you stood out there on the driveway and
told me who you were, but Hannah knew, and she wanted to see
you.”
I stared at him open-mouthed, unsure of
whether or not he was waiting on a response.
He took a deep breath and let go of my
hands. “I have a shoebox of things in my room that I think will
help me explain this a little better. Do you mind if I…?”
“No, go,” I urged him to retrieve the box.
If it’d help him communicate whatever it was he needed to say, I
wanted him to have it.
As I sat on the edge of the couch, I racked
my brain for how I could’ve possibly known Derek and Hannah. I
couldn’t remember them from my past, but something about his eyes and her grin seemed far too familiar.
A tap on the outside window interrupted my
thoughts. I glanced up to see Luke standing in the shadows on the
other side of the glass. Perched up on the ledge of the porch, he
motioned for me to come closer. I shooed him away and turned back
to my thoughts.
He tapped on the window again, this time
harder. I finally got up, went across the room, and opened the
window.
“Go away.”
“Listen to me, Julie,” Luke said, hastily,
“you need to get out of there. Now .”
“Go away, Luke. I’m done with this.”
“Dammit, Julie, listen to me.”
“I’m fine.”
“I just back from the West Bridge PD,” Luke
said, irritated that I wouldn’t hear him out. “They’re Miltons.
Derek and Hannah Milton .”
“Derek and Hannah Jones ,” I corrected
him.
“They changed their last name and left town
after the trial to ward off the press. It’s like they vanished off
the map until now,” he leaned closer to the window screen so I’d
hear the enunciation of each syllable. “Derek and Hannah Milton.
Son and daughter of Conan Milton—”
“The man who murdered your parents,” Derek
said behind me, setting a shoebox down on the end of the couch.
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you, Julie.”
“Back up,” Luke interrupted, pressing his
finger against the screen.
“Julie, please,” Derek begged, stealing my
attention from Luke, “I don’t mean any harm. Hannah just wanted to
see it for herself. She wanted to see that you’d really moved here
to Oakland and started over. She’s still having a lot of trouble
coming to terms with what our father has done. She’s struggling;
she needed this. She needed closure.”
I backed against the window and faced Derek,
and the realization of their likeness hit me full-force. His blue
eyes—he had his father’s same, round, ocean-blue eyes. And Hannah
bore that same nasty smirk her father had worn in all the press
photos and in the mug shot taken after the murders.
The front door opened and Luke let himself
in, taking an immediate stride across the room to put himself
between me and Derek.
“Derek,” Luke put his hand out to keep him
from taking another step closer,“I’m taking Julie with me, and
you’re going to stay right where you’re at, and you won’t ever come
near her again.”
“Please,” Derek said. He looked past Luke
and leaned to the side to
Similar Books
