Torched by Bella Love-Wins Page A

it.”
    He felt the same way. “I wish we could go back in time and pass that stupid Zoology class. You have no idea how much I keep wishing for that...for us.”
    “I keep thinking this will all be a nightmare,” she admitted. “I’ll wake up and discover none of it really happened. Then, I’m hit with reality. This is real and we’re living it and—”
    “It’s all my fault,” Kevin told her.
    “We’ve been through this before, Kev. It’s not, and I don’t blame you.”
    “You should,” he whispered. “If we weren’t here, maybe none of this would have happened. And we wouldn’t be stuck in this hell.”
    “Kevin. That if is a big one . We don’t know what would or wouldn’t happen given different circumstances, and I’m willing to take my chances, because I love you.”
    She ran her hand over his cheek and smiled. It seemed genuine, but he had a hard time believing there was not even the least bit of doubt in her words.
    “Let’s go find some breakfast. I’m starved.”
    Before they could get to the bottom of the stairs, there was a loud knock on the front door.
    “Want to put the kettle on?” he asked, heading down the hall. “I’ll get the door.”
    He swung it open and was not surprised to see Jessup and Grayson.
    “Hello. Come on in,” he said, ushering them inside.
    It was only a matter of time before they showed up, but he had not expected it to be the very next day.
    “Good morning,” Officer Jessup replied, then turned to Tara and nodded in greeting. “Are your parents at home?”
    Kevin walked to the foot of the steps and called up to them.
    “Mom...Dad...you have company.” He went back to where the police officers were waiting. “What’s this about?”
    “We’ll explain when your parents get down here,” Officer Grayson answered.
    “Would you like to take a seat?” Kevin asked, gesturing to the living room. They followed him to the room and sat down. A moment of tense silence followed.
    Tara came out from the kitchen and offered them coffee, but they refused. She took a spot close to Kevin, squeezing his hand for comfort. It was awkward. They just sat there, eyeing him, not saying a word. When he heard his parents coming down the steps, he relaxed a little.
    His dad entered the living room, and an angry expression crossed his face when he saw their visitors.
    “What are you doing here?”
    His mom placed her hand on his back to calm him down.
    “We just have a few questions for you,” Officer Jessup replied calmly. “For starters, have you seen your son Jake?”
    “No!” Kevin’s father hollered.
    Officer Jessup tilted her head. “Not at all?”
    “I can answer that,” Kevin interrupted. “None of us have seen him. Why don’t you tell us why you’re questioning that...again?”
    His parents sat in the two empty seats as Officer Grayson explained.
    “A dark sedan was spotted outside your house. It was reported stolen this morning, and a couple of witnesses confirmed they saw it parked on this street last night. Do you know if your son was driving a stolen vehicle?”
    “We didn’t see Jake at all yesterday,” Kevin replied. “Anyone could have parked on this street. It doesn’t mean Jake had anything to do with it.”
    He was surprised he was still defending his brother.
    Officer Jessup nodded. “True.”
    “What’s this really about?” his dad asked.
    Officer Grayson spoke up. “There was a murder on the street last night. The body was found in the woods by two teenagers. Marcus Grigsby had a gunshot wound to the head and burn marks on his chest. This stolen vehicle was spotted a few houses from here. We are trying to track down every lead, just to be sure it was in fact a coincidence.”
    “Gunshot?” Kevin asked. “That’s different, right? How do you know it’s the same killer?”
    “We’ve reason to believe the gun belonged to Charles Warner, the security guard found at Chesapeake Park. You don’t know anything about it?”
    Kevin